When Streetsblog San Francisco launched in 2009, I was glued. There I was, a student at SF State University frustrated by the constant missed opportunities to make the city's streets safer for walking and biking and to speed up Muni. But the city's movement for livable streets seemed to be coalescing into something bigger, and the launch of Streetsblog seemed to come at just the right time.
As a reader, the coverage from Bryan, Matthew, and Michael in those first years gave me a new perspective on what was standing in the way of everything from corner sidewalk extensions to protected bike lanes (remember the bike injunction?) to Bus Rapid Transit routes -- and it helped connect me with ways to take action.
Thanks to reader support, Streetsblog has been able to persevere, and for the last year-and-a-half I have had the incredible privilege to manage and produce Streetsblog SF. If you value the coverage we provide, please make a contribution to Streetsblog during our spring pledge drive, so we can continue to bring you the latest in livable streets.
Since a group of fearmongering merchants started to threaten the redesign of Polk Street for safer walking and biking, Streetsblog has been the only news source cutting through the misinformation and holding our supposedly bike-friendly leaders' feet to the fire. When the Mayor's Office endorsed a proposal for SF's next freeway removal, we broke the news and got the conversation rolling. And no one else is covering important issues like parking policy or regional urban planning in as much detail as Streetsblog.
We can't do it without support from readers like you. And to sweeten the deal a bit, anyone who makes a gift of $50 or more (or a monthly gift of $5 or more) will be entered into the drawing to take home an awesome folding bike, courtesy of Dahon:
In the coming months, Streetsblog will need your support as we push our electeds at City Hall to fund the city's visionary bicycle and pedestrian strategies, track the re-shaping of Market Street, hold the SFPD to its pledge to enforce the most dangerous driving behaviors, and see through the SFMTA's implementation of delayed protected bike lanes and pedestrian safety upgrades on Fell and Oak Streets. Plus, when KTVU broadcasts ridiculous scaremongering reports about bike-share, who else is going to call them out?
Thanks to all our donors for making Streetsblog possible. Please make a tax-deductible gift to help us raise $40,000 by June 1 and keep us going through 2013 and beyond.
-- Aaron
