Driver Education Now Reaching Hundreds of Thousands

Posted on by San Francisco Bicycle Coalition

Uber is now sharing with drivers and riders information on how to pay special attention to the safety of people biking. Drivers on the Uber platform will receive four short videos with tips for how to share the road safely with people on bikes, including while making right turns, dropping off passengers and more. Additionally, both drivers and riders will receive targeted messaging and tips with best practices for sharing the road. As San Francisco’s number-one resource on safe streets education, your SF Bicycle Coalition consulted on the content of these videos and tips.

Vision Zero is achievable. Collisions are preventable. And safe streets advocates should seize every opportunity to eliminate serious crashes and traffic deaths.

In San Francisco, we will achieve Vision Zero through the three E’s: engineering, enforcement and education. Your SF Bicycle Coalition advocates for engineering solutions on dangerous streets and data-driven traffic enforcement. We provide safety education for people who bike as well as frequent drivers – those who spend the most time behind the wheel and whose driving behavior has a big impact on street safety.

Along with our political work and advocacy for physically-protected bike lanes, our 2016 Member Survey showed that driver education remains a top priority among people who bike in SF. It’s also a key goal under our current strategic plan. That work has never been more important than it is today.

Transportation network companies like Uber have changed the way many people get around our city. With ever-changing technology, there is an immediate need for safe streets in San Francisco. The opportunity to take the lead and reach hundreds of thousands with important safety information is one we cannot pass up.

With our streets more congested than ever, now is the time to focus on both immediate and long-term safety solutions. Consulting on these videos and tips ensures that the most accurate and up-to-date safety information is distributed to an unprecedented number of people driving and riding on San Francisco streets. This is groundbreaking for our city as well as the broader Bay Area, and will be a model for safe streets advocates and cities across the country.

Celebrate First-Ever Bay Day By Bike

Posted on by Julia Raskin

Love the Bay? Come pedal with us on Oct. 1 to commemorate the first-ever Bay Day.

Join your San Francisco Bicycle Coalition and Save the Bay on a bike ride to celebrate the natural and urban wonders of the San Francisco Bay.

Our city’s waterfront is an iconic landscape across the globe and is woven into the fabric of our city’s history. It is home to major attractions like AT&T Park, the Presidio and the Exploratorium, as well as the largest and most ecologically important estuary on the west coast.

Bay Day Bike Ride
Saturday, Oct. 1 @ 11:00 am – 1:00 pm
Meet at Brannan Street Wharf (Embarcadero at Brannan St.)

That’s why we are excited to host a bike ride for the inaugural Bay Day, “an Earth Day for the Bay.” This day is dedicated to celebrating this amazing place for the entire Bay Area. So hop on your two wheels and join thousands of other Bay Area residents uniting in celebration of the San Francisco Bay.

RSVP Here

Our seven-mile, casual-paced ride will begin at Brannan Street Wharf and end at Fort Mason, with stops along the way to talk about changes coming to the waterfront and ongoing ways to get involved in the planning processes to reshape how we get around. Soak in beautiful bay views and come prepared with waterfront trivia knowledge to win a Bay Day t-shirt!

What Is an Executive Directive?

Posted on by Chris Cassidy

The Office of the Mayor comes with some impressive tools to deliver change in San Francisco. The highest form of authority granted by the San Francisco Charter to each mayor is the Executive Directive, like that issued by Mayor Ed Lee last month.

Executive Directives are reserved for urgent matters on which the Mayor identifies a need for immediate action by City agencies. In his six years in office, Mayor Lee’s sparing use of Executive Directives has addressed issues including housing, healthcare and gun safety.

Issued on Aug. 4, 2016 under the title “Achieving Vision Zero: Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety,” Executive Directive 16-03 sends a clear message that the state of biking in San Francisco must improve and that safe streets will be delivered with urgency.

That Executive Directive lays out 13 specific orders for five City agencies, including the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA), the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) and SF Recreation and Parks Department. These orders are unprecedented, providing advocates for safe streets powerful new levers to hold the City accountable for improvements. And we’re already seeing results.

The SFPD announced the goal of dedicating half of all traffic citations to the five most dangerous traffic violations in January, 2014. At a Board of Supervisors’ committee hearing last week, the SFPD announced that August, 2016 was the first month in which the department met its Focus on the Five goal. This embrace of data-driven traffic enforcement is a crucial piece of the puzzle towards achieving Vision Zero resulting from Mayor Lee’s Executive Directive.

The SFMTA also used that hearing to share their progress on Executive Directive orders. They are moving ahead with proposals for physically-protected bike lanes in SoMa and the Tenderloin by accelerating near-term projects.

