Los Angeles Bike Summit: A Dialogue Between Mayor Villaraigosa and Bicycle Advocates

On Monday morning, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa hosted a bike summit in response to an accident a few weeks ago that left him with a permanent plate in his elbow.  The Mayor and representatives from the Department of Transportation, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Department of City Planning, and Los Angeles Police Department formed a panel that answered questions from the standing-room only audience of bicycle advocates.  I participated on behalf of NRDC with Greg Gould, NRDC’s transportation fellow, to show our support for transportation options that move us away from fossil fuels and promote urban mobility.  Overall, the bike summit proved to be a productive dialogue with Mayor Villaraigosa and the relevant city departments, a small step towards updating the city’s street standards to more accurately reflect the multi-modal needs of its residents. 

While the two hours of questions reflected a variety of concerns, the majority of issues centered on improved infrastructure, increased enforcement and a culture change in drivers. 

DOT Needs to Implement Bike Plans

Advocates insisted the DOT change leadership to reflect a less car-centric agenda, implement as much of the approved 1996 bike plan as feasible and complete projects that have been green-lighted by the city council including the downtown bike paths. 

They also asked for a full draft of the 2010 bike plan and for it to be fast-tracked so that it wouldn’t take 25 years to complete, along the lines of the Mayor’s 30/10 plan for subway construction.  One concerned advocate commented that very little of the 1996 bike plan was actually completed, leaving little trust that the city would actually implement the 2010 bike plan in 25 years. In response, DOT General Manager Rita Robinson stated that the 2010 plan had an annual work plan component which required a progress report, making it a “livable” plan and differentiating it from the 1996 plan. 

Councilmember Rosenthal, chair of the City Council’s Transportation Committee, gave an impassioned speech asking for increased safety for cyclists, a private cause of action for cyclists involved in altercations with drivers, and a three feet passing law that drew cheers from the audience.

Bike Riders Need Protection on City Streets

While praising the LAPD and Chief Beck for improved relations with the bicycle community, advocates asked for increased training of beat cops that fail to follow official guidelines and for stricter enforcements of existing laws.  Calls for a cyclists’ bill of rights were also echoed throughout the summit, with some suggesting that such a bill be featured in all city departments, including the LAPD.

Biking Rights and Safety Need More Attention

Mayor Villaraigosa and advocates touted culture change as key to improving safety for the city’s bicyclists.  The Mayor promised public service announcements in both print and media to educate drivers on the right of cyclists to use the roads and to increase respect for bicycling as a mode of transport.  In the meantime, he advocated for a mandatory helmet law insisting that his use of a helmet saved his life.  This proposal received mixed reviews from the audience.   Advocates welcomed PSAs but also asked for instruction to be included in driver’s education classes and for literature to be included when drivers apply for license renewals.

Additionally, advocates spoke of greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution problems, and obesity concerns in low-income neighborhoods as additional reasons to quickly create a region-wide bike infrastructure. 

In one of the few existing examples of the city working with advocates, representatives from CicLAvia spoke about the event scheduled for October 10, 2010 (10/10/10) and the need to create public space in park-poor neighborhoods.  Started in Bogota, Colombia and held weekly on Sundays, CicLAVia will create a 7.5 mile public space from East Hollywood to East Los Angeles by removing car traffic from streets and instead, opening them up for bicycling and walking.  Representatives thanked the Mayor for his support and expressed optimism for a great event, with the hope of repeating the event in the near future.

Dispersed throughout the summit were calls for Mayor Villaraigosa to become a champion of bicycling issues.  While cities like New York, Long Beach, and Pasadena have been able to redesign their streets to include cyclists and pedestrians, Los Angeles sadly lags far behind.  According to many in the audience, the missing piece in Los Angeles was a champion.  They stressed that no real change would happen unless the Mayor prioritized bicycling and pedestrian safety in his agenda. 

Speaking of his legacy, many implored the Mayor to seize the opportunity given by his accident and the bike summit to create real, lasting change in the city.  Mayor Villaraigosa responded by stating that he cared greatly about the issues discussed and that he would assign an aide to focus on bike and pedestrian matters.  He expressed frustration at the bureaucracy and promised to work with the relevant city departments to implement the suggestions made at the summit, adding that he would meet with advocates again in a year so that the city would be held accountable to their concerns.

I found the bike summit to be a positive step in the right direction and look forward to continued dialogue with the Mayor and city staff so that Los Angeles can become a model of sustainable community and green living.

For more information on bicycling advocacy in Los Angeles, visit the City of LA Bicycle Advisory Committee website at http://www.bicyclela.org/AdvisoryBoard.htm and the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition (LACBC) website at http://la-bike.org.