Interesting progess within Detroit and timely events.

Yesterday, I rode to the city-county building to go to the Green Task Force Meeting.  Along the way, I stopped at Henry Ford Hospital to look for my cellphone charger, but I found out that it wasn't there.  So I made a brief stop to talk to Cortez again, but by the time I left, I only had 15 mins to get to the building. 

By the time I arrived, I was late.  The meeting already started, and I had to find a place to park my bike.  I couldn't find the bike racks around the building so I parked it at a meter near the W. Jefferson entrance.  I had to go through a metal detector, which took a lot of time since I had a lot of stuff with me. 

If anyone has just started reading this blog, I'm a proud bike commuter.  So I have a lot of stuff with me most of the time.

By the time I got to the room, the meeting was underway.  It was a good thing that there was seats available.  Todd was already there, he didn't ride his bike this time.  He's already part of the City's green task force. 

I then started to take notes on the issues I considered important.  Of course, I noticed that they were also discussing an issue that my Uncle Bryant is interested in, urban farming.  My uncle has started his own garden last year.  He was growing lettuce as well as tomatoes.  I'll be sure to get him an almanac next month.

While I was there, I waited in anticipation for the report from DPW for the Non-Motorized Transportation Plan.  The person didn't show at the time so his presentation will have to take place during the next meeting, which will be on the 18th of next month.  I'll be sure to be there since my upcoming class is a morning class and the meetings are all during the afternoon.

Then Todd Scott gave an update on the Michigan Rails to Trails: 

The Dequindre Cut will be extended southward toward Atwater to be connected to the Riverwalk.  There will also be bike trails along Corktown, Mexicantown and Midtown.  Plans are also being made to purchase unused rail areas throughout the city and turn them into trails.

Also, I asked Richard Bowers, my contact to city councilman Kenneth V. Cockrel Jr., about the status of the bike racks. 

"A memo has been sent to DDOT requesting the timetable of those racks."

I've requested a copy of the reply memo as soon as city council receives the timetable.  If all the buses are equipped by May, it would be a great birthday present.  However, I would like all of them to be equipped as soon as possible.

In short, by March. 

But let's be realistic, I'd probably expect it to be done by May.

I asked Councilman Cockrel about where the bike parking was for the building, and he stated that it was on the Randolph side of the building.  I'll be sure to remember that tomorrow when I go to the environmental meeting at 11am.

When I left, I saw the 255 Ford Rd Express show up on Woodward so I sped toward Griswold St to make sure to catch it.  I took the bus toward the Dearborn Ice Skating Center otherwise known as the DISC.  Along the way, there was a lot of traffic on Michigan and Third, by the MGM Casino as a result of people getting off of the Lodge Freeway and people trying to get on the freeway.  I was able to ride my bike home the rest of the way after disembarking at the DISC.

After lunch/dinner and a nap, I woke up and turned the TV to the government channel.  I found out that my favorite councilman mentioned the importance of checking on the status on the bike racks on DDOT buses at another meeting that probably occurred earlier in the day. 

I'm happy to know that all of my efforts have paid off.  I got the attention of city government so action will be taken.

Today at the environmental meeting, I will mention about the graffiti that is already in the Rosa Parks Transit Center.  I will show the pictures that I've taken that are already posted on my last entry.  I'm sure that there will be an increase in attention to that area since it was just recently built.  I'm sad to see that it didn't take long for it to be desecrated.  I'm sure that if Rosa Parks lived long enough and came to see this occur that she would agree with me. 

I'm also looking forward to retail to be located in the area.  There's enough space in that building for at least one 24hr restaurant or small store.  Even if its a small business like the outdoor vendor that I've seen outside.  The building has Wi-Fi, the least that could be done is to open a cafe on the second floor.  Currently the second floor is closed off and only a few entrances to the building are open. 

M-1 Rail, hope for the future and yesterday's journey home.

