Have We Said Yes Yet?

Just read on Streetsblog’s DC edition that Bikes Belong is looking for six cities to participate in its Green Lane Project, which will guide municipalities through the process of installing protected cycleways.

They’re looking for three major and three “emerging” cities (their term)–and Los Angeles is among those invited. (Cities can applyt o be included even if they weren’t invited.)

As of yesterday, only Chicago is formally participating.

Chicago already has pretty good bike infrastructure, for a US city at least. Here is LA, however, despite real progress in recent months, we are sorely lacking.

So, mighty City of Los Angeles, have we said yes yet? If not, why not?

Is our compulsion to reinvent the square wheel and refuse to learn from the experiences of others to blame? Is it bureaucratic inertia? Did we lose the postcard?

In case we did, and in case Mayor V., LADOT, City Planning, and the various council offices are reading this, here’s the application form.

This is what they need:

• A letter of support from the Mayor or other elected official
  
• A letter of support from a community group
  
• A map of existing bike network identifying different facility types
  
• A map of potential improvements over the two-year period

We have numbers 3 and 4; LACBC could take care of number 2; but we are dependent on Tony V or the Council for number 1.

I haven’t heard the least buzz about this in town. Yet the project dovetails exactly with several current efforts, including the Spring STreet lane which we famously haven’t been able to keep paint on for even a week at a time.

I’m curious. Are we in or are we out?