Daily Roundup: Not again! (bike tax), Bikes on trains, feds to take over Cali state parks?

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The bike tax bogeyman has reared its senseless head in Portland. Bad place to raise that canard. BikePortland.org is on the case and has major media alerted.

Publicola: Bikes will be allowed on Seattle’s new light rail trains after all on opening weekend, after the Cascade Bicycle Club organized a huge protest. Erica C. Barnett has details.

Imo, Sound Transit, the benighted transportation authority behind the bike ban, has vastly underestimated the amount of bike traffic the trains will attract. In the Bay Area, Caltrain is in the midst of a virulent flap over “bumping” bike commuters. Only a certain number of bikes are allowed on the trains, and once the quota is reached, no more can board. The problem first surfaced big-time when gas prices shot up last year, but has remained residually troublesome to this day.

Good to have Cascade keeping an eye out, but Sound Transit needs some reality-based planning acumen as well. Dudes, the cycling era is upon you. How about being part of the solution instead of the problem.

We’ve painted the grim picture before of how proposed state park closures in California (to save money) would impact mountain bikers. Now there’s talk that six of the parks would revert to ownership by the federal government, which as we all know is just rolling in dough these days. Here‘s an insightful rundown from National Parks Traveler of the situation, with equally compelling comments. My only add: I’m visiting in NorCal and have heard talk that the feds might develop the parklands they take back over. Horror of horrors, and one hopes just babble.

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