With all of yesterday’s holiday greetings, I forgot all about Mardi Gras for the first time since I lived in Louisiana with the Pirate Lafitte .
But just like a flat inevitably follows a forgotten spare tube and patch kit, so Ash Wednesday must follow on the heels of Mardi Gras.
So I hope you’ve gotten the partying out of your system at least for a day or two, and have a good Ash Wednesday if you’re so inclined.
Personally, I’m giving up flipping off dangerous drivers for Lent.
I give it about three or four days.
………
About damn time.
CalMatters continues their exceptional series on the ongoing epidemic of traffic violence in California with reporting on a slate of new bills in the state legislature that would finally get tough on drunk, stoned and killer drivers.
I’ll let them fill in the details, but these are the topline highlights.
- Make vehicular manslaughter a violent felony and increase DUI penalties (SB 907)
- Close the DMV point loophole for drivers who get diversion after a deadly crash (AB 1662)
- Ensure deadly drivers don’t get their licenses back as soon as they get out of prison (TBD)
- Increase DMV points for fatal crashes (AB 1685)
- Allow prosecutors to charge DUIs as a felony on second offense (AB 1686)
- Allow prosecutors to charge DUIs as a felony after third offense, increase repeat DUI penalties (AB 1546)
- Revoke the licenses of repeat DUI offenders for longer (AB 1687)
- Bar people convicted of serious or repeat DUIs from purchasing alcohol (AB 1605)
- Mandate in-car breathalyzers for all DUI offenders (AB 1830)
- Expand law enforcement DUI training (AB 1814)
Now if they’d just do the same thing for hit-and-run drivers.
………
No shit.
The Marin County Bicycle Coalition has a few questions after a 75-year old man was killed riding his bicycle on a “complete” section of the county’s SMART Pathway.
Like why wasn’t the driver charged for running the victim down from behind with a massive SUV, when only some form of carelessness or distract could reasonably explain why the driver couldn’t avoid someone on a bicycle directly in front of him.
It should have at least been a prima facie violation of the state’s three-foot passing law, since the driver trier to go through rather than around him
Then there’s the obvious question of why this section of the pathway is considered complete, when it’s just nine miles of narrow country road with no bike infrastructure or paved shoulder of any kind.
As in zero.
Never mind on a two lane farm road with a 55 mph speed limit.
It’s worth giving the full piece a read, because they raise a lot of the same problems we face down here, despite the more rural setting.
Like how the hell people are supposed to stay active as they age, when doing it puts them in the crosshairs of dangerous drivers.
………
I want to share a press release I received yesterday promoting a crowdfunding campaign to help pay funeral expenses for Lori Ann Carreon.
The beloved 54-year old occupational therapist was killed by a speeding hit-and-run driver while riding her bike just a block from her Long Beach home earlier this month.
The driver turned himself in four days later.
GOFUNDME CREATED FOR LONG BEACH CYCLIST KILLED BY HIT-AND-RUN-DRIVER
Long Beach, CA – Friends and family of Lori Ann Carreon, the bicyclist killed by a hit-and-run driver on Saturday, February 7th, have set up a GoFundMe to help pay for funeral and memorial expenses.
Carreon was killed while riding her bike just blocks from her apartment in the Bluff Park neighborhood of Long Beach. Carreon, a long-time Long Beach resident and occupational therapist, was a beloved member of the community.
She was hit by a driver going in excess of 60 miles an hour on Second Street while crossing the intersection of Redondo Avenue and East Second Street. The driver fled the scene and turned himself in to the police on February 11th.
The intersection of Redondo Avenue and East Second Street has been the scene of numerous accidents over the years, and residents have urged Councilmember Cindy Allen and Mayor Rex Richardson to take action to make it safer, either by adding speed bumps or a traffic light, but their pleas have so far been ignored.
Long Beach Police have increased patrols at the intersection following the accident and have issued dozens of tickets, underscoring the need for more substantive efforts.
