Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance Now Law

Update 3 : Here’s a round-up of links covering the ordinance from the week – The Los Angeles Times, LAist (twice), Curbed LA, LA Now, The Source, Streetsblog LA (more than a few times), Biking in LA, LA Daily News (re-run in the Contra Costa Times), Flying Pigeon LA, and Blog Downtown, San Fernando Valley Sun, NBC Los Angeles.

Nationally: Washington Post, Huffington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, ETA (UK)

We’ll add more links as they’re published.

Update 2 : The official language of the ordinance is available on the City Clerk’s website here.

In total, 11 speakers came up to speak on the Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance, and all but one were supportive of the ordinance. Afterwards, Council Members Koretz, Rosendahl, LaBonge, Garcetti, Reyes, and Cardenas all spoke in favor of the ordinance.  Many important points were made by the council members and public speakers alike. Some of the highlights:

• Council Member Koretz tried bicycling for the first time in 15 years during Carmageddon and was promptly harassed while on the road.  This type of behavior, he correctly observed, is what keeps prospective riders from getting out on the streets.
• Council Member Reyes made the argument that many of Los Angeles’ bicyclists have to do so because of economic necessity.  Finding ways to protect them also protects their livelihoods and LA’s economy.
• Attorney and bicyclist Ross Hirsch got the “visual aide award” for bringing his two sons up to the podium with him, urging the City Council to adopt the ordinance so that his sons might ride to school safely.
• Ted Rogers of Biking in LA recounted the same story that he earlier told for Bill Rosendahl’s Youtube Channel.
• Council Member Garcetti imagined a day where instead of “Carmageddon”, we might have a “Cycletopia”.
• In a clear example of who the ordinance would benefit, CM Tom LaBonge asked for everyone in council chambers who had ridden a bike in Los Angeles in the last month to stand.  Over 90% of the room left their seats, making clear that this ordinance is a step in the right direction for everyone.
• CM Cardenas lauded the efforts to “put teeth into the law”.  He made clear that what the ordinance really addresses is the “so what?” attitude that a small number of drivers take towards the rights of bicyclists.
• CM Rosendahl noted the precedent-setting nature of this ordinance.  He pointed out that a lot of eyes around the nation are on Los Angeles right now, and we have the chance to inspire other cities to provide similar protections to their citizens.

The bike racks outside City Hall were well-used today

Update 1 : The Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance passed with a unanimous 12-0 vote at City Council. More details to come.

The Los Angeles City Council meets today at 10:00 AM and the Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance is scheduled for item #19. Since regular working folks won’t have the ability to attend today’s council meeting, we’re going to provide play-by-play at council by live-tweeting the proceedings from the BikeBlogChris twitter handle. We’re using the hashtags #bikeLA and #lamtg, so feel free to join in the conversation throughout the day.

You can also call the Council Phone system to listen in or stream the proceedings live on your computer.

We’ll leave you with one more excellent video put together by Bill Rosendahl’s office, this time interviewing Ted Rogers, the excellent author of the Biking in LA blog. We’ll have an update later today with the results of the council vote.

Read Full Post »

Support for Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance Growing

We know it’s hard for you tear yourself away from CARMAGEDDON, but we here at the LADOT Bike Blog would be remiss if we didn’t update you on how things are coming along for the Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance.

The Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance, which you can read in its entirety here, has been gaining more and more attention.  Outside of the copious amounts of coverage on the LADOT Bike Blog for the ordinance, it has now been also picked up by Streetsblog, various Patches (Venice, Mar Vista, Brentwood), Biking in LA, and elsewhere.  The idea is already starting to spread – even before the ordinance gets to council: there are calls for similar legal protections in Washington DC.

Council District 10 Council Member Bill Rosendahl also recently released a video making his case for the Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance.  You can see more at his Youtube channel.

Read Full Post »

Mark Your Calendars: Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Comes to Council July 20th

It’s finally here.  After years of work by City staff and dedicated members of the public, it’s here.  After months of council hearings and refining of legal language, it’s here.  Just over a week from today, the City of Los Angeles has the opportunity to enact a truly groundbreaking ordinance for protecting Bicyclists’ rights and safety.