Much, much more is expected in the months ahead, as dictated by the Executive Directive. We could not have even arrived at this point without our members calling for deliberate action following the events of June 22. Now we need you to stand by us as we work to hold the City accountable for their promises.

Your membership makes it possible for people who bike to be heard at City Hall. Please give a gift membership to someone who bikes in our city today, and elevate all of our voices for enjoyable, safe streets for everyone.

Education Program Intern

Posted on by San Francisco Bicycle Coalition

The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition works to promote bicycling for everyday transportation. Our member-based grassroots organization is considered one of the largest, most active and effective advocacy groups in the country. For 45 years, the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition has a proven track record of winning better bicycling improvements.

Position description

The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition is the leading provider of bike safety education in San Francisco. Our free Adult Urban Bicycling Workshops help people (ages 14+) feel safe, comfortable and confident bicycling in the city. Our four-part Family Bicycling Class series begins with Biking While Pregnant and concludes with Freedom from Training Wheels. Our courses are offered year-round in neighborhoods across the city. Additionally, we teach professional drivers, such as MUNI drivers and taxi drivers, how to share the road safely with people on bikes.

The Education Program Intern will gain firsthand experience in all aspects of bicycle education programming in one of the largest bicycle advocacy organizations in the country. In addition to working on programming, the intern will have the opportunity to teach bicycle education classes.

What you’ll learn:

  • Teaching skills to bring bicycle education to San Franciscans
  • Education program coordination, including database management, constituent outreach & engagement and logistics management
  • Event promotion skills

Responsibilities and duties include (but are not limited to):

  • Grassroots outreach with local businesses, neighborhood groups, residents, families and members to coordinate bike education classes
  • Assistance with member engagement, database management, email/phone communication
  • Co-teaching and/or individually teaching two to three bicycle education classes, based on skills and experience
  • Class evaluation data compilation and analysis

Required skills or abilities:

  • Extremely strong written and oral communication skills
  • Highly organized and self-starter; ability to take on new tasks quickly and easily
  • Comfortable presenting in front of large groups of people
  • Ability to get around the city to attend meetings and/or perform outreach
  • Comfortable riding a bike in an urban environment
  • Passion for making San Francisco a better city for living and biking

Desired skills or abilities:

  • Experience in education programming
  • Fluency in Spanish, Mandarin or Cantonese
  • Experience with customer/client relations
  • Experience with Salesforce or other databases, Google Apps (Docs, Calendar, Gmail, etc.), Eventbrite, WordPress and/or SurveyMonkey helpful but not required

Required dates for this internship include:

  • January 2017 TBD: Spring intern orientation
  • One Sunday/month beginning in March: Sunday Streets
  • Other dates TBD

Benefits:

  • One year’s free membership to the SF Bicycle Coalition
  • Firsthand experience in one of the country’s oldest and largest bicycle advocacy organizations
  • A behind-the-scenes view of a bustling nonprofit organization
  • Ongoing professional development opportunities, including:
    • Networking with SF Bicycle Coalition staff and professionals in a variety of fields, including but not limited to urban planning, transportation and nonprofits
    • Training on and experience with nonprofit industry standard software (Salesforce, Basecamp, etc.)
    • Presentations and trainings aimed at development of professional workforce skills
  • Indoor bike parking provided

This unpaid internship offers a flexible schedule with a 10-15 hour/week minimum commitment. This is chiefly a Monday through Friday internship, with one Sunday a month required and other occasional evening and weekend events. Interns are expected to make a four-month commitment, which may be extended. While the position is not paid, we are happy to work with any academic requirements the intern may have to help them earn course credit for their efforts.

How to Apply:

Write a compelling cover letter and resume, and submit as PDFs using the form below. Be sure to mention where you saw the internship advertised. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis until the position is filled. People of color and women are strongly encouraged to apply. The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, age, religion, gender, sexual orientation or political orientation.

We are no longer hiring for this position.

Next Up for SoMa Streets: Protected Bike Lanes

Posted on by Janice Li

Protected bike lanes in SoMa are happening, and here’s your chance to see them with your own eyes.

Through the Executive Directive issued by Mayor Ed Lee last month, the SF Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) committed to implementing three protected bike lanes within nine months. The first of these is proposed for Seventh and Eighth Streets to connect two popular bike routes, Market and Folsom Streets. The SFMTA will hold an open house next week to show concepts for improved street design.

Seventh & Eighth Street Project Open House
Thursday, Sept. 22 from 5:30 – 7:00 pm
Bayanihan Center: 1010 Mission St.

