This isn’t strictly a bicycling story, but I think it’s a smart way to get more folks out of their cars and onto buses, and to make life a little easier for people who always ride the bus.

Price Chopper AdvantEdge now benefits those who take bus

ALBANY — Participants in Price Chopper’s AdvantEdge customer loyalty program will now find it costs less to take the bus.

Officials from Price Chopper’s owner, the Golub Corp., and from the Capital District Transportation Authority said this morning that the discounts offered on purchases of Sunoco gasoline will now be offered to purchasers of CDTA prepaid bus passes as well.

For every $50 spent on groceries, participants will get $2 off the price of a prepaid pass. The discount is offered on 10-ride, 31-day rolling, and STAR Swiper cards.

“We think it’s the first such arrangement in the country … where a regional supermarket partners with a regional transit authority” to promote taking the bus, said CDTA Executive Director Carm Basile. “Price Chopper has put riding buses on the same level playing field as driving your car.”

Read the rest of the article.

A prospective Xtracycle buyer asked the following on the Roots Radicals group (an email list of Xtracycle owners & fellow travellers):

So I’ve got a bike and I’m thinking of getting the Free Radical extension. I’ve got a seven year old and other kid-carrying options aren’t working that great (outgrew the trailer, trail-a-bike is awfully shaky). This xtracycle thing seems like a pretty great solution. However, I only have the kid and/or cargo about half the time. Is it easy to take off the long tail and make it a regular bike and then back again when you need it? Do you just ride the long tail with nothing in it? Do you have two bikes? — Karen

The responses are great (read them here) — and all in favor of just riding the X all the time. I agree. Well, maybe I’ll do this year’s Livestrong Challenge on something else…

Today’s Times Union newspaper published this story:

CDTA bike plan racks up fans
Authority begins initiative to place bicycle racks throughout Capital Region

By ERIC ANDERSON BUSINESS EDITOR
First published in print: Friday, January 22, 2010

ALBANY — Downtown Albany has perhaps a dozen bicycle racks. But a new effort by the Capital District Transportation Authority could make parking your bicycle far easier.

The CDTA, in conjunction with the Capital District Transportation Committee, is seeking to place bike racks throughout the Capital Region. The racks would be free to public and nonprofit sectors, while private sector businesses and employers would be eligible for a 50 percent subsidy.

“The Capital Region Bike Rack Program works hand in hand with the goals of public transportation: improving our quality of life and reducing single occupancy vehicle commutes,” said CDTA Chairman David Stackrow. “Businesses have the opportunity to expand their client base and improve customer satisfaction by providing close and convenient bicycle parking.”

Read the rest of the story.

The Times Union ran a story today about new trail markings that will link two parks in Schenectady:

Bike trail to link Schenectady parks
New 4.7-mile section will plug gap in biking path

SCHENECTADY — The county will soon embark on more than $2 million worth of new biking trail improvements that will plug a hole in the Mohawk Hudson Bike/Hike Trail and will link the city’s Vale and Central parks.

The state Canal Corporation is overseeing a $1.7 million new section of the Mohawk Hudson trail that will link the path’s end at the city’s Stockade section with another piece that ends at Balltown Road in Niskayuna.

The new 4.7 mile section will be marked on existing roadway with signage from North Jay Street to Union College, and then a narrower, off-road trail that runs parallel with the Mohawk River will be widened and provided with better drainage.

Read the rest of the story.

Democracy Now! is covering every day of the climate summit in Copenhagen. The segment below features Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper and Damon Moglen, who works on global warming for Greenpeace. I’m posting it here because midway through, Hickenlooper talks about bicycling in Copenhagen. He mentions that 30+% of the population commutes by bike now, and the city’s target is 50%.

The fine folks at Xtracycle just finished a video contest to find the best video about their new PeaPod LT child seat. Here’s the winning video:

not big enough b/w fixed from Kate Oshea on Vimeo.

