Bike Talk

40 Episodes
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By: BikeTalk

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

26/19 What We're Up Against
Last Friday at 12:29 AM

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 Br...


26/19 Bike The World
05/15/2026

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 sa...


26/18 Independent Bike Shop, Justice For Cyclists, Making Our Own Bike Plan, The Kittie Knox Plays
05/08/2026

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 Cit...


26/17 Bikes Win In The End
05/01/2026

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 s...


26/16 Bikepartisanship
04/24/2026

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...


26/15 Bike Bus, Bike Tour, Bike City, Bike Sport
04/17/2026

A school bike bus is recognized by the Burbank, California City Council for promoting safe, active Transportation. With Alfonso Directo, Jr. Advocacy Director of Act-LA and Roosevelt Elementary School parent https://www.act-la.org/ (2:53). Bike Films: “Major Taylor: Champion of the Race" Earns National News & Documentary Emmy Award Nomination-can now be streamed https://video.indianapublicmedia.org/video/major-taylor-champion-of-the-race-7pwxvd/ (9:40). “Changing Lanes,” a documentary about the conflict over a protected bike lane in Greenpoint, Brooklyn on McGuinness Boulevard. Taylor talks with the Director of Changing Lanes, Ben Wolf https://www.changinglanesdoc.com/ (10:28). Listener Email: Julian disputes Asha Weinstein’s take on high powe...


26/14 Biking Is Not a Crime
04/10/2026

Taylor plans a May bikepacking trip from San Francisco to Michigan. A listener explains why she uses a backpack instead of panniers, and Tim Dyet’s review says “everyone gets a seat at the (Bike Talk) table.” (5:15) The Safe Speeds Act will require the CSPC to distinguish ebikes from illegal emotos, if passed https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/7839/text?s=1&r=1&hl=hr+7839. However, the CSPC, charged with protecting consumers from things like exploding e-bike batteries, was gutted by the Trump administration for regulating lithium ebike batteries. Caron Whitaker, Deputy Director of the League of American Bicyclists, explains (8:04). Stacey...


26/13 Bikeside at the National Bike Summit
04/03/2026

Hands Off DC bike lanes, says the Washington Area Bicyclists Association in the face of the Trump administration’s intention to remove a key part of the bike network. Kalli Krumpos, Advocacy Director, gives WABA’s perspective https://waba.org/2026/03/24/four-dc-actions/ (2:34). Voices from the March 24-26, 2026 National Bike Summit in Washington, DC from bike messenger/reporter Joel Gwadz: Terry Lansdell, ED of Walk Bike North Carolina, Niles Barnes, Deputy Director of East Coast Greenway Alliance, Natasha Smith, Coordinator of Bike Walk Bowling Green in Kentucky, Patrick Martin, President of Bike ABQ in Albequerque, NM, Steven Hardy-Braz, a board member of Bike...


26/12 Bike More, Worry Less - E bikes and AVs
03/27/2026

Taylor talks with Brent Muth at Ojai's MOB bike shop and then at a farmer's market with Annette, a member of the international nonprofit Cycling Without Age, which takes the elderly out for free bike rides (1:33). The League of American Bicyclists' National Bike Summit https://bikeleague.org/events/summit/ (9:33). Charlie's News: Cambridge, Massachusetts has seen a 250% ridership increase over two decades, with a crash rate decrease https://momentummag.com/city-shows-the-huge-payoff-for-investing-in-safe-cycling-infrastructure-with-250-increase/. There will be a National Town Hall on April 15th for the Stop Underrides Act of 2026 https://annaleahmary.com/2026/02/stop-underrides-national-town-hall-save-the-date/. Bike lanes next to the National Mall are set...