With fast-moving traffic on both these streets, this project provides not only physically-protected bike lanes but significant pedestrian and transit improvements including new boarding islands for Muni, painted safety zones and signal upgrades.

Thanks to the SFMTA, the project timeline for Seventh and Eighth Streets will be expedited with construction starting as early as spring of next year, pending approval. There will still be plenty of ways to share input starting with next week’s open house. Here’s yet another chance to make our new people-friendly vision for SoMa a reality, block by block.

Volunteer to Bike the Vote

Posted on by Janice Li

Ready for an exciting Election Day on Nov. 8? A packed ballot features everything from the presidential race to dozens of local measures. With six supervisor seats and 25 local measures up for vote in San Francisco, this election is sure to have a huge impact on how we live in our city.

Now that our slate of endorsements is finalized, we need your help to get the word out about the most bike-friendly candidates and ballot measures.

If you’re looking to flex your political muscle, we need all the volunteer help we can get to Bike the Vote. Our elections-focused outreach campaign will be shifting into high gear through until Election Day. We will be promoting our endorsements at a variety of events and the more voices we have, the more people we can reach. Before you vote on Nov. 8, help us shape the future of San Francisco by volunteering at one of our upcoming Bike the Vote events:

Volunteer for Bike the Vote

Bike the Vote Ambassador Training*: This special training will prepare you to volunteer at all of our fall Bike the Vote events. Already an Ambassador? Stop by at 7:30 pm for the Bike the Vote addition. Sign up!

Bike the Vote Service Stations*: Help to spread the word about November elections and our work at special Bike the Vote outreach stations. Join us!

Bike the Vote Phone Banks: Come chat up your fellow SF Bicycle Coalition members about Biking the Vote. Sign up!

*You must be a member to volunteer at these events. Membership costs as little as $35 per year, or you can earn a no-cost Barter Membership by volunteering 10 hours in a three-month period!

Nick Marti, Valet Bike Parking Gem

Posted on by Giselle Diaz

If you’ve used the SF Bicycle Coalition’s Valet Bike Parking service before, you may have already met Nick Marti. For those of you who have not yet had the chance, look no further. We recently caught up with Nick to talk about his work as a Valet Supervisor and his passion for getting people riding bicycles — a passion so strong, in fact, that we are not the only bicycling organization that he devotes his time to!

SF Bicycle Coalition: When did you first get involved with the SF Bicycle Coalition?

Nick: I first got involved with the SF Bicycle Coalition at Tour de Fat ‘14. I had just volunteered at the ArtCrank Bicycle Art Show and met some cool people there. When I got to the SF Bicycle Coalition tent at Tour de Fat, I got information about a Barter Membership where I could not only become a member, but meet more like-minded people along the way.

We heard that you not only work with the SF Bicycle Coalition, but also work for YBike. What motivates you to get others on bikes?

There’s really no drawback to cycling. It’s fun, it’s healthy, it can be inexpensive, anyone can learn how to do it and it’s one of the most eco-friendly forms of transportation. While all of these factors motivate me, the biggest motivator is my love of teaching and helping people find the joy of cycling, whatever it means to them.

Why did you decide to apply to be a Valet Supervisor, and what are your responsibilities in that role?

I decided to pursue being a Valet Supervisor because I wanted to take my commitment a step beyond volunteering. The SF Bicycle Coalition is an organization that stands behind me as a cyclist, and part of giving back is taking on more responsibility. As a Valet Supervisor, I know that my interactions with the public reflect the SF Bicycle Coalition and the cycling community at large. So besides hauling materials to sites and ensuring theft prevention, I connect with other member-volunteers and the public on the issues relevant to improving our community.

What do you enjoy most about working as a Bike Valet Supervisor?

My favorite part of being a Valet Supervisor has been meeting and getting to know so many other SF Bicycle Coalition members. We have an amazing community, and it’s revitalizing to have passionate conversations about improving our city.

What are some improvements to bicycling that you have seen around your neighborhood, and what would you like to see more of?

This is an oldie but the San Jose Avenue road diet and protected bike lane is definitely my favorite as it made my commute home from CCSF a lot more comfortable. I would love to see some more green paint on Polk Street. I’m also very excited to see how Masonic and Arguello will be improved and how many more cyclists will take advantage of those improvements.

What advice would you give to people who are looking to get involved with the cycling community or learn to ride around the city?

Definitely get out here and either attend one of the SF Bicycle Coalition’s free classes on bike education, volunteer or check the Chain of Events page. We do a lot of Learn to Rides and Bike Rodeos with YBike so check us out!

