Hawaii Bicycling League

Archives for December 2016

Happy Holidays from HBL

Wishing You A Wheely Good Holiday Season!Bicycle Ornament

We hope you’re able to enjoy time with family and go for a bike ride! Burn off those extra calories!

We’ve been on our best behavior this year – always riding with our helmets on, pushing for more bike lanes, and working hard to help more people bike. We hope that Santa or his holiday menehune could put a few of these things on our list under our Christmas palm tree this holiday season (or drop them off at the HBL office)! Mahalo and Mele Kalikimaka, from our HBL family to yours!

HBL Holiday Wishlist:

iPhones or 3G enabled iPads (new or gently used)

  • For course marshals during our large events, out of office credit card donations, and more.

Apple iMac desktop computer or laptop

  • As we grow, we need more workstations.

Mid-sized Refrigerator 

  • More space for staff brown bag lunches! Need a bit more fridge space. If you have a fridge larger than a mini-fridge, but not exactly full size, we’d love it!

Silent Auction donations

Cargo bike or other unique bikes

  • We’re looking to create a bicycle-power system, which involves a cargo bike.

Good relationships between all users of the road!

 

 

February Leeward Bikeway Exploratory Ride: Kalaeloa Heritage Park

Come ride bicycles with us!

    • Saturday, February 4th, 2017
    • Meet us at Neal Blaisdell Park to roll out at 8:30 am OR meet us at West Loch Community Shoreline Park to roll out at 9:30 am.
    • We’ll ride to Kalaeloa Heritage Park to tour the park around 10:30 am.
    • Bring some cash! Visitation Site Tour Fee: $1.00 for children and $5.00 for adults.
    • HBL will provide light snacks, water, and gatorade.
    • Please consider making a donation to HBL’s Leeward Bikeway advocacy campaign!  Click here to donate!
    • An email will be sent out Thursday before the ride with  instructions and directions!

Click here to sign up for the exploratory ride!

The Leeward Bikeway

The Leeward Bikeway project has been in the works for almost 40 years! This year, with generous member donations, HBL decided it has been too long! We have been working hard to get the word out, policy implemented and the multi-use path built! Around 23 miles long, the Leeward Bikeway will be the longest bike path on Oahu. Join us on this ride to see the (not yet paved) future route and to tour Native Hawaiian Cultural and historical Kalaeloa Heritage Park. Learn more about the Leeward Bikeway at www.HBL.org/LeewardBikeway

More about Kalaeloa Heritage Park…

“The Kalaeloa Heritage and Legacy Foundation (KHLF), a 501 (c) 3 Native Hawaiian organization formed by members of ‘Ahahui Siwila Hawaii O Kapolei (ASHOK) and dedicated residents of the Honouliuli ahupua‘a (land district) for the purpose of preserving and protecting Native Hawaiian Cultural and historical sites of Kalaeloa by creating a heritage park. Since 1998 ASHOK has worked with the Navy, Barbers Point Redevelopment Commission, and then with Hawaii Community Development Authority (HCDA) to preserve these sites and minimize damages. In December of 2010 members of ASHOK’s Kalaeloa committee came to the realization that these sites needed the exclusive dedication of an organization to preserve these sites and create a heritage park. The committee and ASHOK stepped aside so such an organization could be created. A conceptual plan for the park was drafted in 2014 and the foundation was given a 40 year lease to the park property in December of 2015. KHLF’s mission for the Heritage Park is the stewardship and preservation of these Native Hawaiian cultural sites and the cultural landscape of Kalaeloa, to educate the community on cultural traditions and practices, advocate cultural awareness, implement and maintain an authentic Hawaiian presence in the Kalaeloa area.” Learn more about Kalaeloa Heritage Park at www.khlfoundation.org/about

Route 1: Neal Blaisdell Park to Kalaeloa Heritage Park (22 miles round trip)

Route 2: West Loch Community Shoreline Park to Kalaeloa Heritage Park (11 miles round trip)

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Click here to sign up for the exploratory ride!

 

Questions about the ride?