Yesterday, I rode my bike toward my Uncle Bryant's house to visit him briefly.  Before arriving at the Main Library, I stopped at the McDonalds lot to see Cortez, a co-worker, and we had discussions on the medical properties of hemp, and the senseless illegalization of it.

I arrived early and locked my bike nearby the Children's Library entrance.  The advanced viewing of Blueprint America: Beyond the Motor City took place in the Friends Auditorium in the basement level.  It will be broadcast in full on Detroit Public TV next week.

I also saw a few friends, Megan from Transportation Riders United as well as Todd Scott, who like me, also arrived at the library by bike.  We sat together having a conversation about the current issues with Detroit Transit.

I took a look at the M-1 rail flyer.  There are some places where I disagree as far as possible locations for station placement.

The stations south of Grand Circus Park seems redundant.  We have the People Mover already covering the entire downtown area.  It doesn't seem to make sense, to me, to have stations at those areas when many of those areas are within waking distance of the DPM.

The People Mover has been considered a setback in regional transportation which resulted from bickering between city and suburban government officials.  I hope that the future transit projects are not like the People Mover.

I look forward to the day that driving a car becomes a choice not a necessity!!  I can choose to purchase my own car, not be forced to have one just to maintain employment.

I would also like the option of bringing my bike on the rail.  According to the CEO of the M-1 Rail, bikes will be allowed on the train.   

The news is getting better.  I also saw Joann Watson there as well.  She was the only councilperson there though and a few other city officials that were there.

The ride home was pretty tough.  I rode toward the Rosa Parks Transit Center to catch the 200 Michigan toward Oakman Blvd.  Outside of the transit center, there was a outdoor vendor that The bus took too long so I decided to go inside briefly to use the restroom as well as fill up my water bottle. 

When I walked into the restroom I was disappointed to find out that it didn't talk long for the center to become victim to graffiti:







I would like to apologize about the date markers on each picture.  These were taken yesterday, not on the date that is marked on the camera.  These were taken in the Men's restroom.  I also showed these to the officers that were standing outside making sure that order was maintained.  They said that someone is suppose to come and clean the area every now and then.  I'm not very confident that they are doing a good job to keep the transit center clean.  Those who placed that there should be ashamed considering the place is dedicated to a woman who fought for equality in public transportation.  Defacing this building is a slap in the face as far as I'm concerned and those responsible for the graffiti should be forced to clean it up once caught.

After showing the pictures to the officers, I walked out of the building toward my bike and rode around until I got frustrated with waiting.  I then started riding down Michigan Ave.  When I got to the I-75/I-96 bridge,  the 200 showed up.  I tried to flag it down but it kept going.  So I decided, "to hell with it", and rode my bike toward W. Grand Blvd.  I passed by Jeremy's old neighborhood and rode down Tireman toward Beechwood.  Took the street toward Chicago and headed west toward home. 
Here's the route:

01/27/2010, The journey home


It's a 15k route and it was cold as hell that night.  I've been through worst though. 

New City Officials, great hope for the future.

After sitting at home waiting for a package yesterday to come in the mail, I left and rode to Michigan and Wyoming to catch the 200 Michigan Downtown and the 560 Gratiot to St. Elizabeth's Church for a evening city-council meeting.  I bumped into a few old friends.  Some were from my graduating class at Cass Tech who work for the council now, and others were from community meetings that I've previously attended.

I asked about the current status of the city's Non-Motorized Transportation Plan.  I also asked about the issue of taxicabs parking on Atwater directly on a bike lane, a public danger in itself.

After talking to Mr. Shaw of the Transportation Dept.  I decided not to speak on the current status of DDOT equipping the bike racks.  The have until spring before I address the issue again.

Unfortunately, I've left my camera in my rack bag outside of the building on my bicycle.  Those who wish to watch the meeting should be able to watch a recording on the city government's website or on government TV.  It's not available yet but it should be within a couple of days.

