Ultimately, children’s cycling independence is not just a matter of skills or parental trust, but a collective design choice about what – and who – our cities are for. open.substack.com/pub/urbancyc...

We are doing our best to keep up with rent needs at our neighborhood school, but the needs are growing by the day. We received $10,000 more in rent requests just this morning (all for overdue February rent). Donate if you can and please share with your people! gofund.me/51551927d

This article is fantastic AND those of us who’ve been organizing since early December are oh-so-very tired. Time for the second wave of folks to jump in and take on more so we can rest a bit. If you have capacity, plug in with whatever’s happening in your neighborhood.

"But we have winter" proven to be a straw man excuse once again!

It’s wild that infrastructure is assumed to mean massive accommodations for 4-ton vehicles that damage roads, while parking for a cargo bike is treated as a niche request. We are effectively subsidizing the thing that costs the city the most money, while squeezing out the tool that actually scales.

Friends, I’m once again asking you to donate. But not to me! @claireforny.bsky.social is a union organizer, democratic socialist and my former Assembly colleague running for Congress in NY-7. Chip in today: secure.actblue.com/donate/clair...

Snow is nature's urban planner: It can show us what parts of the roadway drivers don't use — and what can be reclaimed for pedestrians. Post your photos and videos of all the #sneckdowns you see and tag us and @mayor.nyc.gov so today's winter wonderland can inspire better streets year-round!

“Two billion autonomous cars would continue to sprawl around us, drain our wallets, pollute our cities and limit our freedoms. They distract from meaningful progress, making cities walkable, livable and improving transit. In foregrounding them we continue our bondage to the car-industrial complex.”

So...the US is a hellhole now. I wonder if this is the the beginning of the end of empire or just a dark downturn that extends its life?

Despite what we are often told, this line from Mamdani’s inauguration speech is what true pragmatism actually looks like: “Beginning today, we will govern expansively and audaciously. We may not always succeed. But never will we be accused of lacking the courage to try.”

I generally don't like to post screenshots of text, but someone posted this in our local Strong Towns group and it was too good not to share here.

Can't wait for @modacitylife.com to be in Goshen, Indiana. I'm counting down the days!

Happy Christmas to all and to all a good bike!

From earlier this week… Multi lane highway cutting through the city: perfectly clear City street: well cleared Sidewalk: covered in snow (w/ many footprints) We need more investment in clearing our sidewalks so everyone (not just drivers) can get around in winter. #PlowMPLSsidewalks

More people will ride in winter weather when they know their commute will be efficient. Sure, the protected bike lanes enable a lot of people, but the friction caused by dealing with cars at every intersection keeps many from utilizing the bicycle in winter. Fix the chaos of cars and induce demand.

We have the tools. The only thing missing is the political will to prioritize it. If we can clear a roadway, we can clear a bike path.

I will never not be fascinated by snow management in Montreal and many other parts of Quebec. In addition to plowing the roads, sidewalks, and bike lanes, cities will actually collect snow from streets and truck it out to snow dumps half a dozen times a year. It makes a massive difference.

"These ebikes are out of control and we need to regulate them now!"

I wish every single article on gerrymandering would include this disclaimer: “This is a unique aspect of the American political system. Most other countries don’t allow politicians to draw electoral maps. Many even go further with proportional representation to ensure outcomes match votes.”

It's that time of year when Americans set up quaint, walkable Christmas villages in their living rooms, dreaming of living in such a cozy place. ​Meanwhile, they'll show up to city council meetings to fiercely oppose any plan that would actually build that kind of car-lite community in real life.

This is the founding principle of the modern suburb.

It's as if going all in on car dependent sprawl was a terrible idea and now we live with bidding wars for basic "perks" such as walkability, leaving those without deep pockets financially obligated to cars, so they can access more affordable housing. What a cluster. www.realtor.com/news/trends/...

I vote:

Congratulations NYC. Hope he does great things for you and we can move to the left as a country

ICYMI: Yesterday this truly fascinating, in-depth conversation with @brooklynspoke.bsky.social and @sgoodyear.bsky.social about their new book Life After Cars: Freeing Ourselves from the Tyranny of the Automobile was released into the wilds. youtu.be/OZQ82XKfElQ

With the average new car at $50,000, let's look at the real costs of "freedom": ​✅ Decades of debt ✅ Social isolation for every trip ✅ A leading cause of death & injury ​Car dependency is a financially and socially crippling system, not a choice.

Agreed

Reached the 500th mile of use on our new ebike while riding to work this morning! We haven't even had it a year yet, so I feel like this is a good sign for our shift to more walking and biking.

Does anyone know why 8 or so Tren Maya locomotives came through Goshen Indiana today?

i think an interesting cultural experiment would be if we started enforcing traffic law

Israeli drone footage shows the destruction in Gaza:

Car culture thrives on all-or-nothing thinking. Dedicate some part of the road to bikes? “You’re basically banning cars.” Safer speeds? “Oh yeah let’s all travel 5 km/h.” It’s like asking a child to clean their room and they respond dramatically “so you’re kicking me out? to live on the street?”.

Politically growing up for me meant moving further and further to the left because of my morality and beliefs in care for all people and creation. In turn, this shift meant moving farther and farther away from people who I cared for and respected. Sometimes that rift feels a bit alienating

Little hidden paths next to the canal? Very pleasant

My local grocery store co-op's annual block party. 50th year anniversary woohoo!

A friend’s 3-year old on a pedestrian street: “There’s no cars here so we don’t have to hold hands. I can run!”

I just want to push back on his last sentence that "something has gone terribly wrong." Our economic model sees it differently. Wall Street generates tons of money and economic growth. By contrast, teachers produce no immediate economic benefits. The system IS working, and capitalism must go.

I just found out yesterday thst I enjoy watching the river grass sway. I watched for multiple minutes and it brought me joy in these uncertain times.

Rule 78: Put Street Trees Almost Everywhere Street trees do it all, they... Cut crashes by 45% Raise home values 9% Boost retail sales 12% Clean air, cool streets, absorb stormwater, improve health, and make places more inviting Walkable City Rules www.amazon.com/Walkable-Cit...

I see way more cargo bikes during school commuting hours than any other time (or in the summer, commuting hours for day camps and other activities). Went for a walk this morning and saw maybe a dozen cargo bikes of different kinds. I love it!

I happily admit that I'm much more connected to nature and wildlife around me when I bike for transportation. I never got that in a car.

Oh the places you can go without a car

Madame Slush — selling slushies by cargo bike!

I finished it this week. Final verdit: very good book, highly recommend. I did the audio book version and it was only 10ish hours i think. Worth it

The era of climate migration is upon us. Residents of Tuvalu are slowly resettling in Australia. This is only the beginning… www.wired.com/story/the-fi...

children are born pedestrians yet everywhere kept in cars

It takes excessive speed and power to create violence like this. Car culture needs to be heavily regulated at the manufacturer level as well as through street design. Enough is enough.

new EPISODE about an incident which was very SLAPSTICK but also INCREDIBLY GRUESOME with @angryscooter77.bsky.social

Here I am in traffic helplessly watching as a superior form of transit zips past.

You could jam 4 lanes of sterilized asphalt for cars down this corridor or realize that cars don't need to exist everywhere that people do in order to create sustainable, tranquil, truly livable cities. 📸 @annejessicalise.bsky.social