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Thursday, January 30, 2014

If You Build It Cyclists Can Save You Money, If You Let Them

自転車用のインフラを作れば節約できたのに

This article from Portland - where else? - is a bit wonky and pertains to very local cycling issues, but is worth the slog.

IN PORTLAND, righteous indignation looks a lot like NE Multnomah.

Cutting across the Lloyd District, the street features a newly revamped bike path, separated from traffic by planters and a stout layer of pale yellow paint. It's one of Portland's few "protected bike lanes," a breed planners and advocates say we'll need more of if the city is to reach its cycling ambitions.

It's also the type of thing that can make Portlanders appear torn in two. This is a city with seriously entrenched opinions about how its road projects are funded.

And so it was last week, when the Bicycle Transportation Alliance (BTA) courted controversy by taking on a notion that's been around for more than a century (seriously): That bike riders barely help pay for the very projects that benefit them.

In an infographic released Tuesday, November 12, the BTA contended cyclists actually pay well above their fair share. It's not a new claim—but, predictably, it sparked scads of online outrage, a dismissive column in the Hillsboro Argus, and curt protest by the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT).

Lost in all that drama, though, was this: Research suggests the BTA was largely right. And local transportation wonks point out the organization missed a more pertinent point: The savings from bike-related infrastructure has the potential to far outweigh its cost....

Here are a few factoids from the article to chew on:

A Swiss researcher, Thomas Gotschi, who helpfully made Portland the subject of a 2011 study, drove that point home. He found investments of $138 million to $605 million in bike infrastructure could be leveraged to save:

•Between $388 million to $544 million in health care costs.

•$143 to $218 million in fuel

•$7 to $12 billion in human life (measured “value of statistical lives,” a common metric in transportation planning)


Read the full article.

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Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Bicycle Book Review: Bikenomics: How Bicycling Can Save the Economy

bikenomics自転車の書評: Bikenomics: How Bicycling Can Save the Economy

Bikenomics is a recently published work by Portland bike activist Elly Blue. She is the author of Everyday Bicycling and writes for Bicycling.com and in BikePortland, Bitch Magazine, Grist Magazine, Momentum magazine, and Reclaim Magazine.

Bikenomics is a call to wheels, advocating a lifestyle that combines personal convenience and sustainable economical growth for most cities and nations around the world.

Here is an assortment of reviews:

“It's a call to action, pointing out multiple ways that dollars currently spent in the service of the car can better better spent to serve people. She makes her case clearly and both passion and data inform the book. [...] This small book is an inspiration to step away from the automobile and to bicycle forward into a quieter, brighter, better world.” —Kent Peterson, Kent’s Bike Blog

“Blue’s approach is down-to-earth, practical, and kind.” —Sarah Goodyear, The Atlantic Cities

"Blue's book is rational, fully footnoted--and, in the main, persuasive." —Ben Schiller, Fast Company

"Blue's book helped me better frame my own reasons for riding, and got me thinking a lot about what a more bike-centered future could look like. It's a future, I realized, I'd really like to see." —Dick VanderHart, Portland Mercury

"Blue isn't talking about 'fixing' the economy we have right now. Instead, she's talking about looking to a different future." —A.K. Streeter, treehugger.com

The book is basically for the already converted - us - and is a fun ride. It is a bit on the anecdotal side; clearly, Blue is trying to avoid being too wonky with data.

It joins many other pro-bike books on the shelf, and will be used (we hope) to combat the forces of petro-transportation.

Buy Bikenomics

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Sunday, January 26, 2014

World Cycling News 26 January 2014

tofu seller bike kyoto今週のサイクリング2014年01月26日

By Design | Impossibly Light, Totally Sleek Handmade Bikes Built by a Tokyo Shipwright New York Times

Track World Cup: Great Britain miss out on final day medal BBC

Five ways to make London’s public transport more bike-friendly London Cyclist

Vélo Mag • Novembre-Décembre 2013 Vélo Québec

Your new car? The cargo bike with some electric assistance Guardian

Guerra en la calle El Pais

ツアー・ダウン・アンダー第4ステージ
ツアー・ダウン・アンダー第4ステージ:待ってました!”ゴリラ”グライペルが会心のスプリントでようやく今シーズン初勝利!ロット・べリソルがワン・ツー!キッテルはまたしても彼方へ・・・ Cycling Time

