Bikes and Ferndale Elections

Posted by Eric Brown | Filed under Apartments Birmingham MI, Apartments Clawson MI, Apartments Ferndale MI, Urbane, UrbaneApts, politics

Our friends over at m-bike.org recently posted the below article on their blog titled Ferndale City Council Elections: Yes-No, and we thought you may find value in what they had to say and their position on bike friendly communities.

Many city council seats are up for election this November 3rd. This is a great opportunity to elect people to a decision making body that can a city more bike and pedestrian friendly.

There are two seats being decided in Ferndale. And among the four candidates running, two are on opposite sides of the spectrum when it comes to supporting biking.

No for Gagne

Tom Gagne, the self-proclaimed “most argumentative” candidate, is someone cyclists won’t want on Council.

Gagne wants to increase development on Hilton. He’s been quoted in the Daily Tribune saying”

What are we going to do about Hilton Road? It’s a thing of beauty that lives in the shadow of Woodward. I’d like to let developers know that bike lanes on Hilton Road aren’t permanent.

Hilton Road underwent a road diet, which took it from four lanes to three with bike lanes added. Road diets reduce crashes and excessive speeding (and noise), while making it safer for bicyclists and pedestrians.

And the Hilton road diet doesn’t displace motor vehicle traffic. Hilton near Nine Mile has a daily vehicle count of around 7,000. The vehicle counts on Hilton could more than double and the current lane configuration would not be a problem.

Clearly Gagne is uninformed about the benefits of the Hilton road diet. There is no justification for suggesting their removal.

But perhaps what’s more troublesome is he’s equating development only with motor vehicle travel. Wouldn’t it be better if Hilton development catered to the neighborhood? Imagine if the Hilton were lined with more businesses and destinations that residents could bike or walk to and spend their dollars locally?

Melanie Piana for Ferndale City CouncilYes for Piana

Melanie Piana is also running for a seat on the Ferndale City Council.

Her priorities include supporting “pedestrian [and] bicycle friendly… improvements to build our community.”

Her Facebook page includes the photo on the right.

According to Piana, “I commute to work by bike on weather friendly days. It’s easy when the office is only a mile away.”

And in speaking with Piana, it’s clear she understands the value in building safe bicycling and walking communities.

She’s also endorsed by the Eccentric.

Related posts:

  1. Non-motorized transportation plan in Royal Oak
  2. Ferndale City Council
  3. A Culinary Tour of Ferndale to Benefit Affirmations
  4. Ferndale really gets it, Foley & Mansfield Pedestrian Alley
  5. A selection of restaurants in Ferndale

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Permalink | October 26th, 2009

2 Responses to “Bikes and Ferndale Elections”

  1. Ryan Meray Says:
    October 29th, 2009 at 2:09 am

    I try not to get too political online, but the opposition to the Hilton bike lanes is absurd. Businesses have complained about them, but just because people make a lot of noise doesn’t mean they’re right. The low amount of traffic on Hilton is in no way a side effect of the bike lanes, nor will adding an additional lane lead to any increase in drivers. The bike lanes should be a start to a more bike-friendly Ferndale as far as I’m concerned. Bikers tend to be more locally-oriented than commuters, and may lead to increased foot traffic for businesses who depend on loyal, local, and happy customers.

    I’ll save any criticism I have of candidates specifically for a more appropriate place. Suffice to say I know who I’m voting for, without hesitation.

  2. Brandon Joerges Says:
    October 29th, 2009 at 11:35 pm

    Perhaps the businesses that are complaining about low traffic should place a bicycle rack in front of their shop and encourage the people that are on the road to spen money at their business. Cyclists spend about as much money as motorists (if not more since they aren’t paying for gas).

    I will share this with my Ferndale friends. Thanks Ryan for the link and thanks Eric for the info.

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