Are you looking to join a community of individuals like Nick who are committed to bringing safer streets to San Francisco? Join the SF Bicycle Coalition today, and make your voice heard. Already a member? Discover fun ways to volunteer and get involved here. 

SF Bicycle Coalition Endorsements: Nov. 8, 2016

Posted on by San Francisco Bicycle Coalition

We have an exciting Election Day coming on Nov. 8, where San Francisco voters will have a chance to weigh in on everything from the U.S. presidential race to half of the Board of Supervisors. There are additionally 25 local ballot measures, making 2016 a critical year where your voice and your vote matters.

Every year, your San Francisco Bicycle Coalition posts candidate questionnaires and polls our membership to inform our slate of endorsements. We are proud to endorse the following candidates and ballot measures this year.

Yes on Proposition G – Holding SFPD Accountable

Proposition G was sponsored by Supervisors Malia Cohen and London Breed, and it passed the Board of Supervisors unanimously. This measure improves oversight of San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) by establishing an independent Department of Police Accountability, which would take over the current Office of Citizen Complaints (OCC). Along with advocating for SFPD to use smart, data-driven traffic enforcement, we also encourage our members to file a complaint with OCC if they had a negative interaction with an officer. This process has not helped to improve SFPD’s responsiveness to bike-related issues such as theft, double-parking in bike lanes or bike-involved collisions. We believe increased oversight and accountability through passing Prop G will make a difference.

Yes on Propositions J and K – Invest in Transportation

These two measures go hand in hand to increase sales tax and use these revenues for improving transportation and increasing services for people who are homeless. We recognize that supporting a sales tax measure isn’t the easiest decision, and so we worked with others to fight for strong investments in safe streets and affordability programs. This measure brings critical dollars to transportation by funding programs like Free Muni for Youth and protecting against Muni service cuts. It also invests dollars into safe streets, bringing in over $12 million a year for bicycle and pedestrian projects.

Yes on Measure RR – Better BART Helps Everyone

This regional measure asks Bay Area voters to approve a $3.5 billion general obligation bond to fund critical BART infrastructure and improve station access. We know more of our members are relying on connecting their bike to BART and that a transit-friendly city is a bike-friendly city. BART needs to invest in their system now to ensure the future of their system is safe and reliable. Having a functioning transit system benefits biking by reducing reliance on car trips and increasing the different ways to get around the Bay Area.

No on Proposition L – Keep SFMTA’s Budget Process Working

This measure proposes two changes that affect the SF Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA): Splitting appointments to their board between the Board of Supervisors and Mayor and decreasing the budget approval threshold from seven votes on the Board of Supervisors to six. We acknowledge there are merits in split appointments that would put the SFMTA in line with other boards and commissions, (e.g., the Police Commission, the Planning Commission), but as the Board of Supervisors has never rejected a Mayoral appointment, it’s unlikely this change would mean much. The change in budget approval process, however, is troubling. This makes rejecting the SFMTA budget a greater possibility. The worst case scenario of an SFMTA budget being rejected becomes a more real possibility, which could cause unrecoverable delays to critical bike and transportation projects.

San Francisco Board of Supervisors

District 1 Supervisor

Unsurprisingly, member polling was strongly in favor of Andy Thornley, who has had a lifelong commitment to making streets work for people first. We are also endorsing Sandra Lee Fewer, whose time on the School Board included sponsoring and passing a resolution in support of Vision Zero.

District 5 Supervisor

We are endorsing the incumbent London Breed, who has consistently supported smart, data-driven traffic enforcement and helped to move important bike projects like Masonic Avenue and Fell and Oak Streets forward to construction.

District 7 Supervisor

We are endorsing the incumbent Norman Yee, who has been a vocal leader for Vision Zero. He chairs the city’s Vision Zero Committee and recently sponsored and passed legislation to increase the use of telematics technology in city vehicles. This will help track these vehicles to help reduce collisions and identify dangerous driving behaviors in City vehicles.

Districts 3, 9 & 11 Supervisor

We are not endorsing candidates in these races. Member polling did not strongly favor any candidate. Additionally, since none of the leading candidates who answered our candidate questionnaire have held office before, they lack strong track records of advocacy around biking and transportation issues that our members care strongly about.

BART Board District 7

The incumbent Director Zakhary Mallett is consistently a vocal opponent of bike access on BART. Our endorsed candidate Lateefah Simon, on the other hand, is on the record in support of making access to BART a priority. We believe she will bring needed change on the BART Board to ensure people with bikes can continue to rely on BART to help them get around.