Ride by the rules to end red light rage The Times of London

Ex-world cycling champ Ballan banned 2 years Yahoo

Last Week's Cycling News


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Thursday, January 23, 2014

Cycling to Light and Illumination Asahi Beer Oyamazaki Villa Museum

flyer_light-and-illumination「光と灯り」展覧会アサヒビール大山崎山荘美術館

At the Asahi Beer Oyamazaki Villa Museum of Art - oddly but appropriately named as it is the former summer home of a president of the Asahi beer company - there is now a wonderful exhibit. "Light and Illumination" at the Asahi Beer Oyamazaki Villa Museum of Art will be on display until mid-April.

It features works by painters and potters, including Claude Monet, Georges Rouault, and the stunning ceramics of Kanjiro Kawai.

The villa itself is well worth a visit. Both the original structure and a new wing designed by Ando Tadao are great spaces.

For those who want to cycle to Yamazaki, it is 60-90 minutes from Kyoto.

In addition, at the foot of the mountain - just across from the JR Yamazaki train station (15 minutes from Kyoto Station - is the Suntory Yamazaki distillery, which produces world class whiskeys.

Bicycle Goods Sale


Information

"Light and Illumination"
Period: Until 13 April 2014
Hours: 10:00 - 17:00 (Last entry 16:30)
Mondays and national holidays closed
Entrane Fee: 900 yen
High School/University Students: 500 yen

Suntory Yamazaki Distillery
Tour hours: Every hour from 10:00 to 15:00 (last tour) from 10:00 -16:45. Reserve by calling +81 75 962 1423

10 min. walk from Yamazaki Sta. of JR Kyoto Line.

Telephone: 075 962 1423

Admission: Free

Asahi Beer Oyamazaki Villa Museum

5-3 Zenihara, Oyamazaki-cho, Otokuni-gun, Kyoto Prefecture, 618-0071

10:00 to 17:00 (Last admission until 16:30). Closed on Mondays (Closed on Tuesday when the previous Monday is a holiday), and the New Year's holiday period.

Telephone: 075 957 3123


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Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Jerry Seinfeld Cycling Advocate

アメリカの笑い芸能人ジェリーサインフェルド自転車愛好家

Who knew? Seinfeld is a cyclist. And a commuter at that.

Here is a snippet from a recent interview:

Question:

"What, above all other things, is the neatest most fascinating and cool thing you get to do on a daily basis?"

Seinfeld:

"WOW.

First of all, GREAT question.

That I get to do on a daily basis? Probably walk to work. I think that's about the coolest thing that there is. Or take my bike. If you can walk to work or take your bike on a daily basis, I think that's just about the coolest thing that there is. Every morning I listen to the traffic on the radio, and they talk about how they are jammed and I just laugh. I love traffic. I love traffic reports because I'm not in any of them."

Bicycle Goods Sale

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Sunday, January 19, 2014

World Cycling News 19 January 2014

tofu seller bike kyoto今週のサイクリング2014年01月19日

Dizzying Heights, With Risks New York Times

Track World Cup: Britain win two bronze medals in Mexico BBC

A weekend cycling on the Isle of Wight London Cyclist

Soirées d'information Vélo Québec

How the cycling minister's vision is not matched by London's reality Guardian

Guerra en la calle El Pais

2014ロードレースシーズン開幕!
南半球のオーストラリアとアルゼンチンで2014シーズンが開幕!平坦中心のツアー・ダウン・アンダーはスプリンターズ・バトル、山岳中心のツール・ド・サン・ルイはグランツール総合系バトル Cycling Time

Second Gear The Times of London

Ex-world cycling champ Ballan banned 2 years Yahoo

Last Week's Cycling News


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Thursday, January 16, 2014

Nagisa Oshima Screening "Kyoto, My Mother's Place"

“幻”の映画、京で初上映 26日、大島渚さん一周忌イベント

The first anniversary of the passing of great Japanese filmmaker Nagisa Oshima was January 15.

Oshima, who died at 80 last year, was the bete noire of Japanese post-War cinema and had a decidedly mixed relationship with his hometown.

Born and bred in Kyoto, Oshima despised the development of the city that began in the 1950s. Unlike every other major city in Japan, Kyoto was intentionally spared bombing by the US Air Force. Thus, it was intact in August 1945.

