'Ghost bikes' Mark Deaths in Sacramento Area
The Sacramento Bee
Published: Apr, 19 2010
They're spooky. Painted stark white, stem to stern, they've
appeared seemingly out of nowhere in recent weeks, each chained to a
pole on a major Sacramento street.
They are "ghost bikes,"
standing silent watch where cyclists have died.
The people
responsible for them have kept a low profile. The spray-painted
monuments, however, are striking, a form of guerrilla public art that
has prompted debate, appreciation, and some unease.
The first one appeared on L Street downtown where a cyclist, who
police say ran a red light, was crushed by a bus in March.
There's
another on Howe Avenue north of Highway 50 where a cyclist was struck
and killed by a driver last month at 3:45 a.m.
The most recent
showed up two weeks ago at Carlson Drive and H Street near the River
Park neighborhood in Sacramento, where a cyclist collided with a van on a
Sunday ride on day two of national bike month.
The riderless
memorials are new to Sacramento, but have been popping up in other
cities since 2003.
They confuse some passersby.
One
Sacramento blogger thought the bike on L Street had to be part of a
police bike-theft sting operation. Another blogged that it looked
creepy. Yet another said she cried when she realized what the bike
represented.
Some wonder if the bikes are a political statement.
Are they saying bicycling is dangerous? Or that cyclists are victimized
by drivers?
Local bicyclist and advocate Ryan Sharpe said the
meaning is simple.
"It is not supposed to be a political
statement," he said. "It's the bicycle community saying we lost a member
right here, not trying to say whose fault it is, just that we lost
one."
Asked if he was involved, Sharpe demurred. It's not about
individuals, he said. "It's a community effort."
A friend, Rick
Houston, who organizes "tweed rides" in vintage clothes on vintage
bikes, readily acknowledges his role in two ghost bikes. They are not
trying to whitewash the fact that some cyclists ride unsafely, Houston
said.
"There are bicyclists, you scratch your head, and think,
really?" he said. "I'm a fan of bicyclists accepting their
responsibilities. This is serious."
Jim Brown, of the California
Bicycling Coalition, is among those who say the ghost bikes represent a
maturing of the Sacramento bike community. Cyclists, he said, are seeing
themselves not as individuals but as members of a group. The ghost bike
activists did not know the cyclists who were killed.
The bikes
reflect a core issue that Brown's coalition and groups such as
Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates have been working on for years: How to
push planners and politicians, as well as cyclists and drivers, to
cooperate in making the roads safer for all users.
The issue has
become more important as Sacramento streets get more crowded, causing
more conflicts. Brown is optimistic safety will improve: As cycling's
popularity increases, planners will make more room on roads, legislators
will write more realistic laws, and cyclists and drivers will get
better at sharing tight quarters.
"If you look at cities with
high rates of bike ridership, you see an inverse relationship between
bikes and collisions," Brown said. "The streets become safer for
bicyclists. I like to think of it as an ecosystem that kind of adjusts."
The
current ghost bikes soon will disappear. But other ghost bikes, at
other intersections, may follow.
John Boyer, founder of Edible
Pedal catering service, helped put up the L Street bike. "We need to
draw the attention to making it safer to ride," he said. "That's the
bottom line."
©
Copyright The Sacramento Bee. All rights reserved.
Published: Apr, 19 2010
They're spooky. Painted stark white, stem to stern, they've
appeared seemingly out of nowhere in recent weeks, each chained to a
pole on a major Sacramento street.
They are "ghost bikes,"
standing silent watch where cyclists have died.
The people
responsible for them have kept a low profile. The spray-painted
monuments, however, are striking, a form of guerrilla public art that
has prompted debate, appreciation, and some unease.
The first one appeared on L Street downtown where a cyclist, who
police say ran a red light, was crushed by a bus in March.
There's
another on Howe Avenue north of Highway 50 where a cyclist was struck
and killed by a driver last month at 3:45 a.m.
The most recent
showed up two weeks ago at Carlson Drive and H Street near the River
Park neighborhood in Sacramento, where a cyclist collided with a van on a
Sunday ride on day two of national bike month.
The riderless
memorials are new to Sacramento, but have been popping up in other
cities since 2003.
They confuse some passersby.
One
Sacramento blogger thought the bike on L Street had to be part of a
police bike-theft sting operation. Another blogged that it looked
creepy. Yet another said she cried when she realized what the bike
represented.
Some wonder if the bikes are a political statement.
Are they saying bicycling is dangerous? Or that cyclists are victimized
by drivers?
Local bicyclist and advocate Ryan Sharpe said the
meaning is simple.
"It is not supposed to be a political
statement," he said. "It's the bicycle community saying we lost a member
right here, not trying to say whose fault it is, just that we lost
one."
Asked if he was involved, Sharpe demurred. It's not about
individuals, he said. "It's a community effort."
A friend, Rick
Houston, who organizes "tweed rides" in vintage clothes on vintage
bikes, readily acknowledges his role in two ghost bikes. They are not
trying to whitewash the fact that some cyclists ride unsafely, Houston
said.
"There are bicyclists, you scratch your head, and think,
really?" he said. "I'm a fan of bicyclists accepting their
responsibilities. This is serious."
Jim Brown, of the California
Bicycling Coalition, is among those who say the ghost bikes represent a
maturing of the Sacramento bike community. Cyclists, he said, are seeing
themselves not as individuals but as members of a group. The ghost bike
activists did not know the cyclists who were killed.
The bikes
reflect a core issue that Brown's coalition and groups such as
Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates have been working on for years: How to
push planners and politicians, as well as cyclists and drivers, to
cooperate in making the roads safer for all users.
The issue has
become more important as Sacramento streets get more crowded, causing
more conflicts. Brown is optimistic safety will improve: As cycling's
popularity increases, planners will make more room on roads, legislators
will write more realistic laws, and cyclists and drivers will get
better at sharing tight quarters.
"If you look at cities with
high rates of bike ridership, you see an inverse relationship between
bikes and collisions," Brown said. "The streets become safer for
bicyclists. I like to think of it as an ecosystem that kind of adjusts."
The
current ghost bikes soon will disappear. But other ghost bikes, at
other intersections, may follow.
John Boyer, founder of Edible
Pedal catering service, helped put up the L Street bike. "We need to
draw the attention to making it safer to ride," he said. "That's the
bottom line."
©
Copyright The Sacramento Bee. All rights reserved.