People interested in making a donation can go to: https://www.gofundme.com/f/honoring-lori-ann-carreon-beautiful-life-and-legacy.
As of this writing, the page has raised $17,500 of the $25,000 goal.
………
This weekend marks the return of Chinatown’s Annual Firecracker run, walk, bike, whatever, for the 48th year.
Below, the sponsors offer a schedule of the busy two day event, or rather, a series of events, including bike rides up to a half century, along with how to register and get more information.
WHEN:
February 28-March 1, 2026
- Sat, Feb 28: 50-mile Bike Ride; 8 a.m. – via Chinatown, LA River Bike Trail, Griffith Park, Burbank, Glendale, Tujunga, La Crescenta, Montrose, La Canada Flintridge, Pasadena, Alta Dena, South Pasadena, El Sereno and Lincoln Heights
• Sat, Feb 28: 20-mile Bike Ride; 8:15 a.m. – via Chinatown, LA River Bike Trail, Griffith Park
• Sat, Feb 28: 2K PAW’er Dog Walk; 9 a.m.
• Sat, Feb 28: 3rd Annual Lantern Paw Festival; Blossom Plaza, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.; A dog-centered Lunar New Year Celebration from https://www.instagram.com/pawsitivemgmt
• Sat, Feb 28: Free Festival until 4 p.m.
• Sun, March 1: 5K Run/Walk; 8:00 a.m.
• Sun, March 1: 10K Run/Walk; 8:40 a.m.
• Sun, March 1: 1K Kiddie Run: 9:45 a.m.; includes Kiddie Fun Zone (Carnival Games, Airbrush Tattoos, Pony Rides, Arts & Crafts, Rock Climbing Wall, Activities with the LA Zoo and LA Public Library, Freebies and Giveaways, and much more)
• Sun, March 1: Free Festival until 1 p.m.
WHERE:
Los Angeles Chinatown Central Plaza
943 N Broadway, Downtown Los Angeles 90012
RUN/WALK, KIDDIE RUN, PAW’er DOG WALK & BIKE RIDE REGISTRATIONS: $35 – $75
HOW TO REGISTER AND MORE INFORMATION:
• Firecracker L.A. Website: https://firecracker10k.org/
• Registration: https://runsignup.com/Race/CA/LosAngeles/LAChinatownFirecracker
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thefirecracker10k
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/firecracker10k/
• Twitter: https://x.com/firecracker10k
• Email: info@firecracker10k.org or Call 818-925-8434
• #firecrackerLA; #48years
• L.A. Chinatown Firecracker Trailer/Broll: Chinatown Firecracker 2025 3 minute 06.mov;
………
Be careful riding river pathways in this weather, for obvious reasons.
Ballona Creek bike path this afternoon. Impassable. Stay out. #StreetPhotography #SawtelleBlvd #BallonaCreekBikePath
— Ted Faber (@snorerot13.bsky.social) 2026-02-17T02:38:50.242Z
………
Joe Linton’s lawsuit over Metro’s failure to implement Measure HLA on the Vermont corridor is kinda headed to court today.
My lawsuit against LACity over #MeasureHLA will be in court next week: Wed Feb 18. But it won’t be the big part of my case. There are 3 things I am contesting. Next week is a smaller wonky administrative chunk: asking the judge to nix the city’s HLA ordinance. labikas.wordpress.com/2025/10/22/m…
— Joe Linton (@lintonjoe.bsky.social) 2026-02-14T17:46:51.870Z
………
Los Angeles is shamefully giving back millions in hard-won California Active Transportation Program funding, because city budget cutbacks mean we don’t have enough staffing to implement the projects.
And that’s because Mayor Bass and the city council approved massive, unfunded pay increases for police and other city workers.
The City of LA is about to give back millions of dollars of previously won money for active transportation projects because it can’t build things in any reasonable amount of time.
