Innovative Bike Parking

Check out this underground bicycle parking system in Tokyo--stores more than 9,000 bikes!
http://www.streetsblog.org/2008/04/21/automated-underground-bike-parking-in-tokyo/

While not automated and not as cool, there are bicycle lockers in the Market Square parking garage available for day use. So if you're headed to Sundown and can't find a good place to lock your bike outside the gates, just remember to bring a padlock with you and stash your bike in one of the lockers. That way you don't have to hold your helmet all night or worry about your panniers getting broken into!

Some of the lockers are reserved for people to "rent" (at no cost) on a quarterly basis. These are geared toward bike commuters. The registration form is online.

Info on these lockers is at http://www.knoxtrans.org/plans/bikeprog/ms_lock.htm
and the ones at KAT Park and Ride lots (Cedar Bluff, Farragut, and Halls) is at http://www.knoxtrans.org/plans/bikeprog/kat_lock.htm

Smart Trips Month and Knoxville By Cycle

The 2008 Knoxville By Cycle ride series starts May 17th, with a bike ride in conjunction with the Get Outdoors Festival at World's Fair Park. Details are available on our website at http://www.knoxtrans.org/plans/bikeprog/summer.htm and I've listed the series dates below.

Also, Smart Trips Month kicks off May 1st. We have a ton of fun events and promotions going. If you pledge to use an alternative to driving alone during May, you can get an Undriver's License that comes with benefits from local businesses. The 3rd annual Pedal Vs Metal Race between bicyclists and motorists is May 9th--will the bicyclists win again? Bike to Work Day is May 16th, and there are plenty of roadside bike repair classes to choose from during the month. And there's much more! May also kicks off our special, SmartFIX 40-influenced Commuter Challenge. We'll be giving away $10,000 in prizes to people who use alternative transportation to work at least 5 days a month. Info at http://www.knoxsmarttrips.org/stweek.htm

Knoxville By Cycle series:
May 17, Get Outdoors
10 a.m. Meet at World’s Fair Park

June 28, Blooms and Bikes
9 a.m. Meet at entrance to UT Gardens

July 12, East Side Story
9 a.m. Meet at Caswell Park (playground), 620 Winona St.

Aug 9, Scavenger Hunt
9 a.m. Meet at Market Square

Save the Date!
Sept 27, 8th annual Neighborhood Bike Ride, 10 a.m., Market Square

Helmets required. All ages and skill levels welcome.

Thanks to our sponsors!
Mast General Store
KnoxRevolution
KnoxVelo
SCO
Smoky Mountain Wheelmen

Article about bike racks in Maryville

On Saturday, April 19, Boys Scouts will install bike racks at several downtown locations, including Tomato Head, Capitol Coffee, Professional Hair Designs and the Blount County Public Library.

Keith Webb, whose son Scott is a member of the troop, helped the group settle on this project after he learned Maryville College bought more than 20 racks through a state grant with Knoxville Transportation Planning Organization in 2007. “They were the first ones to take advantage of the program,” he said.

The TPO grant pays for 80 percent of the cost of the bicycle and the business is billed for 20 percent of the rack cost plus shipping. “The grant covers the cost of the rack, not the installation so we wanted to make it easer for businesses and organizations to take advantage of the program by offering installation service through Boy Scout Troop 87 out of Maryville at Broadway United Methodist Church,” he said.

Full article: www.blounttoday.com/news/2008/apr/16/place-park/

Bike Circus at the Birdhouse

BIKE CIRCUS at the Birdhouse

May 3, Saturday, 3-7 pm

Come be part of Knoxville's bike community with games, challenges, bike maintenance, and more.

Schedule of Events

3:00 Circus Opens - Huzzah!

4:00 Bike Polo Match

5:00 Inner Tube Slingshot Making and Battle

6:00 Group Bike Ride

Ongoing Events

Basic Bicycle Maintenance

Photo-portraits of you and your bike

General bike hilarity and enjoyment

Silent Auction benefiting both the Knoxville Bike Collective and the Birdhouse.

Fun for all ages! Bring your bike. Wear a helmet!

Email birdhouse.laboratories@gmail.com for more information.

Become a Genuis in 31 days or less!

Smart Trips Month is coming up in May, with a lot of fun events to get you thinking about alternatives to driving alone. With gas prices going up and up, and I-40 through downtown about to be closed, you may want to consider biking (or carpooling, transit, walking, telecommuting...) instead! Check out the schedule of events at http://www.knoxsmarttrips.org/stweek.htm.

Make sure to sign up for your Undriver's License online or at one of our Undrivers License Stations. When you pledge to undrive during May, you can take advantage of some great discounts at participating businesses.

