Bike Talk

BikeTalk

We are a bike advocacy and culture podcast based in Los Angeles, Ca.

  1. 26/22 Touring Together

    Jun 5

    26/22 Touring Together

    Taylor and Marc Gomes on the unexpected beauty of Eastern Oregon and the dynamics of long-distance riding with an old friend. 0:22 Eurosports Bike Shop in Sisters, Oregon 4:58 The Good Bike Company Prineville, Oregon 9:39 Jalet Farrell at the Spoke'n Hostel, a five star, donation-based hostel in Mitchell, Oregon https://www.spokenhostel.org 10:32 News: An escooter/bike crash kills both riders on NYC's Queensboro Bridge https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/deadly-queensboro-bridge-crash-enforcement/?intcid=CNR-02-0623. A Netherlands court decides how much foot movement counts as ‘pedaling’ an e-bike https://electrek.co/2026/05/31/a-court-just-decided-how-much-foot-movement-counts-as-pedaling-an-e-bike/. Wildlife is impacted by an oil spill in the LA River https://ktla.com/news/local-news/wildlife-impacted-by-oil-spill-in-la-river/. 17:07 Dan Langenkamp talks about getting the Sarah Debbink Langenkamp Active Transportation Safety Act into the Federal Transportation Reauthorization Act. The bill is named for Dan's wife Sarah, who was killed by a truck driver while riding in a bike lane. It highlights the need to fill gaps in biking and walking networks and makes it easier for states and local governments to use Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) dollars to build safe bicycling and pedestrian infrastructure. https://bikeleague.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Sarah-Debbink-Langenkamp-Safety-Act-Fact-Sheet.pdf#:~:text=What%20it%20is»%20Sarah%20Debbink,killed%20weeks%20later%20while%20riding, https://rideforyourlife.org 19:15 Another email from Baltimore Fred and one from Nick’s mom, both rooting for Taylor on his ride. 29:00 Irwin from the Netherlands rides with an American flag since getting hit by a car in Kentucky. 30:22 Advocates declare a Traffic State of Emergency in Los Angeles. We talk to Damian Kevitt of Streets Are For Everyone and Jonathan Hale of People's Vision Zero https://ujoin.co/campaigns/4275/actions/public?action_id=6456. 35:28 Taylor and Marc meet Kay Schuster, woman who rode coast to coast in 1976 at 21, and is riding again at 71 https://kaybikes4kids.com. 51:27

    58 min
  2. 26/21 Bike People Are The Best

    May 29

    26/21 Bike People Are The Best

    Taylor meets a guardian angel, Sherry, who breaks wind for him on her ebike, and her partner Cindy, who drive him and his bike 60 miles. 1:29 Taylor meets a(nother) good bike Samaritan, Henry. 7:30 Stacey's News: Our first look at transportation reauthorization https://bikeleague.org/our-first-look-at-transportation-reauthorization/?utm_source=chatgpt.com, a Massachusetts Micromobility Bill https://www.massbike.org/micromobility_bill_s_3077?utm_campaign=bike_month_newsletter_3&utm_medium=email&utm_source=massbike, San Jose cyclists may soon have to share bike lanes with DoorDash delivery robots https://abc7news.com/post/doordash-dot-san-jose-cyclists-may-soon-have-share-bike-lanes-food-delivery-robots/19126915/, and LA says it needs six more years and more staff for mobility projects that already got $100M from the state https://laist.com/news/transportation/street-services-wilmington-boyle-heights-skid-row. 10:07 Will protected bike lanes and pedestrian features on Chicago’s Archer Avenue survive the impatience of drivers through the construction process? With Dixon Galvez-Searle of the Southwest Collective. https://www.swcollective.org/archer-kedzie-redesign 12:40 How San Francisco is responding to a 32% growth in biking and ebikelash in the state of California, with Robin Pam of Streets For All, Brett Thurber of The New Wheel, and Claire Amable, Advocacy Director of the SF Bicycle Coalition. 29:45 Taylor talks with Hiker Lars and biker Hugh in Humbug State Park. All three took advantage of “hike and bike,” California parks' inexpensive, no-reservation camping. https://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=29607 45:02