When my name was finally called, my heart skipped a beat.  When I finally spoke, I received a reply from one of my favorite councilman, Kenneth Cochrel Jr.  He's a known bicyclist, and I'm surprised that he doesn't have a blog as well.  This was how I meet Rick Bowers from the Green Initiative, a group of people within the city that includes other bicyclists that set policy on implementing the Non-Motorized Transportation plan.  

There's a meeting Thursday at 3pm at the City-County building.  I'm going to make sure to attend to get the full information as well has put in my two cents to the plan.  I do have a copy of the plan, but it hasn't been updated since 2006, so I need to make sure I have an updated copy.

I'm very happy to know that I've received a lot of contacts as far as that. 

Today, there will be a forum at the Main Library about Detroit becoming a leader once again, this time, I hope, in public transportation.  There's a advanced screening and discussion on the video Blueprint America: Beyond the Motor City at 5:45pm.   

I'll be sure to post what happened on the next entry.

New Year, Same Problems

I would like to wish all of my readers a Happy New Year.  I know it's a little late, but I've been very busy.

There's been a lot going on in my life since my last post.  Most of it having to do with my personal life.

I have much hope for progress in Detroit's rebirth this year.  However, as reality set in today, I'm still aware that any changes that would benefit all bicyclists and those that don't commute by car will take years and currently little progress has been made.

Today was the first time that I slipped on ice and fell to the ground while riding to school.  I only scraped my knee and thankfully I had my helmet so I wasn't hurt.  However, it wasn't until late in the day that I found out that I would need to take my bike back to the store again for repairs because of the difficulty in shifting my front gears.  On Thursday, I will have to take it to the shop after class and pick it up the next day. 

After class, I went to a Verizon store in Highland Park not far from my school to check if they had a replacement case for my phone, since part of mine broke off while riding my bike.  They did have it, but I didn't have the money, so I caught the SMART bus Downtown.

When I arrived, I rode from Grand Circus Park to the Rosa Park Transit Center.  It didn't really smell that well when I arrived, of course that depended on which area you walked through.  It's going to need to be cleaned daily, as I saw trash around the bus bays.  I walked inside to fill my water bottle after locking my bike at the racks.  There was many areas within the building that was closed off.  It was a lot different when it first opened.  There's many areas that haven't been used to its potential yet, but I'm sure that in time there will be at least one 24hr small restaurant that would make a lot of use of the WI-FI already covering the entire building.  I didn't have the time to ask why some of the areas were closed off while I was there, since I was waiting for the SMART 200 Michigan.

When it arrived, I took the bus to Fairlane Mall in hopes that a DDOT bus with a bike rack would show.  However when the Greenfield did show, it was a bus that didn't have a bike rack equipped.  I guess some things happen only once.  There wasn't a SMART bus available that could take me to Fairlane North, so I pretty much had to ride straight home from there.

That's when I found out that there was a need for me to take my bike back to the store for repairs.  I had trouble shifting on the front while I was riding home.

During that customer information meeting in September 2009, I asked about the bike racks, and the official stated that all DDOT buses will have bike racks equipped by Spring of this year.  I heard from an anonymous source within DDOT a few weeks earlier this month, that the bike racks would be equipped in time for Transportation Week in May.  Bike racks are something that is equipped on nearly every bus ran by a transportation authority in the United States of America.  It is beyond me that of all transit authorities, DDOT is one that doesn't have them equipped.

With that on top of service cuts which seem understandable with a decreasing population and a dependence on one's viewpoint, I have little to no confidence that DDOT can provide an efficient transit service for the citizens of Detroit and surrounding areas.

It's going to take more than a new transit center and a few buses with bike racks equipped to impress me.

Today became a test of whether DDOT or SMART could provide my transit needs at it's current state.

The results:

SMART was able to get me Downtown and to Fairlane Mall without any problems.  It wasn't until I needed to get to Fairlane North that it failed to provide my transit needs.