Magazine for people who ride bikes

Sent to me by a friend who discovered this at a Portland handmade bicycle show:

Momentum Magazine reflects the lives of people who ride bikes. Momentum provides urban cyclists with the inspiration, information and resources to help them fully enjoy their riding experience and connect with their local and global cycling communities. http://www.momentumplanet.com/

The articles are available online, and there are links to various blogs. One recent posting is about a High Heels bike ride in Vancouver!

Spring Tune Up in Blount County

Please help spread the word to your friends and neighbors!
Spring Tune-Up 2008
Get your bicycle ready to ride! Local bicycle shops’ mechanics will perform basic bicycle safety checks to make sure your ride is safe and ready for the season. Minor adjustments are free and additional service can be arranged as required. We will also show you how to deal with typical roadside repairs (flat tires, broken spokes, etc.). This event is designed for all ages and to meet the needs of the full spectrum of bicycle riders in our community. It would be great to see whole families of cyclists taking advantage of this opportunity. Here are the details:

WHAT: Bicycle Basics, Safety, and Maintenance
WHEN: Saturday, April 19th, 2008 10am – Noon
WHERE: The grassy area in front of the parking garage adjacent to the Tomato Head restaurant in Historic Downtown Maryville (211 W. Broadway, Maryville, TN 37801)
PARTICIPATING BICYCLE SHOPS:
Cycology Bicycles (865-681-4183)
Mountain View Bicycles (865-977-4200)
SPONSORS:
The Tomato Head (865-981-1080)
Jeff Roth Cycling Foundation www.jeffrothcyclingfoundation.org
SIGN-UP: To sign up for the Spring Tune-Up 2008, send an email to springtuneup08@yahoo.com and type in “I want to ride” in the ‘subject’ of your email. Be sure to tell us in your message how many people/bicycles you plan to bring with you. Availability is somewhat limited, so sign up as soon as possible.
COST: Free!

Loop Detectors at Traffic Lights

A recent commenter on a post said they couldn't get the loop detectors at traffic lights to work for them. There is some confusion over how these work. The loops detect metal, not weight. If you can see pavement cuts forming a box, or two parallel lines, you should position your bike over the righthand pavement cut. This is where it's most sensitive. If you see three parallel pavement cuts, like on Clinch at Henley, you should position your bike over the center cut.

If you try this and still can't get it to change (give it a couple of minutes--it's not instantaneous), you can let me know which intersection (kelley.segars@knoxtrans.org) and I will get the City (or County, but I don't know that the County has many intersections with loop detectors) to look at it and adjust the sensitivity.

Complete Streets legislation

Dear Bicycling Friends of Tennessee,
Please see the Safe Routes to School National Partnership website http://www.completestreets.org/federal.html regarding Complete Streets legislation and how you can support efforts to make roads safe and user-friendly for bicyclists and pedestrians. We approached Senator Lamar Alexander in early March asking him to co-sponsor the bill; however, Senator Alexander chose to not take on co-sponsorship. We are now asking Tennessee constituents and bicycling organizations to send letters to Senator Corker asking him to co-sponsor the legislation. Please send letters as individuals and as leaders of bicycling clubs and organizations. It would be helpful if you sent a copy of your letter to us at Walk/Bike Nashville ED@walkbikenashville.org to keep track of all constituent correspondence. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

How to get in touch with Senator Corker: http://corker.senate.gov/

Thank you,
shannon hornsby
executive director
walk/bike nashville
615/585-2014

One more place to bike in Knoxville, coming soon

Greetings, area bikers!

I'm a co-worker of Kelley's, and she invited me to post on the blog a while back, and I've finally come up with something (semi-)interesting to say, so here goes:

I called TDOT's construction office this afternoon about progress on the bike/ped addition to the Buck Karnes (Alcoa Highway) bridge, and was told that the finishing touches (railings, etc.) would be completed within 2 weeks.

Juuuuust a little behind schedule, but I'm looking forward to taking it for a spin nonetheless.

For those not familiar with the project, there's an on-ramp to the bike/ped bridge from where the Neyland Greenway goes under the Buck Karnes. On the other side of the river, there's a ramp that (I'm told) connects to one of the service roads on UT's property.

Eventually this bridge will link to the greenway that the city's building down to Marine Park. That greenway will eventually link with the greenway TDOT's supposed to build as part of the Alcoa Highway project, which will eventually link to the Maryville/Alcoa greenways, which will eventually link to the Smokies, etc., etc., ad infinitum.

But for now, there's a new bridge coming. Wear your helmets! (When biking, at least.)