Well, we know that former Mayor Bruce Todd probably isn't happy that the League of Bicycling Voters ran over his attempt to get the current Austin City Council to approve his citywide all ages Mandatory Helmet Law.
The former mayor had 17 supporters—mostly medical professionals and others who had suffered brain injuries--at the hearing to speak in favor of the law, though none, apparently, had ridden to the meeting on a bicycle. Only one person raised their hand when a speaker asked the packed audience if there were any bicyclists supporting the law.
Almost all of the LOBV supporters rode their bikes to the meeting and about 200 signed up in opposition to the law, with more than two dozen speakers.
Although the council couldn’t take formal action on the proposed law at a Thursday public hearing—due to an agenda error and disagreement over whether any action was allowed—a majority of council members expressed opposition to the idea. "If this law isn’t dead, it’s getting its last rights," said Rob D’Amico, spokesperson for the League of Bicycling Voters (LOBV), the organization fighting the helmet law.
Due to the way it was placed on the agenda and the fact that no action was taken last Thursday at the public hearing, the issue hangs in limbo for now. It would have to be placed back on the city agenda which would seem to take 3 members support.
While Dunkerly would probably be game (Martinez is on the opposite end of the spectrum), it's doubtful that McCracken and Wynn would both join her a second time around now to place the issue back into play. If 4 votes aren't there in the end to pass a new ordinance, some members may not bother to vote to bring up what became a bigger political hot-potato than expected.
Of course, that also puts into limbo any action that could be taken regarding a proposed 18 month study on biking safety in Austin (which would be a positive step) or other measures that could increase real public safety and education but one step at a time I suppose.
And just as an aside, someone pointed out that Mayor Wynn's "fitness" page on the city website has a picture of bicyclists- sans helmets.
Oh where, oh where, could the ordinance be?
Oh where, oh where could it be?
The City of Austin has yet to release a draft or final version of a proposed change to the existing bicycle helmet ordinance that would purportedly make it illegal for adults to ride bikes anywhere without a helmet. The council voted to hold a public hearing on the mystery ordinance on Aug. 24, a mere two days from today.
Current Austin law requires anyone age 17 or under to wear a bicycle helmet.
"All we know is that council is looking at something that makes it mandatory for adults to wear helmets when riding a bicycle," said Rob D'Amico, spokesperson for the League of Bicycling Voters (LOBV), the organization leading the campaign against the proposal. "Beyond that, we can just guess at what we're supposed to comment on when it comes time for a public hearing. What will the penalties be for not having a helmet on? Will this apply to people riding in the "pedicabs" pulled by bicyclists downtown? Can they haul someone off to jail for not wearing a helmet? Inquiring minds, helmeted and non-helmeted, want to know."
Apparently, LOBV was told in July that the ordinance was not public and therefore could not be released. But there is one person that should know what is being crafted- former Mayor Bruce Todd who is on a holy quest to helmet the heads of Austinites whether they like it or not. As D'Amico said in a press statement,
"I guess that means Todd is privy to what's going on, so now we're looking for another former mayor out there with connections who might be able to help us figure it out."
Paging Kirk Watson...Gus Garcia? Heck, I bet Jennifer Gale might have the best information for as much time as she spends at City Council. (Does anyone else find that somewhat sad?)
There are other alternatives of course. The city's Urban Transportation Commission had the issue brought up on it's docket which resulted in (shockingly) not a recommendation for speedy passage of Bruce's Bike Law, but a "18-month comprehensive study on bicycle injuries and safety issues" which might, you know, provide some real statistics to base policy on for the City of Austin.
Also, (shockingly) the Austin Cycling Association, the largest bicycle organization in the Austin area with 1,500 members, is also recommending that the city not address an ordinance change next week, so that the city and ACA have time to review alternative recommendations for bicycle safety measures. The ACA leadership and membership voted in May to not support the proposed ordinance.
The public hearing on the yet to be circulated ordinance will be this Thursday, August 24, starting at 6pm down at City Hall.
I have previously stated my opposition to an expansion of the existing (and unenforced) bicycle helmet law from it's current mandatory 17 and under state to a full fledged all ages mandatory helmet law. Not a single cyclist group in this city is in favor of a mandatory law and together, opponents including myself are part of the League of Bicycling Voters.
On Sunday, there will be a get-together, rally, and bicycle helmet fashion show at Scholz Beer Garden as we prepare for next Thursday's public hearing on the matter at City Hall.