More videos are available at the Xtracycle site.

Tow Truckin’ from Xtracycle on Vimeo.

Cool!

Learn more about World Car-Free Day

Adam Marino locks up his bike at Maple Avenue Middle School last Wednesday, the first day of classes. Photo by CharlieSamuels.com

From The Saratogian newspaper:

Family defies no-bike policy at Maple Avenue Middle School
Published: Monday, September 14, 2009

By ANDREW J. BERNSTEIN
The Saratogian

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The first day of school, already a happy and trying event for any student, saw a little additional stress for Maple Avenue Middle School student Adam Marino.

Marino and his mother, Janette Kaddo Marino, left for school by bicycle on Wednesday morning, as they often do in good weather, despite a phone call placed to students’ homes by school officials, asking parents not to allow students to walk or ride bikes to school.

After a cold reception on Wednesday, local transportation advocates are rallying around the family, and plan to accompany the pair to school today in a bid to bolster calls for a policy change.

Read the rest of the article

Voici:

The Original Longtail | Xtracycle from Xtracycle on Vimeo.

This is gorgeous.

Ride With Us! from Russ Roca on Vimeo.

More at The Path Less Pedaled.

Photo by USA Today

By Bruce Horovitz, USA TODAY

Sarah Gilbert stepped off her bicycle long enough to send one angry tweet via Twitter— and it’s changed the way one fast-growing burger chain treats bike riders.

The 35-year-old blogger, freelance writer and mother of three doesn’t own a car. She gets around usually bike-friendly Portland, Ore., on a custom-made stretch bike that fits all three of her boys, ages 2, 4 and 7. A bumper sticker boasts: “One less minivan.”

But after biking last week into the drive-through of the local Burgerville— an eco-conscious burger chain that even recycles its used cooking oil into biodiesel — she tried to order four cheeseburgers.

No go. She was refused service at the drive-through for, of all things, ordering from a bike. Never mind that the environmentally friendly restaurant chain spent $185,000 on wind energy credits in 2008 to compensate for the electricity used in its 39 stores and at its corporate headquarters.

When Gilbert got home, she sent out a huffy tweet followed by a pointed letter to the chain, which she posted on her blog, cafemama.com. By the next day, the company apologized. In short order, the Vancouver, Wash.-based chain, with locations in Oregon and Washington, revamped its policy and will announce a new bicycle-friendly drive-through program on Sept. 8.

Read the rest of the story.

I think these two are on to something…

Via http://pathlesspedaled.com/?p=492

Follow their adventures at pathlesspedaled.com.

Russ Roca is a man of many bike blogs, including this one and this one and this one, too, all of which have made multiple appearances here at RocBike in our old Links of the Day posts. Now Russ is heading out with his partner Laura on a bike trip.

Not just any bike trip, mind you. Russ and Laura sold or stored all their stuff except what would fit on two bicycles, and they’re going to travel the world by bike for some indeterminate period of time. Cool, huh?

They started a (wait for it) blog to chronicle their travels: The Path Less Pedaled. You can also follow them on Twitter and Facebook.

Today is the day before they leave, and they recorded a little video from their nearly bare apartment:

Good luck and safe travels, Russ and Laura!

The New York Times has the story.

According to an article in today’s New York Times, a recent survey of New York City residents found that lack of storage is one of the biggest things keeping New Yorkers off bicycles.

In a city of tight living quarters and unaccommodating corporate towers, the biggest cycling challenge can be finding a good place store one’s ride when it is not in use.

For James Rather, an urban planner whose Riverdale walk-up does not have a storage option, lugging his bike up three flights to his apartment every time he rides is a “constant hassle” and a sometime danger.

You can read the article at the Times site.

Once again, a bicyclist beat a car and a bus commuter in the Albany commuter contest. The story and photos are at All Over Albany.

(Thanks for Claire Nolan for the link!)

It’s Bike to Work Week
So tell everyone you know
And then ride your bike