A vote on the Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance is scheduled for the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday, July 20th.  You can read the latest draft of the ordinance here. We’ll be attending the meeting next week, and will be live-tweeting the proceedings from @BikeBlogChris.

Read Full Post »

Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance Ready for City Council

We here at the LADOT Bike Blog just heard from our sources in City Hall that the precedent-setting Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance will go before the full City Council sometime in the next two weeks.  Many bicyclists can relate harrowing stories of an out-of-control driver assaulting them simply for being on the road, and the ordinance scheduled to come before City Council aims to give bicyclists a tool to fight back against the daily harassment to which many have been subjected.  With the coming vote at the California State Legislature for the “Give Me 3” legislation, July is shaping up as a huge month for LA bicyclists.

Bicyclists from all over Los Angeles, all over Southern California, and all over the country should keep their eyes on this groundbreaking ordinance and support the City’s decision to provide bicyclists with tools to protect themselves on the road.

Turn out support this month to help LA join the vanguard of bicyclists' rights

This landmark piece of legislation wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for CD 11 Council Member Bill Rosendahl.  It was CM Rosendahl who introduced the council motion directing the City Attorney to craft the anti-harassment legislation, and it was CM Rosendahl who helped shepherd the legislation through the Transportation Committee on its way to full City Council.

Read Full Post »

Bicyclist’s Anti-Harassment Ordinance Clears T-Committee – Next Stop: City Council

Yesterday at 2:15 PM, the City Council’s Transportation  Committee met to discuss, among other things, a possible Bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance.  The draft of the ordinance, released last month to great fanfare, was the result of a motion introduced by Council Member Bill Rosendahl.  The hearing yesterday at the Transportation Committee was the first hurdle on the draft ordinance’s path to becoming law.  It was fitting, then, that the selfsame Council Member Bill Rosendahl sat today as Chair of the Transportation Committee to hear the ordinance which he had introduced.

One step remains for the ordinance to become law

With a few adjustments, the draft ordinance cleared Transportation Committee and is now on it’s way to being agendized for the full City Council.  You can check out the play-by-play at the twitter hashtag #TComm. If adopted by City Council, the ordinance becomes law.

Read Full Post »

Two Can’t-Miss Meetings for LA’s Bike Community this Week

There was much hoopla last week over the adoption LA’s ambitious and visionary bike plan.  Now it’s time to take that momentum and use it towards getting work done today for the benefit of all LA’s bicyclists.  Two events this week should be of especial interest to the bicycle community: The BAC Planning Subcommittee meets Tuesday afternoon and the City Council Transportation Committee meets Wednesday to discuss the bicyclist Anti-Harassment Ordinance.

Advocates, City Staff, and Electeds celebrate the Bike Plan's adoption

Read Full Post »

Protecting Bicyclists’ Rights: Anti-Harassment Ordinance, Soon-to-be Law

(Ed. Note: A big “thank you” to Ted Rogers, Ross Hirsch, and Council Member Eric Garcetti’s staff for helping us wrangle together the correct information for this post)

This is turning out to be a great week for LA’s bicyclists, isn’t it? First bike corrals, and now this:

One more tool for bicyclists to protect themselves

Today, a new prospective tool was introduced for bicyclists to defend themselves from harassment and assault. An anti-harassment ordinance, the motion to draft it being originally introduced by Council Member Bill Rosendahl, has been released today by the City Attorney’s Office. Pending council approval, bicyclists will be able to bring civil suit against drivers who assault them, harass them, threaten them, or intentionally distract them.

In the ordinance, the City recognizes not only that “people have a right to ride a bicycle in the City of Los Angeles”, but also that bicyclists are harassed and assaulted simply for being bicyclists – this ordinance gives bicyclists the right to go after offenders in court. The ordinance is now a public document, so you can read it yourself.

Read Full Post »