26/11 Biking is Political
03/20/2026

The cost of cars is skyrocketing https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/16/business/car-ownership-prices-interest-rates.html. Listener emails: a request for Kevin Grishkot’s bike poem https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nlAMBnuj05sUe7kwv2ABNo7zPsHbhX6-92GEOqckKlo/edit?usp=sharing, and Stephen Bingham on House and senate bills mandating side underride guards on new trucks https://www.gillibrand.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/KAT26057.pdf. Charlie’s News a protected bike lane for Prospect Park in Brooklyn. New federal legislation would expand automatic emergency braking to detect bicyclists. Caltrans replaces perfectly good bike lanes with useless sharrows. Parisian bike friendly Mayor Anne Hida...


26/10 Ride Across America: Guns, Dogs, Trucks, and Nice People
03/13/2026

Taylor joins hundreds of Los Angeles bike people in the pre-dawn Marathon Crash Ride last Sunday, previewing the 26 mile route of the 2026 Los Angeles Marathon. With Joe Borfo and Joni Yung (0:20). New Jersey’s anti-ebike law from New York and California points of view. With Justin Hu-Nguyen, Bike East Bay and Anne Savage, New York Bicycle Coalition: (7:15) Automatic Emergency Braking in all U.S. cars? With Caron Whitaker, League of American Bicyclists https://bikeleague.org/take-action/action-center/ -check to see if your member has cosponsored the bill- https://bikeleague.org/take-action/policy-advocacy/federal-policy/cosponsorship-tracker/ (16:05). Charlie’s News: The Bicycle Film Fest...


26/09 New Jersey Versus Ebikes
03/06/2026

Cars are in the way in LA. The last Los Angeles Critical Mass was also a memorial for Regan Cole‑Graham and her newborn child Ophelia https://la-criticalmass.org/la-critical-mass-riding-miles-for-regan-this-february-2026/ -with Damian Kevitt, Founder of Streets Are For Everyone (2:15). Thoughts on oil, geopolitics, and how we can rebuild the world with renewable energy and bikes (7:20). Charlie’s news: Maryland’s Stop Super Speeders bill passes in the House https://www.instagram.com/p/DVRzVqjlWWD/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link. California could face an eBike registration law https://www.ijpr.org/outdoors-leisure-and-sports/2026-02-28/license-plates-for-e-bikes-california-bill-sparks-debate-over-safety. Roughly 3 in 4 young people in Wales...


26/08 Bikes Versus Superspeeders
02/27/2026

Taylor and Nick’s bike origins as told on Sustainability Now! on Forward Radio in Louisville, Kentucky to Host Justin Mog https://soundcloud.com/wfmp-forward-radio/sustainability-now-nick (1:11). Taylor joins Walk ’n Rollers to fix up bikes for kids https://walkmorebikemore.org (4:02). Charlie’s News: The Bayview Black History Ride is happening February 28th in San Francisco https://www.sfexaminer.com/news/community/bayview-black-history-month-bike-ride-highlights-sf-culture/article_32cfbfbf-fe1f-41a2-b20f-8a12e700e7e0.html. A proposed New York law would create something of a tax-free transportation costs account https://www.wxxinews.org/local-news/2026-02-17/new-york-commuters-could-soon-be-able-to-use-pre-tax-earnings-toward-bus-fare-bike-shares-and-more. New York City’s garbage problem...


26/07 Holding The Line
02/20/2026

Listener email: Desmond on winter Riding and specifically mittens that attach to your handlebars, called pogies (1:41). The City of Los Angeles is set to give back over $100 million of previously won money for active transportation projects because it can’t build them in time, reports Founder of LA Streets For All Michael Schneider https://bsky.app/profile/streetsforall.org/post/3metn6f54fk2u (3:22). Can Police Stop You on a Bike for No Reason? Our lawyer says no, but your goal is to get home alive (7:30). Boston cyclists cleared a bike lane themselves after weeks of neglect from the city. Wi...


