Cities shouldn?t let their cyclists get run over May is National Bike Month. Most years, I?ve commemorated the month with a lighthearted story about the joys of pedal-propelled travel, or how fun it is to ride with kids. But, as we?ve witnessed so far, 2019 is not most years. This bike month, all I?m thinking about is how we can get as many people out of cars and into zero-emission transportation modes, as fast?and as safely?as possible.
Bike month is a good time for mayors to ask themselves tough questions about why there aren?t more people riding bikes (or other small, wheeled devices) in their cities?especially when they?ve made such goals part of their climate commitments.
The answer is almost always the same: there?s not a safe, separated network of bike lanes to help get people where they want to go. A few weeks ago, bike advocates across the country placed red cups along routes that cities had demarcated as ?bike lanes,? but where even the most experienced cyclists still felt unsafe. The highly visible red cups?sometimes clear plastic cups filled with red Gatorade or, in some cases, ripe tomatoes?were inevitably crushed by vehicles driving too closely to the lanes.

Venice Boulevard is the connection to the Expo Line/path and one of the only bike routes across LA. Would you want your loved ones biking here" We have to #DemandMore. #RedCupProject pic.twitter.com/umXiqMKIGs? Rabi Abonour (@rabonour) April 26, 2019

The idea was attributed to advocate Dav...