Hi all,
with local council elections coming up in Victoria in November, thought this timely news article from San Francisco would interest you.
cheers,
Chris


Best for bikes
Supe candidates jockey for the two-wheel vote
URL: http://www.examiner.com/article/index.cfm/i/090704n_kalb

In a sign of the strength of bicycle advocates in setting city policy, 38 candidates in seven supervisor races are vying for support from the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition.

And while incumbents are careful in making promises about controversial traffic-flow changes in their neighborhoods, the 4,000-member coalition is winning unequivocal support from many challengers for its proposals, including a city policy goal of 10 percent bike commutes by 2010, colored pavement for bike lanes, reduced vehicle traffic on Market Street, and a citywide approach to putting in new bike lanes.

The Bike Coalition puts a high value on Board of Supervisors seats, and its endorsement questionnaires include detailed looks not just at citywide problems for cyclists, but neighborhood-by-neighborhood problems that force would-be pols to weigh in on difficult issues such as loss of parking spaces and partial street closures to accommodate bike lanes. In the last two rounds of district elections, the group helped elect several incumbent supervisors, and in 2003 its energetic base of volunteers helped boost Supervisor Matt Gonzalez into the mayoral runoff.

Its endorsements are likely to focus more on a candidate's support for bike-friendly policies over electability, giving less prominent contenders a chance to stand out.

"I'd almost rather pick someone who is a true ally rather than the most electable candidate," said Dale Danley, president of the coalition's board of directors.

Nowhere is the competition fiercer than in the centrally located District 5, where a disproportionate number of bike advocates live and 15 candidates -- eight of them dues paying coalition members -- are jockeying for the endorsement to succeed Gonzalez, who is not seeking re-election. Two have comprehensive bike policy platforms, which they unveiled to coincide with the coalition's online endorsement process.

The coalition has three specific areas of interest in the district: Improvements to Masonic Avenue between Fell and Geary streets, which may entail removing some parking on Masonic; conversion of Fell and Oak streets back to two-way streets to promote calmer traffic; and creating a bicycle boulevard on Page Street.

On Labor Day, candidate Dan Kalb led a "Tour de 5" through his district to point out the cycling trouble-spots firsthand.

Kalb took a group of riders from the Panhandle through Japan Town and along Octavia Boulevard, past the Duboce Bikeway Mural and into "The Wiggle" -- a route that avoids the tough D5 hills -- ending up in the Inner Sunset. He stopped every several blocks to point out gaps in the bike network, or comment on possible improvements to streets such as Masonic.

"People, whether they are on bikes or cars, want to travel the straightest way," he said.

Last week, D5's Ross Mirkarimi held a press conference to unveil his seven-page bike policy platform, which includes citywide bike planning and encourages bike-friendly improvements as part of street repair work. He also proposed using tax incentives to encourage businesses to provide showers and lockers for bike commuters, and criticized a "piecemeal" approach to bike policy planning.

The coalition's endorsement process closes this afternoon, and the group plans to announce its picks early next week.