26/06 Solidarity
02/13/2026

Listener Sean in Montana writes a good review for stickers. St. Paul, Minnesota rider and cartoonist Andy Singer drops in virtually to talk about the recent Alex Pretti memorial ride (1:09). A spec Super Bowl ad for kids biking and walking to school by Tom Flood (5:12). 1,200 riders rode 42 stationary bikes for four days to generate power for the first energy-neutral Super Bowl broadcast, the Fox pre-game show https://lancasteronline.com/potholes/bicycles-power-super-bowl/article_b549506f-1944-54f6-a4f9-06dab7060cf6.html (6:51). Chicago’s Cycling Solidarity organizer Rick Rosales drops in to Taylor’s LA garage in real life. Rick talk...


26/05 Our Streets
02/06/2026

Taylor and Nick agree that scarves are for everyone. Parker S rode in the Minneapolis Alex Pretti memorial ride 1/31 and shares what it was like (6:52). Listener Rick Bosacker writes that bike rides shouldn't be polarizing, or political (2:54). Streeetsblog NYC and LA editors Gersh Kuntzman and Joe Linton share their top priorities for bike advocacy in 2026 (10:55). Charlie's News: NYC deliverista settlement delivers $5 million in backpay. The minimum hourly rate for deliveristas reaches $21.44 in NYC. A NH proposed bill would require $50/year registration for all bikes. A UK study claims cargo bike deliveries are 1.61 times faster than vans (22:10). Mayor Adams' NYC DOT...


26/04 One of Us
01/30/2026

Alex Pretti, murdered by ICE in Minneapolis, was a bike rider. Laura Groenjes Mitchell of Our Streets Minneapolis and Brett Macgraw of the West Metro Active Transportation Alliance share a multi-city memorial ride for Alex Pretti started by his local bike shop, the Angry Catfish https://bikepacking.com/news/alex-pretti-memorial-rides/. Also, a fundraiser for people trapped by ICE in Minneapolis https://bsky.app/profile/lauragmitchell.com/post/3mbvajnjdx22t (0:46) A Die-in on the steps of Los Angeles’ City Hall to protest the 290 traffic deaths in LA last year. With Damian Kevitt, E.D. of Streets Are For Everyone (8:10). Charlie's News: A...


26/03 Occupied By Biking
01/23/2026

Do we need e-shifters? Is Taylor a luddite? (0:19) Listener Email: South Carolina’s Freeway for Bikes https://www.reddit.com/r/bikecommuting/comments/1qinw7z/south_carolinas_freeway_for_bikes_it_makes/ (2:43) Blind riding in tandem with Sonya Chapnick (3:44). Charlie’s News: New York Governor Kathy Hochul proposes a “stop super speeders” pilot program https://empire.streetsblog.org/state-of-the-state-exclusive-hochul-will-push-stop-super-speeders-bill-through-her-budget. Check out the best new bike lanes of 2025 https://www.peopleforbikes.org/news/best-new-bike-lanes-2025. A New Jersey ebike lumping law threatens low-income riders and immigrants https://hudsoncountyview.com/op-ed-murphy-must-veto-anti-safety-anti-affordability-anti-immigrant-e-bike-bill/. Ontario government spent hundreds of thousands in the legal fight to rip up bike...


26/02 Hopes
01/16/2026

Bike Mechanic Jim Cadenhead consults with Taylor about fixing a flat on his Surly. Problems: there's a thru-axle and he thought it was tubeless (2:45). Charlie’s News: Virginia plans to get rid of parking minimums in September https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/HB262. Zohran pleases some as he smooths a notorious bump at the end of Williamsburg Bridge https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/06/nyregion/mamdani-pothole-williamsburg-bridge-bump.html, but leaves others dissatisfied with the continuation of cyclists receiving criminal summonses https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2026/01/07/mamdani-says-he-opposes-tischs-criminal-bike-crackdown-but-its-apparently-still-in-place. Over 2,700 ebikes have been sold and subsidized in the Bay Area in the last 6 months https://oaklandside.org/2026/01/08/al...


