Cycling advocate Jean Gorman, the mother of a cyclist who was killed along Catalina Highway, wants Pima County to return more than $20,000 of money she gave the county to help develop a memorial trailhead along Catalina Highway.
Martha Lemen, a Tucson-Pima County Bicycle Advisory Committee member and chairwoman of a group tasked with working with the various groups involved, said at Wednesday’s T-PCBAC meeting that Gorman has filed a notice of claim to get her money back.
Lemen said it appeared the alternate McDonald park location was no longer being considered, which may mean the project isn’t going to proceed.
Pima County’s bicycle and pedestrian program manager Matt Zoll said he couldn’t comment on the trailhead or Gorman’s lawsuit.
Check out all the past stories about the trailhead and look for more on this story soon.
Quick notes:
• Pima County Deputy Ryan Roher said he received a call on Sept. 25, from a motorist who complained about the shootout riders taking a whole lane and not being able to pass the pack. When he visited the location he noticed that the shoulder was full of weeds and rocks, which would prevent cyclists from using it. He asked the Pima County Department of Transportation to clean the shoulder up.
• Tucson Police Department motorcycle officer Jerry Skeenes said that since the police addressed the Tuesday Night Bike Ride, there haven’t been any 911 calls about the ride.
• The committee took up a motion to require businesses to serve cyclists in the drive thru. The motion failed to pass with five supporting the motion and five against. Three members of the T-PCBAC abstained. The committee asked the city and county representatives to determine whether it was something that could be enforced since the businesses are on private property.
• The BAC began talking about safety concerns related to the trolley tracks throughout the city. The committee discussed making a motion pulling support for the modern streetcar project because safety precautions for cyclists had not been included in the project. Tom Thivener confirmed streetcar representatives would be present at the November BAC meeting to discuss the project. Committee members decided to postpone the discussion until then.
It only takes one motorist to complain to spur action, I wonder how may bicyclists it would take?
I rode my bike thru drive thru at Taco Bell on Wetmore couple weeks ago past midnight after I was on a night bike ride up Via Entrada to La Encantada. They didn’t refuse service to me. I had lights on…
I did try to use drive thru at Wendy’s several years ago on Campbell and refused the service to me(it was after 10p) and I wasn’t on bike. It is interesting that Jack in the Box on Speedway and Park will stay open late inside for carry out only and can’t eat inside.
As for other type of drive thru… I haven’t done them yet… As for fast food drive thru, Bicycle can’t trigger the notification system that you are at the menu board w/mic and speaker. Same thing bicycle can’t let the automated traffic control know you stopped at the intersection.
I am in support of having modern streetcar in Tucson. I don’t think we should not pull out support for the project. It was not fair for this person wanting to single out the trolley causing this tie in vote. It was ridiculous. Anyway, we should work hard to get their attention to improve and facilitate bicyclists. I look forward to next meeting where streetcars rep will appear. Here’s my idea, make 4th Ave from Univ. to underpass no parking zone! That will give ample space for bicyclist to ride on that street than getting close to the tracks. Also when I hear about spills caused by the tracks that’s because they were riding parallel to it TOO close. I have ridden on 4th ave many time… I cross the tracks at acute angle or 90° angle, never crossed it when parallel.
I have seen spills caused by tracks during tues night bike ride, it was cyclist’s fault because she/he didn’t bother to slow down and get away from it but instead get crowded to left then bam. I have seen them chose to ride between the tracks not because he/she was forced to, end up washed out. I am like why are you riding inside between those tracks? get out of there!
Also, I think they should remove those parking spaces close to the intersection at 4th ave and Univ. blvd.
Can bikes use drive thru at Einstein Bros? I don’t eat fast food but I love me some bagels. Yum! I haven’t tried drive thrus. That’s funny.
I hate the trolley and the tracks it rode in on. More congestion on Congress, super unfriendly tracks for bikes, and what’s the point of it anyway?
I think you do have to get between the tracks if you want to make a turn from the center lane, otherwise you have to do a box turn. Almost wiped out 3 times on 4th so now I avoid it like the plague.
thanks for the link love! go tucsonnnn — adding your blog to mi reader 😀
cheers from SF /xxo.m
@ed I do agree that there is a lot of silly behavior around the tracks (and in general) from University area cyclists, but not all crashes on the trolley tracks are the cyclists’ fault. I crashed nearly 4 years ago trying to maneuver around a huge diesel pickup truck double parked outside the angle parked cars. I was new to Tucson then, but aware of track danger having come from San Francisco, but I just got a little too close. And, unfortunately, my front tire fell into one of those perfectly-sized gaps that grabbed my front tire and threw me over the bars. I had a bruise on my forehead for 12 days from my helmet (probably be a vegetable if I wasn’t wearing it) Nearly four years later, I still suffer from regular neck pain that would be unbearable if I didn’t get regular acupuncture from my awesome husband.
Despite my experience with the tracks, I still support a streetcar, but I find it disturbing that the city won’t implement available safety measures in track design that are available considering the well-documented problem of crashes on the tracks. And I find it despicable that a cyclist, on a cycling blog, would make a blanket accusation implying that cyclists who crash on the tracks get what they deserve for acting stupid.