Email or call me at:

Hannah@HBL.org

735-5756

Star Advertiser support for bikeways

The King Street protected bike lane has lead to a doubling of cycling on the street and a reduction of sidewalk riding from 70% to 4% (source).  A ride along King St shows a story of a true success – a steady pack of commuters in morning, kids riding to school, an elderly person riding to the store, and families going for a weekend ride.  These positive changes are without a single mauka-makai bikeway connection.  So it’s with great fanfare that the City is preparing to implement two important connections in early 2016 – McCully St and South St.  These projects are crucial steps in building the Minimum Grid network that will make cycling truly safe and accessible to all.  It’s great to see that our newspaper, the Star Advertiser, sees bicycling as an important part of our transportation system and supports building our bikeway network.  Read on for SA’s full thoughts. And make sure your on the list of supporters of building our Minimum Grid network!

Original story available here – http://www.staradvertiser.com/2016/12/09/editorial/our-view/share-road-with-more-bike-lanes/

Editorial| Our View

Share road with more bike lanes

 December 9, 2016

As Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s administration gears up for a second four-year term, it intends to continue creating bicycle lanes in the city’s urban neighborhoods. The ambition to establish a network of protected bikeways shows foresight as cities everywhere strive to be less car-centric.

While Caldwell made clear his goal during this year’s mayoral race, the issue rarely came up as a debate topic. Perhaps that’s because the South King Street bike lane, which touched off a great deal of contentious debate before it opened two years ago, is functioning reasonably well.

The two-way protected lane, which is about 2 miles long, is prompting an increase in bicycle traffic in a climate that’s perfect for pedaling. And while motorists must now navigate South King Street’s intersections and driveways with heightened awareness of surroundings, that’s a positive development as bicycles have always been part of the street’s traffic flow.

Next month, the city’s Department of Transportation Services will replace up to 30 too-tight parking spots on McCully Street between Kapiolani Boulevard and South Beretania Street with striped bike lanes on both sides of the street. The lanes will create a bike route between Waikiki and the University of Hawaii at Manoa. It also will put in place the envisioned network’s first mauka-makai spur, connecting with the South King Street lane.

In addition, plans are in the works for a two-way protected bike lane along the Ewa side of South Street, between Pohukaina and South King streets. That lane should benefit from design tweaks spurred by community feedback, which delayed its opening from late 2015 to, likely, next February.

In the case of the McCully Street lanes, the city’s move corrects a dangerous situation. According to national standards, each side of a street must be at least 17 feet wide to fit a traffic lane alongside a parking space. On McCully either side is 15 feet wide.

“They never should have allowed parking there. There just isn’t sufficient space,” acting Transportation Director Mark Garrity said last week. “Striping it for a bike lane is actually the best thing we can do.”

The South Street bike lane would forge a logical second spur, stretching from the existing South King Street lane. A robust bikeways network is a good fit for that area’s Kakaako neighborhood as its fresh batches of businesses and residents embrace a live-work-play vibe.

When the mayor announced plans for the South Street spur, in August 2015, he acknowledged that the South King Street proposal had been met with firm resistance by many motorists. “For us, it was the most controversial thing we touched — maybe even more controversial than rail, or even homelessness,” Caldwell said then. “We had more input and feedback on putting a protected bike lane on King Street than anything else.”

But city officials, to their credit, pushed on. Cycling should be supported as a clean mode of transportation, and the administration must comply with its 2013 Complete Streets ordinance, which aims to balance the needs of all road users — pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists.

Two years ago, when the King Street Protected Bike Lane Pilot Project opened in tandem with the City Lights holiday event, there was grumbling about its uses of on-street parking spaces, an asphalt berm and plastic bollards to create a barrier between motorists and bicyclists. The grumbling is now fading, and the lane is folding into the city’s urban fabric.

One bike in the lane can mean one less car on the road. Dedicated bike lanes remove cyclists from the dangerous jostling of vehicular traffic as well as off pedestrian sidewalks. They are needed visual reminders that Honolulu’s roadways must be shared by all — especially in the city’s reimagined urban core.

Staff Light Picks

The Better to See You!

We all want to be seen whilst riding our bicycles here in Hawai’i. We know that an “invisible” cyclist is an unsafe cyclist, and that lights are one of the biggest deterrents against car-bike collisions, but there are so many lights on the market that it might be hard for one to choose the right one(s). Not only are lights on your bike smart, but they are the law! Hawai’i state law requires bicyclists riding 30-minutes after sunset to 30-minutes before sunrise to have at least a front white light and rear red reflector affixed to your bicycle (brush up on your bike laws at HBL.org/BikeLaws). Here’s what your friends at the Hawaii Bicycling League have tested and recommend for you to see, and to be seen!