26/01 New Year, Same Things
01/09/2026

Bike Talk Listener Survey results (0:40). Notable bike-related laws of 2025 with bike lawyer Jim Pocrass (15:00). Mamdani’s transit-focused inauguration in a New York Minute with Streetsblog NYC Editor Gersh Kuntzman (21:45). Charlie’s News: Mamdani brings back de Blasio-era plan for McGuinness Boulevard. Leadville, CO will host Fat Bike Worlds later in January. Citi Bike prices are increasing for the 5th consecutive year. A 93-kilometer bike highway is coming to Dubai (23:32). Los Angeles tactical urbanist Jonathan Hale charged with vandalism for installing a DIY-crosswalk where there should have been one https://la.streetsblog.org/2025/12/08/police-and-fire-departments-shut-down-volunteer-crosswalk-painting-event-in-westwood (28:31). All Bodies on Bikes founder Marley Blonsky hit...


#2552 best of 2025
01/02/2026

A sample of the interviews that made Bike Talk Bike Talk in 2025: Lucy Maloney, bike advocate turned council member in Vancouver from Episode 2533 https://biketalk.org/2025/08/2533-bikes-up/ (0:38). Zohran Mamdani interviewed by micro mobility organizer "miser" when Zohran ran for Mayor, from Episode 2525 https://biketalk.org/2025/06/2525-we-love-la-deliveristas-zohran-for-bikes-nyc-and-picture-main-street/ (13:56). Black Girls Do Bike/Anjoleah Daye on BGDB in Los Angeles from the 2/7/2025 Episode https://biketalk.org/2025/02/bikes-for-kids-in-la-and-florida-black-girls-do-bike-and-ebikes-over-60/ (24:37). Sophia Lebowitz on the problem of illegal ebikes, or emotos from Episode 2543 https://biketalk.org/2025/10/2543-ebikelash/ (37:23). Jonathan Hale on painting DIY crosswalks in Los Angeles from Episode 2534 https://biketalk.org/2025/08/2534-build-it/ (45:18).


#2551 Call To Action
12/26/2025

Listener email: The AV debate: safer than humans (Waymo at least, but Teslas crash more often). On the other hand, AI is inhuman and AVs could increase car dependency (https://www.commondreams.org/news/tesla-robotaxi-crash-rate) (1:07). Charlie's News: Pride bike racks in response to pride crosswalk removal in Florida; University of Minnesota study shows biking before sunrise doesn't hold back elementary school cyclists; Bike LA and Lime Hero partner to round up for local programs; Cheeky vests win back funding for bike lane plowing in Ontario (5:30). Why don’t drivers lose their license for multiple DUIs and worse in California? (See Lic...


#2550 Weakest Link
12/19/2025

Vehicular cycling and Aaron Swanson of League of American Bicyclists' League Certified Instructor's most recent graduating class in Los Angeles https://bikeleague.org/ridesmart/become-instructor/ (4:15). Charlie’s News- Streetsblog NYC article on everything wrong with anti Astoria bike lane ruling https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2025/12/09/heres-everything-wrong-with-the-judges-order-to-rip-up-the-31st-street-protected-bike-lane; are AVs like Waymo cyclists’ allies? https://www.wired.com/story/can-bike-riders-and-self-driving-cars-be-friends/ Indianapolis plows bike lanes for first time https://www.wrtv.com/news/local-news/indianapolis-dpw-plows-major-trails-and-protected-bike-lanes-for-first-time; NJ bill would require license and insurance for all ebikes https://www.nj.com/news/2025/12/nj-bill-would-require-licenses-registration-and-insurance-for-all-e-bikes.html; Comebacks to this year’s anti-bike arguments https://momentummag.com/your-comeback-guide-to-all-the-anti-cycling-arguments-youll-hear-this-year/ (7:25) Coffee...