Today, on Woodward and Manchester, there was a Chicago-Davison bus that passed by as I was riding to the Model T retail center in Highland Park.  That bus could get me home without the use of any transfers, but it didn't have a bike rack equipped.  At the Rosa Parks Transit Center, the bike racks were available so I will give them points for that.  However, at the one bus route that would get me home without transfers, the Joy Road, the bus that arrived at its bus bay, as well as all of the other bus bays, with the exceptions of the one reserved for SMART and Transit Windsor, didn't have bike racks equipped on their buses.

On Thursday, there will be a Customer Information meeting.  I'll be sure to post about its details in the next entry.  In the meantime I ask those that will read this a question.

What has been your experiences as a urban commuter with the current transit system in Detroit?

Please feel free to leave comments.

It wasn't all that bad, not for me (Dec 19-20th)

The 19th and the 20th were interesting days.

I rode my bike to work like I do most of the time. Unfortunately, I was unable to ride with studded tires, but I managed to make it.

The weather wasn't all that bad. Yes, there was snow and salt on the ground, but I didn't have to worry about flats at all.

Of course, the snow wasn't very deep, so I haven't experienced the deep snow yet, but I know it's coming so I'm going to need to get those studded tires.

My hands didn't catch frostbite those days either. However, I know I'm going to have to deal with that issue when it comes.

I'll admit, I was late on the 19th. I overslept, thanks to the epilepsy medicine that I have to take. The doc increased my dosage after having too many seizures last month. The medicine makes me sleepy so I take all of it at night to avoid falling asleep during the day.

While riding through the slippery streets, I made sure not to make to make too many sporadic movements for fear of falling on my behind. That hasn't happened yet so I will consider myself lucky.

What did happen though was one of my panniers fell off my bike as I was riding home on the 20th.

While I was on my journey, I took a long look at those that had to catch the bus during the weekend. I truly felt sorry for them, especially on Sunday. I saw a few people waiting at night at a bus stop on my way home for a bus that would take an hour to show up, if it did at all. Some of them would make fun of me as I rode by. However, the real joke was on them, since they would have to wait 30-60 minutes for a bus that may never come.

However, it's going to get worse since the bus cuts were made. When school starts again after break, there will be a lot of people standing outside during the week waiting a long time for a bus. If it's full, it will be even worse.

I should know. I used to be one of those kids standing there waiting for the bus. I sometimes had to wait for another one because the first one was full.

I'm not going to be able to drive a car until May if i'm lucky. Since I've been riding my bike and catching the SMART and DDOT (when there is a bike rack available) everywhere, I haven't really cared much since I have more money than I did when I had a car. I would literally be broke over the money I'd have to spend on gas for my car. Of course, it doesn't work so even if I could medically drive, I can't drive the car anyway for that reason.

This is the time when multi-modal transit is needed. When people need to have two modes of transit available, especially in times like these. Winter cycling should be encouraged, especially when you have a transit system that has proved to be unreliable. There are benefits to this:

1. instead of waiting on the bus, you can ride toward your destination, thus decreasing waiting time.
2. if a bus with a bike rack comes while you are riding, you can stop at the nearest bus stop and take the bus the rest of the way to your destination. *This is, of course, dependent on those bike racks being available.
3. You stay fit while riding toward your destination.
4. If you don't have any money, that won't stop you from getting anywhere.

SMART has every bus with the exception of their connection service with bike racks available. Why DDOT can't do it, is based on the present incompence within city government.

My next entry will show pictures of DDOT's incompence.

The snow is here!!

I looked out the window Tuesday night and saw it.

Even though the snow isn't as deep as it will be in January, I've already received a preview of the puddles of frozen ice on the road yesterday.  It's a good thing that I didn't slip and fell on my ass on either of them.

Ever since my last entry, not much has changed.  With it being the holiday season, everyone should be happy.  However, here in Detroit, the holiday spirit is a little dismal here.

