Community, Advocacy and Labor

In honor of Bike Month this year, Mayor Gavin Newsom, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) and local businesses have teamed up with the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition (SFBC) to promote shopping by bicycle in various neighborhoods across the city. As part of the I Bike SF campaign, participating businesses in Hayes Valley are offering discounts throughout the month of May to cyclists who bring in their bicycle helmets or bike lock keys when they shop or eat out.

Want to see an unprecedented outpouring of public support for a government agency? Look no further than your nearest sewer.

Most cities in the Bay Area are gearing up for Bike to Work Day this Thursday, with numerous activities to encourage people to make riding to work a more enjoyable and routine part of life. In San Jose, the city has planned a whole week of events.

TransForm's annual Car-Free Challenge is coming up in a few weeks and they've produced this video to get you in the spirit. If you'll remember last year we profiled several inspirational participants who demonstrated that you don't need a ride to raise a family and the mystique of a driver's license as personal ticket to freedom doesn't hold sway for some teenagers in the East Bay.

(This story originally appeared on the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition's blog)

Could San Francisco's first and oldest thoroughfare become the city's first true pedestrianized street?

You don't even need X-ray vision. All you gotta do is call 311.

Muni may be having trouble acquiring cash these days, but there's one thing that's never in short supply for the transit agency: advice.

One of the central criticisms of Muni's objective to consolidate bus stops is that it hasn't conducted thorough demographic analysis of the people who use each stop, particularly seniors and the disabled. Rather than rely solely on the distance between stops and the incline of the streets, say critics, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) should make nuanced decisions about each stop based on the amenities near the stops and the people who use them.