#2549 Moral Panic On Ebikes
12/12/2025

Our Mission Statement, reviews, a listener email, and please take our survey! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeVwttiNKX8APpEgM3lmvlUI9d8KqQl9uedQ8YmdiJ5rPf0ow/viewform (0:19) Charlie’s News New bike lanes in Boston increase bike trips and decrease car traffic https://mass.streetsblog.org/2025/12/05/boston-data-show-streets-with-new-bike-lanes-successfully-shift-traffic-from-cars-to-bikes; Astoria, Queens rips up a partially installed bike lane due to bikelash https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2025/12/05/queens-judge-orders-city-to-nix-half-installed-queens-bike-lane; Iowa City free bus ridership and service is up, emissions down https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/18/climate/iowa-city-free-buses.html; FSA/HSA pre-tax $ can be put towards a bike- with a doctor’s note https://usa.stre...


#2548 Bike Rights
12/05/2025

Bike books for Christmas-with the editors of Microcosm’s “They Ride at Night” anthology of Queer, Feminist, Fantastical Bicycle Halloween Stories, Summer Jewel Keown and Elly Blue (3:36). Queens City Couriers delivers anything by bike in Buffalo, New York. Rebecca tells us about that, a bike messenger memorial, and how being a bike courier compares to being a Marine, which she also has been (13:15). Charlie’s News: NYC council candidates funded by Uber, women transportation leaders, bike lane sweepers, and last year’s Chicago and Philadelphia traffic casualty stats (25:55). Police bias, media bias, and bike law with Jim Pocrass (27:14). How to get in sha...


#2547 What Works
11/28/2025

The most recent Los Angeles CicLAvia’s 11/23  “Stranger Things” open street event was made possible by Netflix (0:18). Katie Wilson’s election as Mayor of Seattle through a bike lens with Brie Gyncild, Gordon Padelford and Merlin Rainwater of Seattle Neighborhood Greenways and Tom Fucoloro, editor of Seattle Bike Blog (8:25). News: LYFT’s Citibike in NYC is the world’s most expensive bikeshare, Families For Safe Streets in Portland seek to stop “superspeeders” with a bill to require speed limiting technology in their cars, People For Bikes invests in the St. Louis bike network, and the CPSC warns about Rad Power ebike batteries...


#2546 Bikes For All
11/21/2025

Taylor bikes in the rain to LA Bikefest to talk with LA Bicycle Advisory Committee’s car-free Jennifer Gil and to World Day of Remembrance for Traffic Victims with Rob Kadota and Streets Are For Everyone founder Damian Kevitt (2:08). News: LA City Controller makes an app where you can see the where LA budget goes https://budget.lacontroller.app, the USDOT declares it won’t fund biking, walking, or trains, the LA River bike path design and timeline is contested, there’s an aluminum velodrome in Tucson, and a Wyoming and Idaho bike/ski trail would complete the 180 mile Greater Yellows...


#2545 Bikes Win
11/14/2025

Email: Reese, a listener, says we shouldn’t assume conservatives don’t listen to Bike Talk, like Nick said in the previous episode. We all agree: biking embodies values everybody can and should get behind (3:11). Charlie’s News: The City of Malibu approves safety plans for deadly PCH, a Queens, NY City Council seat is kept by an anti-bike zealot, Doug Ford seeks to repress debate on his speed camera ban, and California’s ebike incentives are swapped for a car trade-in program https://www.calbike.org/response-to-carb-on-ending-the-e-bike-incentive-project/ (6:32). A Dia De Los Muertos vigil “remembering fallen ridazz” at the Bike Oven in Los...


#2544 Reform the System
11/07/2025

Emails: the bike life of musical director Tim Dyet and Steve Weyland's counsel to not blame delivery apps for lawbreaking ebikers in NYC (congratulations NYC by the way) (1:58). Faulty bike infrastructure and a drunk driver blamed for deaths of cyclists Kerry Bonner, 25, and Egor Popov, 31 at Vigil and response by Patty Wiens, Bike Mayor of Winnipeg (7:25). Charlie’s news: Carbrained NYC Councilmember Vicky Paladino (had) a challenger, FDNY urged to make safer streets, Malibu’s Pacific Coast Highway safety makeover TBD, Kilian Jornet rides to 72 US summits in 31 days (10:04). A children's book about Annie Cohen Kopchovsky, AKA Annie Londonderry, who rode...