Light Gear, Malia's Picks

Malia’s Light Picks:

  1. Halo Belts. These illuminated LED belts give you 360 degrees of visibility, and 100% coolness. Utilizing fiber optic technology, this lightweight belt buckles around your waist/bag/body and features bright LEDs and 3M Reflective Adjustable Elastic so that you are lit up at any angle. Their site claims you can see the belt from 1/4th of a mile away! They come in many different colours (you can even get a matching pet collar for your furry friend), and are water-resistant and USB rechargeable for many more night ventures to come. Buy it locally for $45 at: McCully Bicycle & Sporting Goods, or directly from LED Systems Hawaii. Halo Belt online store: HaloBelt.com
  2. NiteRider Solas Tail Light. This little back light packs a crazy bright punch! USB rechargeable and able to withstand any downpour (this has been tested, and tested again!), the Solas blasts 2 Watts of bright red light with four different flash-settings, with the “low-steady” setting lasting up to 36-hours! I like this light because is shines powerful and eye-catching light in 180-degrees, and comes with a seat post mount that makes it super easy to detach it with a flick of a finger if you’re locking up your bike. Buy it locally for $40 at The Bike Shop or Island Triathlon & Bike. NiteRider Tail Light online store: NiteRider.com/taillights/
  3. BikeGlow Safety Light. Though this fun light accessory for your bike won’t help you see, it will help people see you while giving your bike that unique flare while riding a night! The 10-feet of durable, waterproof, glowing wire comes in eight different colours and is made so you can get creative with how you attach it to your bicycle. I suggest this for parades, Halloween, or if you just want to feel like you’re in Tron. Buy it online for $30 at: BikeGlow.com/#shop
  4. Monkey Light. Want to be seen, turn head’s, and be super RAD while riding your bike?! Look no further than the Monkey Light. This waterproof, dustproof, and crazy exciting light party attaches to your spokes and creates over 40 different custom patterns. Choose a scheme that fits your mood and style: fireballs, paw prints, lightening bolts, rocket ships, and over 30 more! It claims to give you 360 degrees of visibility but I’ve noted that it is really great for side-visibility, which is helpful since I usually just run a front and back light. Buy it locally for $60 at Eki Cyclery. There’s more basic models starting at $30 as well! Monkey Light online store: Monkeylectric.com/
  5. NiteRider Lumina. Oh man, this front light is BRIGHT! While a little on the pricey side for the casual commuter, I would completely recommend this super powerful white light to everyone and anyone. Seriously, don’t skimp on lights! Especially this one that is extremely tough, intense, and illuminates everything in your path on the road or on the trails. It has 5 different light modes and a handlebar mount with quick release feature so you can take off your light in a snap. Buy it locally for $55 (450 lumens), $80 (750 lumens) at The Bike Shop and Island Triathlon & Bike. NiteRider Bike Lights online store: NiteRider.com/road/

Travis’ Light Picks:

Lumos Helmet. The two bicycling accessories we say to never skimp on – the helmet and the lights – now combined into one beautiful (and safe) product. The Lumos helmet creators raised over $800k through their Kickstarter campaign to fund this super futuristic and awesome illuminated helmet, complete with turn signals, automatic motion-activated brake lights, an app to control your personal settings, and visibility like no other. Buy it online for $170 at: LumosHelmet.co/

General Staff Picks:

Reflectors! We know that lights are great to have, but what’s not so great is that sometimes they run out of juice. By adding reflectors to your gear you can ensure that you will always have something to shine bright. Reflectors can be great accessories for visibility if they are placed correctly, and often are seen at further distances than normal lights. Reflectors work by reflecting light straight back at the source. Pick up a free set of reflective anklets from HBL by swinging by the HBL office or coming out to one of our free workshops! You can stock up on other reflective gear, from shoes, socks, jackets, and tops, to reflective paint, stickers, pedals, bags, and more!

 

Have your own recommendations for light or reflector gear that keeps you seen and safe? Email Malia at Malia@HBL.org to share your picks!

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3442 Waialae Avenue, Suite 1
Honolulu, Hawaii 96816
Telephone: 808-735-5756
bicycle@hbl.org

HBL’s Mission:

To enable more people to ride bicycles for health, recreation, and transportation through advocacy, education, and events.