    58 min
  3. 26/20 What We're Up Against

    May 22

    26/20 What We're Up Against

    Taylor’s Ride. Taylor tours the Marin Museum of Bicycling and Mountain Bike Hall of Fame with Ross, the Curator. 6:40 Taylor interviews the Elk County Postmaster, WarmShowers.org host Judy Bonney. 12:32 Two anti ebike bills were defeated in California. With Kendra Ramsey, Executive Director of the California Bicycle Coalition 17:06 News: Sacramento deploys AI in parking enforcement vehicles to detect bike lane violations https://www.abc10.com/video/news/community/sacramento-rolls-out-ai-to-catch-cars-blocking-bike-lanes/103-d50d664a-96dc-40b5-9714-ec4d2cbf1655. Illinois transportation bills aim to address speeding and bicycle safety https://ipmnewsroom.org/illinois-transportation-bills-aim-to-address-speeding-and-bicycle-safety/. NYC is transforming 10 miles of roadway in Brooklyn into giant ‘bike boulevards’ https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/nyc-is-transforming-10-miles-of-roadway-in-brooklyn-into-giant-bike-boulevards-050726. Mexico City sex workers oppose the World Cup bike lane https://www.npr.org/2026/05/19/nx-s1-5816295/world-cup-bike-lane-sparks-fury-from-mexico-city-sex-workers. 21:47 We must change the incentive for a driver to flee a hit and run while under the influence, says Jim Pocrass, our bike lawyer. 24:24 A third option with more trees, fewer cars, and not as many through streets for NYC’s Park Avenue redesign, by Miser, Micromobility NYC Reddit Moderator https://www.reddit.com/r/MicromobilityNYC/comments/1sz4p1o/the_announced_plan_for_park_ave_is_great_but_ive/. With Gersh Kuntzman, Streetsblog NYC Editor. 30:15

    57 min
  4. 26/19 Bike The World

    May 15

    26/19 Bike The World

    Despite fierce opposition from Beverly Hills NIMBYs, the Los Angeles D Line can now take you from Downtown LA to Beverly Hills faster than anything except a helicopter, Joe Linton, Streetsblog LA Editor, reports. As proof, Streetsblog LA will host a race between a cyclist, a driver, and a D Line rider. https://la.streetsblog.org/2026/05/07/new-d-line-subway-will-change-how-angelenos-get-around 3:15 News: It’s now illegal to block bike lanes statewide in Colorado https://www.denvergazette.com/outtherecolorado/2026/05/07/its-now-illegal-to-block-bike-lanes-statewide-in-colorado-thanks-to-bill-signed-by-polis/. Police in one Colorado town launch tool to report illegal E-bike and motorbike activity https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/parker-police-report-illegal-e-bike-motorbike-activity/. Amazon stops illegal e-bike sales in California https://www.kcra.com/article/amazon-stops-illegal-e-bikes-california-investigates/71255336. 11:35 Taylor gets one last session on bike tour readiness before his SF to Michigan ride from the Adventure Cycling Customer Experience Coordinator Josh Bowden. 17:10 P.L. and Kristen Meindertsma of Cycle 5 To Survive are making good on their pledge to bike five continents over five years while raising $500,000 from each of 5 different charities. https://cycle5tosurvive.com/ 31:22 Bridge Street Elementary parents Lauren Kaskey and Howard Moore start a bike bus to their Northampton, Massachusetts elementary school for Walk, Bike and Roll Day. 47:55 With Bike Talk co-host and Livable Communities Initiative co-founder Lindsay Sturman.