Come and join us for the "No Helmet Law" Rally
on Sunday, August 20th
from 5-10 pm
at Scholz Beer Garden, at 17th and San Jacinto
LOBV staff will be on site from 5-10 PM to fill you in on the status of the fight. We will provide some beer and soda, along with entertainment.
If you are also in opposition to the proposed ordinance, you can take action, including signing the petition, signing up for updates, and e-mailing the council. For more info on the issue at hand, check out the League of Bicycling Voters page.
If it's Tuesday, it must be an op-ed in the Texan as part of my summer guest series. Today's is online here so check it out along with the other summer guest writers.
This week's topic is an issue that I actually care a lot about and will probably make me show up for my first Austin City Council meeting in all my time in Austin come August. For the record, let me state that I am firmly opposed the the proposed plan to expand the Austin Helmet Ordinance as proposed by former Mayor Bruce Todd. There are reasons beyond those included here which I will touch on later on, but to the couple of council members that read BOR, I hope to convince you that this is a bad idea for Austin and there are better solutions to the 'problems' the city has with cycling and transportation.
Minor edits for BOR readability...
Coming soon to a city council near you: The Return of the Austin Helmet Ordinance, starring former Mayor Bruce Todd in a battle against area bikers over the right to ride with the city's hands off of citizens' heads. Catch a sneak preview of this epic clash Aug. 24 when the gates open for public commentary at a city council meeting. This film's rating is NA for Not Again.
For those who prefer to move themselves around the city on four wheels, two feet or any other assortment of motorized transport, it's not likely that the proposed mandatory helmet law for all Austin bicyclists, regardless of age, has captured much attention. Nor is it likely that many realize that this coming attraction is a remake of an ill-fated production that graced the public stage exactly 10 years ago, so a quick review may be in order.
In 1996, then-Mayor Bruce Todd pushed for council approval of Austin's first mandatory helmet ordinance for city cyclists of all ages (ignoring motorcyclists entirely). The following year, just after Todd left office, the council scaled down the measure to a more agreeable version applying only to those 17 years old and under. It has remained in place ever since, with little fuss or enforcement.
But a decade later, with a council that has no institutional memory of that decision, Todd is back thanks to a recent biking accident of his own, pressing for full-fledged regulation once more.
And again, Austin cyclists, those who believe in vibrant downtown development and anyone who cares about alleviating this city's transportation problems should recognize that it is in our best interest to defeat this effort.
Most cyclists agree that there is nothing wrong with helmets and encourage their use. The Austin Cycling Association, which has collected close to $2,000 to purchase helmets for riders in honor of the former mayor's accident last fall, opposes the proposed expansion of the existing ordinance.
Similar to last year's battle over a public smoking ban, there are many locals that place preserving dwindling personal freedoms and liberties over mandatory regulatory safety measures. While adult cyclists should wear helmets, we shouldn't need to make it city law, especially one that already has a history of limited enforcement, considering only a few dozen youngsters have been cited over the existing ordinance's lifetime.
An unfortunate side effect of a mandatory, all-ages helmet law (which exists only in Dallas among Texas' major cities) is that such legislation has been proven to lead to decreased bicycle usage. The city of Austin, already behind its stated goals for percentage of daily trips taken by bicyclists and other non-traditional vehicular transportation, would not be well served by taking steps that exasperate the problem.
Current Mayor Will Wynn's vision of a denser, pedestrian- and biker-friendly downtown with tens of thousands more residents living and working close to each other is a forward-thinking idea that incorporates traffic solutions. If the council believes in Wynn's vision, it should shy away from enacting "feel-good" political proposals like the expanded biking ordinance, whose real-world effects contradict the current mayor's progressive vision.
If the council is interested in improving transportation safety for those on the streets, there are solutions that work. Education programs for cyclists and auto drivers which inform both groups of their roadway responsibilities and the rights of the others would go a long way to reducing the few auto-cyclist impacts, injuries or deaths that occur in Austin each year. Enacting transportation policies, road designs and programs that increase the number of cyclists on the road increases the "safety in numbers" effect for all parties and helps alleviate traffic congestion.
And though not talked about or proposed, a mandatory motorcycle helmet law would have a much greater impact on public safety by reducing high-speed impact injuries or deaths that occur at a rate 40 times greater nationally than those associated with cyclists.
Todd is not wrongheaded in his desire for more people on the road to take safety seriously - we all should. It's just that this rerun of the 1996, all-ages flop ignores history and real solutions for Austin in favor of emotional, anecdotal politics.