However, like all other major cities - which rebuilt from rubble their destroyed cities as fast as they could - Kyoto city leaders decided on a path of modernization that emphasized fire-proof concrete structures that were "western" and "modern."

Thus, in his films, Oshima would often show housing projects or telephone wires as opposed to temples and traditional buildings. He was the anti-Ozu.

To remember its prodigal son, Kyoto will host a screening of "Kyoto, My Mother's Place," a documentary Oshima and Kyoto, at the Museum of Kyoto. It features the areas of Kyoto he lived in, Kyoto University (of which he is an alumnus), and more.

For those going on a bike, there is parking on the side of the Museum near the main entrance.

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Information

Location: Museum of Kyoto
Date: January 26
Time: noon, 2 pm, 4 pm
Fee: 1500 yen
Telephone: 075 222 0888

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Wednesday, January 15, 2014

Energy Subsides in Japan 2014

太陽光は引き下げへ

Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry announced that beginning April 1 the subsidy for solar power will be reduced from the current 42 yen (about 42 US cents) per kilowatt hour to 38. Those are for homeowners, who produce up to 10 kilowatts; for larger scale energy farms, etc., the rate is lower. (Those who have panels set up prior to that and complete the paperwork by March 31 will receive the current 42 yen per kilowatt hour.)

Because of the popularity of solar power in Japan, the government argues that it must rein in payments in the country's feed-in tariff program, which was created to promote clean energy. Also, the government argues that the the solar panels themselves have become less expensive, so the initial installation cost has come down.

Under this program, people who generate clean energy - solar, wind, geothermal, small-scale hydro, and biomass - sell their power to local utilities at rates guaranteed for a set period. In the case of solar, those producers will receive 38 yen.

Other types of clean energy, however, have not caught on as much, and their subsidies will remain unchanged.

Wind (up to 20 Kilowatts): 57.75 yen/1 kilowatt hour
Goethermal (up to 15,000 Kilowatts): 42 yen/1 kilowatt hour
Small-scale hydro: 25.2 - 35.7 yen/1 kilowatt hour
Biomass: 13.65 - 40.95 yen/1 kilowatt hour

Cycle Sale

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Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Bicycle in Makino Shiga

Bike  in Makino Shigaマキノにある自転車

On a recent visit to a restored farmhouse in Makino, Shiga, there was a bike parked unlocked in front of the house.

Makino is about one hour from Kyoto Station on the Kosei Line. It is however a world apart from urban Japan.

It is the last large town on the northeast end of Lake Biwa. For those riding the Lake Biwa circuit, it signals the entry to Oku Biwa, or Deep Biwa, the lightly populated wild part of the lake.

Makino is well known for its beaches and mountains. In summer, bathers come out for the clear waters and sun; in winters, heavy snows bring skiiers. The owner of the home told me that snows of 2-3 feet are common - about the height of the bicycle in the photo.

Cycle Sale

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Sunday, January 12, 2014

World Cycling News 12 January 2014

tofu seller bike kyoto今週のサイクリング2014年01月12日

Beware of dogs, bikes New York Times

Cycling anti-doping commission: Brian Cookson names panel BBC

London’s 12 most terrifying junctions for cycling London Cyclist

Rouler 4 saisons Vélo Québec

Smart e-bike: futuristic-looking and shiny, but how practical? Guardian

Los carriles bici aéreos de Norman Foster El Pais

スペイン勢の今シーズンは?
自転車王国スペインの苦悩、スペイン経済の危機的状況がその未来に大きく影を落とす、世界最強の自転車王国の行く末やいかに? Cycling Time

Campaign grows for ‘blame drivers’ law on cycle deaths The Times of London

Tour de France Trophy arrives in Leeds Yahoo

Last Week's Cycling News

Bicycle Goods

Up to 40% on selected Lights!

Landing Page

PDW Spaceship Front and Radbot 500 Rear Light Set
£21.00
LIST PRICE £35.00
SAVE 40% = £14.00

Cateye EL-Uno Front and TL-Rapid 3 Rear Light Set
£37.49
LIST PRICE £49.99
SAVE 25% = £12.50

Up to HALF PRICE! Cycle Shoe Clearance

Diadora Sprinter 2 Road Cycling Shoes
£36.21
LIST PRICE £72.41
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Thursday, January 9, 2014

Winter Cycling in Kyoto Japan

Snow cycling Kyoto京都冬のサイクリング

With temperatures at record highs in Australia and record lows across much of the United States, we are reminded that winter cycling in Kyoto is not bad at all.