#2543 Ebikelash
10/31/2025

Charlie’s News: NYC sets a 15mph limit on ebikes, a new Seattle bike lane also works for trucks, ultralight emergency response cargo bikes, and the impact of tariffs on the bike industry https://www.peopleforbikes.org/news/pfb-responds-to-tariff-announcement (3:00). No Drive Halloween campaign (4:26). Ontario, Canada Premier Doug Ford is trying to ban speed cameras and bike lanes in an all out war on safety and active transportation- but there's active resistance from Dr. Carrie Mitchell, an associate professor at the University of Waterloo who started a petition calling for the speed camera ban to be reversed https://www.change.org/p...


#2542 Cycling Solidarity
10/24/2025

Bike Talk Listener Survey (0:23) People on bikes are “Nature’s Most Efficient Traveler,” reveals Scientific American https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-human-on-a-bicycle-is-among-the-most-efficient-forms-of-travel-in-the/ (1:42) Charlie’s News: League of American Bicyclists’ Advocacy Toolkit, Calbike’s Independent Electric Mobility Council, and Portland’s emergency World Naked Bike Ride (3:43). MAGA Speaker Mike Johnson calls the World Naked Bike Ride "the most threatening thing I've seen yet," inspiring a Kermit The Frog song on the Jimmy Kimmel show (5:30). Cycling Solidarity buys out vendors targeted by ICE in Chicago and distributes the food to hungry people by bike. We talk with Rick Rosales, AKA “Captain Jack Sharrow,” a Cycl...


#2541 Countering Car Culture
10/17/2025

Bike tech: Dynamo lights and pocket compressors (0:19). Charlie’s News (4:21). Two authors on what we’ve lost by making kids car dependent: author of A Love Letter to Suburbia Diane Alisa interviews co-author of Curbing Traffic Melissa Bruntlett on her chapter, Child-Friendly City https://bookshop.org/a/99134/9781642831658 (6:51). The delights of a Slovenian bike tour with Hour Away guide Nejc Peternelj and Taylor’s brother John & Sister in Law Alice, who took the tour by ebike https://www.hour-away.com/cycling-holidays/guided (22:34). Bike Ped Committee Chair Kristen Sykes interviews Holyoke, Massachusetts Mayor Joshua Garcia about countering car culture with complete streets on the...


#2540 The Deadly Status Quo
10/10/2025

Ride For Your Life is a Washington, D.C. memorial ride in honor of Sarah Langenkamp, whose husband, Dan, worked to pass a law protecting cyclists in her name after she was killed riding in a bike lane. Taylor talks to Dan Langenkamp https://waba.org/event/ride-for-your-life-2025/ (2:04). After Bike Talk thinker Stacey Randecker was hit while riding, we asked why personal injury lawsuits take so long to pay out. Our lawyer, Jim Pocrass, tells all (18:35). Charlie’s Bike News (24:40). A report called “The Powerless Brokers” by Circulate San Diego finds "California can’t build transit." Lindsay talks to Circulate SD CEO C...


#2539 - Champions of Bike Advocacy
10/03/2025

Bay Wheels bikeshare in the East Bay lends ebikes for $20/month to qualified residents and $120 for everyone else, reports Bike East Bay co-Executive Director Justin Hu-Nguyen (1:05). Former San Francisco Supervisor Joel Engardio on being recalled by drive-happy voters over his support for converting a portion of the Great Highway into the new Sunset Dunes Park (7:08). Biking, BARTing, and e-scooting at 14 in the Bay Area: Quin Binzak (24:50). The Federal Government has taken away approved funding for bike and safe streets infrastructure, or, as it says, anything "hostile to cars." Caron Whitaker, E.D. of League of American Bicyclists, on its work...