    58 min
  5. 26/18 Independent Bike Shop, Justice For Cyclists, Making Our Own Bike Plan, The Kittie Knox Plays

    May 8

    26/18 Independent Bike Shop, Justice For Cyclists, Making Our Own Bike Plan, The Kittie Knox Plays

    Taylor’s Bike Tour from SF to Mackinaw Island, from his daughters to his dad, begins May 16 at 8am, and you’re invited. Mechanics Dani and Paola at independent LA Cyclery help Taylor get his bike ready for the tour when corporate shops wouldn’t (4:30). Stacey’s News: Seattle pays injured cyclist $9.25 million for poorly designed bike lanes https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/transportation/city-pays-injured-cyclist-9-25-million-for-poorly-designed-bike-lanes/, Richmond VA is ticketing for parking in bike lanes https://www.wric.com/news/local-news/richmond/parking-bike-lane-buffers-ticket/, Santa Monica launches automated cameras to detect bike lane violations https://smmirror.com/2026/05/santa-monica-launches-automated-cameras-to-detect-bike-lane-violations/, The New York City Mayor’s office  unveiled a Design to Put the ‘Park’ Back in Park Avenue https://www.nyc.gov/mayors-office/news/2026/04/mayor-mamdani-unveils-design-concepts-to-put-the--park--back-in-, with a two-option survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/parkavenuevision; and NYC Mayor Mamdani joins cyclists for the 40-mile Five Boro Bike Tour across NYC https://ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2026/05/04/mamdani-joins-cyclists-for-40-mile-five-boro-bike-tour (9:49). UC Davis’ “Justice 4 Lincoln” group demands separated and protected bike lanes and pedestrian corridor, a “Lincoln Loop,” where UC Davis student Lincoln Sabini was killed by a car driver. With Aaron Shaw (13:30). Whether a mother’s criminal liability for her son’s e-moto killing of an elderly man is justified, and whether our concern is proportionate to the percentage of traffic deaths involving ebikes. With our bike lawyer, Jim Pocrass (24:24). The worst bike lane contest, bike month, and taking charge of designing complete streets in Pasadena with Jonah Kanner of the Pasadena Complete Streets Coalition (30:23). The Kittie Knox Plays “in place” (and on bikes) dramatize the story of the 21 year old bi-racial African American woman seamstress and cycling enthusiast. Winner of the League of American Bicyclists’ Kittie Knox Award, Kittie Knox Plays playwright Patrick Gabridge talks bikes and history from Northampton, Massachusetts https://bookshop.org/a/99134/9780998698250 (45:10).

    58 min
  6. 26/17 Bikes Win In The End

    May 1

    26/17 Bikes Win In The End

    Washington D.C.'s Bike Advocacy Group, WABA, wins its fight to protect "America's Bike Lane" from the federal government https://bikeleague.org/we-won-this-one-heres-what-comes-next/. Kallie Krumpos reports (3:10). At the California Bike Summit April 23–24, advocates met with legislators to champion safer streets and better bike infrastructure. CalBike Executive Director Kendra Ramsey reports on the Summit (10:45). A sampling of Bike Month events in California, including the LA River Ride https://www.streetsareforeveryone.org/finish-the-ride-griffith-park. Bike week rides in Western Massachusetts include bike breakfasts, a Great Tree Ride, and an “intergenerational ride” https://www.nohobikeweek.com/. In Detroit, Michigan, the Pushing Pedals Sunday Ride supports black-owned restaurants (16:15). Anyone who wants to join Taylor for a leg of his upcoming San Francisco-to-Michigan tour, please let us know (18:15). Stacey's News: Omaha, Nebraska Launches Free, All-Electric Bikeshare For Residents https://usa.streetsblog.org/2026/04/21/best-bikeshare-in-america-an-unexpected-community-launches-free-all-electric-micromobility-for-residents . UC Davis students push for bike safety changes following a bicyclist's death https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/uc-davis-push-for-bike-safety-after-fatal-crash/ . For Earth Day, the Trump Administration announces its “Freedom to Drive” Initiative To Expand Highways Across America https://usa.streetsblog.org/2026/04/22/for-earth-day-the-trump-administration-wants-to-expand-highways-across-america . E-bikes, e-motos, and other micromobility devices are in a legal gray area in Massachusetts https://www.massbike.org/micromobility_ordinances (19:47) The Car Harm study by corresponding author Patrick Miner finds that cars are destructive to every aspect of life https://www.research.ed.ac.uk/en/publications/car-harm-a-global-review-of-automobilitys-harm-to-people-and-the-/. With Patrick and Bike Talk listener Kevin Grishkot (23:30) The venerable La Grange bike club of Los Angeles joins forces with The Challenged Athletes Foundation. Taylor talks with challenged athlete coach Deb Carabet of the La Grange Bike Club https://www.challengedathletes.org (41:13).