State Assembly District 17

David Chiu has consistently been a strong vote for biking and transportation improvements during his first term in Sacramento. As Assemblymember, David Chiu has also been an outspoken supporter for Automated Speed Enforcement and has been helping to get draft legislation ready for next year.

State Assembly District 19

Phil Ting was this year’s Golden Wheel Awardee, after championing several pieces of legislation in Sacramento to increase biking and walking. Read more about the legislation he authored to ban bridge tolls for people who bike and walk.

State Senate District 11

Both candidates Jane Kim and Scott Wiener have a long history of advocating for better biking and making sure there are safe, affordable ways to get around as Supervisors. While our board did consider an endorsement in this race, it was clear from our member polling that both candidates are equally popular, and that we’re fortunate to have such bike-friendly candidates vying for State Senate. We believe that either candidate would represent bike-friendly policy positions admirably in Sacramento and therefore have made no endorsement in this race.

One Month Since the Mayor’s Executive Directive

Posted on by Janice Li

After Mayor Ed Lee issued an Executive Directive less than a month ago, we knew that the people of San Francisco would look to the SF Bicycle Coalition and our members to hold the City accountable every step of the way.

The first opportunity to do so is coming up. Here’s your chance to hear what’s being done to implement more protected bike lanes, slow speeds in Golden Gate Park and more.

Board of Supervisors Public Safety Committee Meeting
Thursday, Sept. 8 at 2:30 pm
City Hall, Room 250

Thanks to Supervisor Jane Kim, the Executive Directive on bicycle and pedestrian safety will be atop the agenda at the first Public Safety & Neighborhood Services Committee meeting after the August recess. Because there is a packed agenda and limited time to make comment, we are encouraging you to write an email for public record.

Make Public Comment Today

The SF Municipal Transportation Agency will present the progress that’s been made in the first month, including exciting plans to implement protected bike lanes on Seventh and Eighth Streets within the next nine months. They’ve already made progress on more smart and safe street design by breaking ground at Ninth and Division for a protected intersection to prioritize biking and walking at this complex location.

Again, we wouldn’t be here without people like you pushing the City to do more to make sure streets are for people first. Let’s keep this momentum going.

Protected Intersections? So Hot Right Now

Posted on by Janice Li

The next big thing just broke ground. Are you ready for San Francisco’s first protected intersection?

We are! San Francisco joins a small handful of U.S. cities implementing smart, innovative street design to physically protect people biking and walking at intersections. Construction is underway at Ninth and Division Streets to help the hundreds of people biking there every day and elevate San Francisco’s standards for what our streets can and should look like.

Protected intersections grab from a menu of design of elements, creating a unique design whenever two streets meet. But why should they be considered the new standard for San Francisco?

1. Protected intersections take the chaos out of crossing a street.

 

Protected intersection, Salt Lake City

Protected intersection in Salt Lake City, UT (Source: Alta Planning)

Whether you’re walking, biking or driving, intersections are where every travel mode intersects and it’s not always easy making sense of when or where to go. Protected intersections clearly show where bicycles should wait at a light, elevate pedestrians with raised crosswalks and can add guidance to connect bike lanes across an intersection.

2. Biking and walking gets priority.

 

Protected intersection, Chicago

Protected intersection in Chicago, IL (Source: John Greenfield)

With advanced bike boxes and pedestrian safety islands, protected intersections gives people biking and walking a head start at the intersections. This means less mixing with vehicle traffic, decreasing right hooks and reducing other conflicts when crossing the street or making a turn. Dedicated space and bike signals mean you belong on our streets, and they work for you.

3. Everyone slows down, making intersections far more safe.

 

Protected intersection, Salt Lake City

Protected intersection in Salt Lak City, UT (Source: Matt Johnson)

Not only do protected intersections add physical barriers between vehicle traffic, they also decrease conflicts between people biking and walking. Pedestrian safety islands means that people walking have dedicated space separate from where people are biking, whether you’re turning or heading straight at an intersection. This helps to slow everyone down at intersections, and slower speeds reduce the likelihood of collisions.

The protected intersection at Ninth and Division Streets will add several of these elements: Physically-protected bike lanes at the intersection, raised pedestrian crosswalks, pedestrian safety islands, narrower lanes to slow drivers down and a brand new sidewalk on Ninth Street.

SoMa Member Committee Meeting
Wednesday, Sep. 7 from 6:00-7:00pm
SF Bicycle Coalition at 1720 Market Street

We know that this is just the start to better, smarter design. Want to help us advocate for more? Join our SoMa Member Committee meeting next Wednesday and get the latest scoop on plans for Seventh and Eighth Streets as well as preliminary results from our Folsom and Howard Bike Survey.