#2538 - Reasons to Ride
09/26/2025

A JAMA study finds biking is associated with lower dementia incidence: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2835115 (23:00) Should we tell people they ought to bike to COSTCO? A Bluesky user responds to episode #2535 (2:49). Bike East Bay Advocacy Director Robert Prinz explains why federal bike infrastructure doesn’t have to be “stupid,” in response to Charles Marohn’s comments in episode #2537 (4:49). A West Hollywood resident defends the famous Fountain Ave bike lane pilot project from the perspective of both “entitled driver” AND “entitled cyclist” (7:13). Black Girls Do Bike founder Monica Garrison on the Kitty Knox Academy, a program to prepare “Sheroes” to become nationally...


#2537 Validation
09/19/2025

Listener emails in response to last episode's bike lane hater from Eric Brightwell, host of the Nobody Drives in LA podcast https://ericbrightwell.com/nobody-drives-in-la/ and Ross, a West Hollywood vehicular cyclist who uses the street on which Bike Lane Hater does not want a lane (0:21). What are the legal implications for organizing a community bike ride, bike bus, or other non-sponsored event? asks listener Dr. Rick Bosacker. Our lawyer/sponsor Jim Pocrass lays down the law on liability for taco ride organizers (4:43). Strong Towns founder and Confessions of a Recovering Engineer author Chuck Marohn and the author of A...


#2536 - Answers
09/12/2025

Bike tours of Portland, Oregon by Cycle Portland, an interview of Charlotte by listener contributor Jonathan Weiss (1:26). A Love Letter to Suburbia is a new book on how car dependency, corporate control, and disintegrating community values have eroded the sense of connection and purpose that once defined American neighborhoods, and how to fix that with pedestrian first "villages." Author/Instagram influencer Diane Alisa talks (6:06). A longtime listener that happens to be a professional planner responds to some of the arguments raised by the West Hollywood bike hater from our last episode, in script form (28:45). Northampton, Massachusetts documentary maker Thomas Draudt...


#2535 These Are The People in Your Neighborhood
09/05/2025

Why, being flat and on Manhattan's "doorstep," is Long Island so resistant to all bike infrastructure? asks listener Sean Cirillo (0:53). West Hollywood bike lane opponent Kyle Brazil debates Taylor about installing a bike lane on Fountain Avenue (6:13). The author of A Love Letter to Suburbia, Diane Alisa, has empathy for conservatives and suburban people who might want to ease away from car dependency, but are triggered by the word 'city' (30:47).


#2534 - Build It
08/29/2025

Zohran Mamdami’s New York City transit scavenger hunt with participant Wilson Nichols, Taylor's nephew (2:38). San Francisco bike share user Kalise shares with Taylor what drives her to ride in SF (but not Los Angeles) (7:19). The high price of bike share, and what could be a better model: free, at first. With Dave Snyder, author of the Substack article, "Bike Share Booms Despite a Broken Business Model" https://themovementnewsletter.substack.com/p/bike-share-booms-despite-a-broken (9:16) The Crosswalk Collective paints crosswalks where they legally ought to be, but aren't. When Collective member Jonathan Hale painted crosswalks at a West Los Angeles park, the LA...


#2533 Bikes Up
08/22/2025

Vancouver bike activist Lucy Maloney won a seat on the anti- bike city council she fought for years. She gave Taylor a tour of the city and talks about her journey https://vancouver.ca/your-government/lucy-maloney.aspx (2:24). Speed cameras will go up this year in Los Angeles, San Jose, Oakland, Glendale, Long Beach, and the City and County of San Francisco, courtesy of California’s AB 645. California bike lawyer (and Bike Talk sponsor) Jim Pocrass says slower speeds will make cyclists safer, but enforcement may be in question because the cams won’t recognize faces due to privacy concerns https://legi...