    58 min
  7. 26/16 Bikepartisanship

    Apr 24

    26/16 Bikepartisanship

    Taylor talks with featured advocate Bronwyn Brightener and Director Ben Wolf of the documentary Changing Lanes about the contested Road Diet on McGuiness Boulevard in Greenpoint, Brooklyn https://www.changinglanesdoc.com/about (2:15). Eric Brightwell, host of the Nobody Drives in LA podcast, at the Changing Lanes screening https://ericbrightwell.com/nobody-drives-in-la/ (7:19). A concerned listener and bike safety designer/advocate, Abe a.k.a. Sundance, offers his “lane saber,” a light-up safety flag/space bar, for Taylor’s May trip up Highway 1 https://bsky.app/profile/sundance.bikesky.social (9:18). The second installment of a series on Gloria Ines getting a bike. Taylor and Gloria decide that Taylor will give her a bike to fix up at a bike co-op, the Los Angeles Bike Oven https://bike-oven.com (15:38). Listener Email: Solidarity for Taylor’s ride through Minneapolis from Brett McGraw, and two from Bluesky: another biker who wears backpacks, Nietifa Van Suiker, and another vote for more ebike power from BirdmanStevens (18:38). News: Cycling Data is now available on Google Earth https://medium.com/@googleearth/now-available-cycling-data-on-google-earth-1c12955d6f94, Prague has built a bridge just for cyclists, pedestrians, trams and buses https://www.ebikemag.eu/prague-opens-dvorecky-bridge-the-first-new-vltava-crossing-in-twelve-years/, Cologne will also rebuild a bridge just for bicycles and trams https://www.ksta.de/koeln/muelheimer-bruecke-koelner-ob-entmachtet-verkehrsdezernenten-5-1194350, and NYC Mayor Mamdani announces an immediate overhaul for cyclists and pedestrians on the Brooklyn Bridge https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2026/03/27/mamdani-will-upgrade-brooklyn-bridge-manhattan-side-entrance-by-june(20:51). In Northampton, Massachusetts, complete streets opponents are claiming that fixing the unsafe downtown streets will hurt the town’s kids by taking money from schools. Proponents of the Picture Main Street redesign say most of the money comes from a Department of Transportation grant, not the city. Also, where are kids supposed to go after school? Math teacher Ray Paquette, a bike rider who’s an active member of the Northampton teacher’s union, NASE, along with Northampton Strong Towns members Jen Nery and Benjamin Spencer (22:38). New York City’s Upper West Side will get a two-way protected bike lane, converting four lanes of traffic to two, thanks to Mayor Mamdani’s Department of Transportation https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2026/04/14/east-side-west-side-mamdanis-dot-will-transform-72nd-street-with-protected-bike-lane-bus-improvements. Taylor talks to Carl Mahaney, Director of Streetopia Upper West Side https://www.streetopia.city/reimagining-w72 (39:38). Why is CicLAvia, Los Angeles’ open streets event, so great? CicLAvia Chief Strategist Tafarai Bayne contextualizes the next event, on LA’s West Side April 26 https://www.ciclavia.org/ciclavia_west_la26 (54:14).

    58 min
4.7
out of 5
46 Ratings

About

We are a bike advocacy and culture podcast based in Los Angeles, Ca.

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