We've been getting bad news after another.  Just read the News and Freep. 

In my case, there has been a lot of delay with the bike racks being placed on DDOT buses.  Plenty of excuses have been made to me.  I of course have planned accordingly.  The only DDOT buses that I will catch will be those with bike racks, and the drivers who drive them will receive commendations for doing their job.  If only the higher ups can do the same.

I will write a letter to my favorite city councilman, in hopes that things will move more quickly.  I know that there is a chance that nothing may be done, but I can't think of anything else that can be done right now.

Yesterday, when I went outside, the winds were totally high.  By the time I got to Hubbell and Plymouth, my fingers were frozen.  I had gloves on that were suppose to be weather proof.  Apparently they couldn't handle Michigan winter weather.  The only way I could try to keep them warm was to keep pedaling and use a little psychology.  I started thinking about all the memories I had of going to warm places like California, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida, South Carolina, Virginia.  I had to do that to keep my mind off of my fingers being frozen.

I made it to class, and I was asked to come in to work after my class was over.  So I go to get my bike, and my rear tire is flat.  Yesterday, I used my last spare intertube.  I had to bring it inside the school to patch up the intertube.

By the time I made it to class, I caught a cold and was coughing the entire shift.

After coughing for so long, there was no way I could make it home without there being a chance of being too sick to continue pedaling.

So I had to call Dad to pick me up when my shift came to an end.

I'm still not feeling well, so I'm going to try to spend today trying to recover.

Today's Journey (12.4.2009)

Usually when I ride my bike, I would write about my adventures only in the bicyclist blog and have pictures to back it up.

Unfortunately, I spent more time riding and I didn't take any pictures at all.

Also, I find it important for me to post this on Facebook as well.

My journey began when I spent some extra time at Focus:HOPE for some extra study time.  I stayed until almost 4pm.

Afterward, I rode down Oakman to Manchester toward Woodward.  I decide to make a pit stop at a Wi-Fi cafe in Highland Park.  I would like to visit it next week.  Hopefully, I get time off next week Saturday, since I can't have tomorrow off, but that's OK.  I'll grin and bear it.  The days are getting shorter, and Christmas is around the corner.

I continued on down Woodward until I reached Jefferson and rode toward Atwater, to get closer to the Riverwalk.  I found out that there was a new section of the Riverwalk that just recently opened.  

http://www.m-bike.org/blog/2009/12/03/milliken-state-park-is-officially-open

So I rode around there briefly and headed up to the Dequindre Cut.  I rode toward Gratiot and headed west toward State and then toward Washington Blvd.  Along this route I had a few close calls..on Gratiot and on Woodward.  I almost got hit by an impatient white SUV driver on Gratiot  I almost hit a parked truck because no one would give me room to move over to the side until the last second.

It is a risk that I take every time I ride, one that I accept, but I will not accept the intentional assault and harassment of bicyclists just because of the refusal of drivers to respect the rights of bicyclists that are written in State law.

I then went south to Michigan and was about to stop at the Transit Center, but I found out that the 255 Westland was coming so I waited for it and it showed up.

I caught that bus toward the Dearborn Ice Skating Center and rode through the park toward the side streets that would take me closer toward home. 

It was a good ride except some things were missing.

I didn't take any pictures.  I couldn't because the camera on my phone wasn't of good quality.

When I ride my bike, I see other bicyclists ride around.  Some ride out of necessity.  Other do it for fun or for exercise. 

However, with winter coming, this is truly where the trial begins.  As I've been riding today, everyone knows that the temperatures have been below freezing.  That means its really going to be hard out there when the snow comes through.  Last night I was looking for whatever could help me during the season since I have decided to continue riding despite the weather.  If there's anything that I get for Christmas, that's pretty much the only stuff I would want on my list.  Just some clothes and studded tires to keep me moving.  Our winters aren't as bad as Chicago, but they are bad enough to be well prepared.

I look forward to more comments.