Photo deep-linked from the Courier-Journal

The Courier-Journal posted this story yesterday about the convtroversy over the ad benches that have been appearing along Louisville's state highways. 

The Cincinatti company claims they are aboveboard and have their ducks in a row:

Bruce Graumlich, president of the Bench Billboard Co., said he would only answer questions posed in writing. He said that his company has “sought and received permits” for the benches and that all are “lawfully placed.”

However, the benches, which have been placed on state highways, are not permitted, says KYTC:

The basic idea of WCFD is for people to figure out a way to get around without driving. Find a carpool, ride a bike, take the bus, whatever you have to do to go without the car for a day. This year there are also a couple of extra events growing up around the holiday, read below...

To have some fun, be silly, and celebrate World Car Free Day and Two Wheel Tuesdays, we're going to hold a street corner "encouragement" of bicycling, walking, and public transit along Frankfort Avenue. We are literally going to line the streets and cheer for every cyclist, bus, and walker going by. Its just our way of celebrating the transportation choices that enhance our community.

Please join our zany party. Its a way for us to provide some positive feedback for biking, walking, and transit. We're meeting by the railroad tracks on Frankfort Ave (map) at 6 and will keep it up until we get tired.

If you can, bring noisemakers, signs, costumes, whatever! If not, we'll have some spares.

A group of activists are riding 120 miles in 12 hours on 13 buses.  We are making nine stops at locations around the city to pray for those who will be hurt most by the effects of climate change. You are invited to join us on the bus or meet at one of the prayer stops. Go to kentuckyipl.org for the complete schedule.

Last year it was just me - this year everybody's doin' it.

I am also asking for donations. Half of the money raised will go to Family Scholar House to pay for TARC tickets for their clients and the other half will go to Kentucky IPL to advocate for systemic changes in public transportation.

I am often amazed by how quickly my brain can absorb a new acronym so that I can barely remember a time when I didn't know what it meant. This has been the case with ARRA (pronounced air-rah), the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Many people just simply call it The Stimulus.

I use the word ARRA about 10 times a day, usually while harassing someone at KIDPA or Public Works, asking for lists of ped/bike projects. I was happy when I discovered the following sources of information: a list of ARRA projects from KIPDA including this list of sidewalk improvements. The new Louisville at Work website is also a helpful source of information about local ARRA projects. I am sharing these resources with you, dear readers, to spare you the pain I experienced while trying to find them.

Last night, the Lexington City Council approved a controversial plan to build sidewalks along a portion of Tates Creek Road. Most folks weren't sure which way the vote was going to go.

From a Herald-Leader article before the vote: "Sidewalk plan upsets residents:"

Council member Julian Beard, whose district includes the west side of Tates Creek, and Cheryl Feigel, whose district is on the east side, are opposed to the sidewalks. Beard doesn't think people will use them. "My constituents don't see people walking along the road," Beard said, adding that when he drives along Tates Creek, "I never, I mean never, have seen anyone walking."

Supporters of the sidewalk have pointed out that there is a goat trail worn into the grass on the side of the road which drivers probably don't see when they are whizzing by at 45 miles per hour or more.

(from Bike Louisville & Business First of Louisville) "Louisville-Jefferson County Metro Government is seeking public input on a plan to preserve River Road and improve accessibility for bicyclists, walkers and joggers.

The meeting, part of a yearlong study led by Gresham, Smith and Partners, is scheduled for June 16^th, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., at Gingerwoods Event Hall, [next to Henry's Ark] 7611 Rose Island Road. The study concerns a seven-mile stretch of River Road, from Zorn Avenue to U.S. 42.

[update] See the River Road Scenic Byway Corridor Improvement Study (3.1 MB PDF file)

Ever wonder who's educating the next generation of tranportation advocates? Well, SafeKids Worldwide recently completed a major project to teach kids about walkability. They then distributed 4,300 cameras and asked the kids to take photos of pedestrian environments in their communities. The result is a very compelling collection of photographs, captioned by the students, which are now part of a travelling exhibit. Yours truly is trying to get the exhibit to be shown in Louisville.

All of the photos in the exhibit can all be viewed on Safe Kids Worldwide's website. Warning: some of the photos are heartbreaking. No joke.

Okay, so the headline was a little overdone. But I needed to get your attention somehow. And with Obama doing all sorts of fancy rail stuff, no one is paying attention to all the cool stuff happening on the utility bike scene. 

Joe Bike in Portland Oregon recently released their utility bike.  At $2699, it's a bit pricey, but is still a lot less than a car, and you can carry people and/or lots of stuff on it.  There is also a lot of buzz these days about Madsen's utility bike, which debuted at Interbike last year. Modeled after the Dutch bakfiets, but having a basket in the back, it is a bit cheaper at $1299.  The company, based in Salt Lake City, popped on the scene quite recently. Don't know what they were doing before, but I like what they're doing now.

Nice to see some U.S.-based companies getting people interested in showing people just what bikes can do!

The Park DuValle neighborhood (southwest of downtown Louisville) was named after Lucie DuValle, the first female principal of a high school in Louisville. I tutor students at the Park DuValle clubhouse, but the other day I learned something new there.

Like several other neighborhoods in Louisville, Park DuValle is the result of hundreds of public housing units being rebuilt as a mixed-income community. A large sign in the clubhouse lobby says, "Like many of Louisville's great neighborhoods, the Villages of Park DuValle are designed to be walkable and easy to get around in. A well-planned system of sidewalks and interconnected streets encourages walking and reduces the dependence on cars. It's cleaner, quieter and friendlier." The sign is what got my attention.

Maybe I'm slow on the uptake, but Park DuValle is the only Louisville neighborhood I know of that was formally designed to reduce dependence on cars. Do you know of any others?

Villages of Park DuValle website: http://morethanhouses.com/villagesofparkduvalle/index.php