Indeed, except for the worst month and change of high summer - mid-July to the beginning of September when you should avoid going out in the middle of the day - one can cycle fairly comfortably year-round.

At the coldest point in winter - which we are fast approaching - long johns ("heat tech" here at Uniqlo), a good pair of gloves, and a scarf should be enough during the early morning ride to work or the train station.

Low temperatures in Kyoto in late January and early February hover just below freezing. Anything below -3 or -4 (25 degrees Fahrenheit) is unusual.

Snow moreover on city streets is also unusual. In the fifteen years we have lived in Kyoto, there have been three serious snowstorms. For each, it snowed about 10 cm (3-4 inches), was lovely to look at, and the roads more or less free of said snow by mid-afternoon.

In a bit of a bonus, though, snow can often be seen for weeks if not months at a time in Kyoto. Because of the location of the city - built in a bowl, surrounded on three sides by mountains - there is often a dusting of snow on Mt. Hiei, Mt. Atago, and the hills north of the city towards Kumogahata.

Thus, while riding, you can enjoy the beauty of snow without having to ride in it.


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Tuesday, January 7, 2014

New "Bike Lane" in Kyoto Oike Dori

Oike Bike Lane Kyoto自転車通行帯くっきりと小池通の歩道、今春から

This spring work will begin on a "bike lane" on Oike Dori, one of Kyoto's main boulevards.

The sidewalk on Oike, which fronts Kyoto City Hall, is very wide on both sides of the street. The city already has painted a bike "lane" on the sidewalk adjacent to the street.

However, by the end of March a new clearer lane should be complete.

At a cost of $696,000 (US), the city will paint wider, clearer separation lines that stretch from the Kamo River to Horikawa Dori on both the north and south sides of the street. The total distance is 1.75 kilometers (a bit more than a mile).

The lanes will be noted with bike symbols, upright signs, and a thick white lane on the pavement to separate the bike lane from the larger remaining area of the sidewalk for pedestrians.

Alas, however, there will be no barrier. That means the effect will not be that different from what already exists (see photo above). Irresponsible cyclists will inevitably end up in the pedestrian lane, and clueless pedestrians will chat and stroll in the cycling lane.


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Sunday, January 5, 2014

World Cycling News 5 January 2014

tofu seller bike kyoto今週のサイクリング2014年01月05日

Turning the City’s Wheels in a New Direction New York Times

8 radical solutions to protect cyclists BBC

The perfect app for the New Year: Active Goals London Cyclist

Voyage à vélo - Prague-Vienne Vélo Québec

Norman Foster unveils plans for elevated 'SkyCycle' bike routes in London Guardian

La 'extra' por ir en bici El Pais

メタル新時代 ~ メタルの復権!進化するメタルが再びレース界に戻る日は来るのか?カーボンが克服できない弱点を埋めるメタル、新メタル素材の台頭、メタルの進撃がi今また始まる Cycling Time

Trapped under a car, but no broken bones for cyclist The Times of London

Froome signs on for Team Sky again in 2014 Yahoo

Last Week's Cycling News

Bicycle Goods

Up to 40% on selected Lights!

Landing Page

PDW Spaceship Front and Radbot 500 Rear Light Set
£21.00
LIST PRICE £35.00
SAVE 40% = £14.00

Cateye EL-Uno Front and TL-Rapid 3 Rear Light Set
£37.49
LIST PRICE £49.99
SAVE 25% = £12.50

Up to HALF PRICE! Cycle Shoe Clearance

Diadora Sprinter 2 Road Cycling Shoes
£36.21
LIST PRICE £72.41
SAVE 50% = £36.20


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Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Happy New Year 2014 Cycling in Kyoto!

京都でいいサイクリングで2014年に良いお年を!

For those following the Gregorian calendar, it is now afternoon on the first day of 2014.

The hangover is mild, the day outside clement.

We are off to Kita no Tenmangu Shrine for our hatsu mode (first shrine visit) of the new year.

We wish all well in 2014, and may the wind be always at your back.

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