— Streets For All (@streetsforall.org) 2026-02-14T18:21:01.126Z
………
Apparently, LADOT is making up for their lack of staffing by conducting an endless series of surveys, including this one on improvements to Marmion Way.
………
The war on cars may be a myth, but the war on bikes just keeps on going.
This is a perfect example of dangerously impatient driver behavior. On the other hand, this wouldn’t have been a problem if the bicyclists had stuck to a single lane, leaving room to pass safely.
………
Local
Streetsblog’s Joe Linton updates LA’s bizarre new policy of conducting “Large Asphalt Repairs” instead of resurfacing streets, which amounts to almost the same thing, without triggering Americans With Disabilities Act and Measure HLA requirements.
A Culver City paper is concerned that a proposal to divert funds that voters approved to fix deteriorating school facilities will be used to “force a connection in between through our quiet residential neighborhood.” Never mind that the purpose is to provide a safe alternative to the usual parent drop-off so kids can walk or bike to school. But what’s the safety of a few kids compared to keeping the riffraff and rugrats out of the ‘hood?
South Pasadena wants your input on improvements to the Huntington Drive and Fremont Avenue Corridor, including the possibility of new bikeways.
Baldwin Park has officially opened the 2.3-mile Baldwin Park Greenway, which is slated to expand to five miles in the coming years, allowing people to bypass the area’s busiest streets.
State
A Silicon Valley organization changes lives by rebuilding bicycles that are then donated to local charities to distribute to people in need.
National
The Velo podcast considers, among other things, the controversial ethics of hi-viz, and getting stalked by Bigfoot while riding through the woods.
No surprise here. The police chief of Greeley, Colorado, crashed into a 15-year old boy on a bicycle while driving his personal SUV, and the cops immediately blamed the kid on the bike for riding out in front of him. Which is entirely possible. But it’s a little strange that the cops never seem to be responsible for a crash, when even they will tell you they’re the worst drivers on the road.
Chicago Streetsblog accuses a candidate for alderman, aka councilmember, of being a Trump-aligned NIMBY who wants to rip out “obstructive bike lanes,” even though the traffic congestion is actually caused by utility construction.
A proposal in the New York State legislature would allow residents to set aside pre-tax funds for transportation, including transit and bike share.
International
London bike thieves stole around 40,000 bicycles last year, while the cops recovered a lousy 2%, or about 800 bikes.
After a British writer wrecks a high-end wheel hitting a massive pothole, he’s just happy it wasn’t worse.
Yesterday we mentioned that a man was killed in the UK when he allegedly fell off his ebike and crashed into a stopped police van when the cops attempted a traffic stop; now it turns out he was restrained by the cops as he lay dying — and bizarrely, had a “package” in his mouth that was removed by paramedics at the scene.
Cycling Weekly details a stunning handbuilt Italian Simoncini bicycle frame, saying it epitomizes the aero thinking of the 1980s.
A Finnish couple spent 20 months riding 13,000 miles from Finland to Singapore, passing through a mere 24 countries on a DIY tandem.
Only 30 or so people turned out in Seoul, South Korea, for a chilly Critical Mass, just the 14th in the city. Although it takes courage just to ride on Seoul’s crowded streets.
Competitive Cycling
The Visma‑Lease a Bike cycling team is looking for a new title sponsor, even though both firms remain firmly on board, as the costs of remaining competitive on the WorldTour continue to climb.
Mexican wunderkind Isaac del Toro continued his winning ways from his rookie season, winning stage 1 of the UAE Tour in stunning fashion.
The iconic Paris-Roubaix is now officially changing its name to the somewhat more cumbersome Paris-Roubaix Hauts-de-France, a moniker assured to be used by virtually no one who’s not required to.
Finally…
Nothing like putting a planter or two in the middle of a bike lane. And your next really expensive bike frame could be a rolling canvas.
But only if you put wheels and stuff on it.
………
Be safe, and stay healthy. And get vaccinated, already.
Oh, and fuck Putin.