On many issues and fashions in the U.S. there are huge regional differences. Bolo ties do well in Arizona, not so well in Michigan. Craw fish are very popular in Louisianna, but not so much in North Dakota.
And things change over time. Wisconsin was known as a very progressive state, with luminaries like founder of the Progressive Party, Robert La Follette and his successors. Not so much today. California was a state that once was a leader in public education, from the primary through the post-graduate. Today it is among the lowest in per capita investment in education, and by the look of things in Sacramento its commitment is not likely to increase any time soon.
Bicycling has had its ups and downs, its pockets of support and its detractors.
Last week we paid a visit to Portland, OR, and found lots of people riding in pouring rain, and even a bicycle rack in the shape of… a bicycle.
At about the same time Dale and Sharon Sutliff were in Texas, and Dale reported that if you are a motorist you are strongly encouraged to “Share the Road….” with motorcycles.
But he doesn’t recall seeing a single sign suggested that the road be shared with non-motorized two-wheeled vehicles.
That’s Texas. It isn’t Oregon.
Nor is it New York.
We’ve written about the backlash in New York City over the city’s very aggressive program of creating bike facilities and encouraging bicycle commuting. That battle is on-going, and has included some stiff enforcement actions by N.Y.P.D. on bicyclists disobeying red lights and riding recklessly.
Now comes word that the climate has also shifted in Washington. The Bicycle League reports that the budget just passed by Congress, with over $30 billion in cuts for just the current fiscal year that ends at the end of September, is not good for bicyclists.
They’re still “doing the numbers,” but it looks like Congress took a big chunk out of the budget that normally goes to funding bike-related projects. More on that later. In the meantime the League now sees that the action shifts to the state level, where many budgetary decisions have yet to be made. Like California.
Don’t hold your breath of any bicycle largess from the Golden State soon.
Things vary around the country, and over time. They’ll change. That’s the wisdom of a long life in government, one which began in the mid-70s with telling people in cities in California that Prop 13 was just a passing phase..
