Cops Chase, Suspects Get Away, Cyclist Dies

 One of the reasons I have never attended my high-school reunions is an encounter I had with a classmate just after I graduated.

We were in the stands for the Thanksgiving Day football game. He said that he was waiting to enroll in the police academy. That did not surprise me: Several members of his family worked in local and state law enforcement.  He wasn't, however, trying to continue a familial tradition.  Rather, the allure of becoming a constable was  that "it's the only job where you get to drive fast, carry a gun and beat people up."

I suspect that more than a few prospective cops were enticed by the prospect of operating vehicles at speeds that would get civilians arrested or ticketed--and, too often, lead to innocent drivers, bystanders, pedestrians--and cyclists--getting killed.

We don't hear about that very often.  But such was the tragic fate of Amanda Servedio.  The other night, she was riding her bicycle  near 37th Street and 34th Avenue in Astoria--an intersection I have pedaled, probably, hundreds of times, as it's only a few blocks from where I lived--when a driver sped a pickup truck through the intersection and struck her.  The impact launched her; she landed on a nearby parked car.  

She was taken to Elmhurst Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

As terrible as the crash was, it might have been just another of many caused by a careless, errant or impaired driver save for another "twist:" Police were pursuing the vehicle, whose drivers and passengers were suspects in a burglary at a nearby construction site.

Heartbroken to hear the news that our neighbor Amanda Servedio was hit & killed by a driver fleeing the NYPD in a chase on Tuesday.

Her tragic death was preventable and the latest example of cyclists and pedestrians being killed due to an unacceptable increase in NYPD chases.

— Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) October 24, 2024

An NYPD policy forbids chases of the sort those officers made. There's a very good reason for that, according to Transportation Alternatives' Alexa Sledge: "When there are cars speeding down city streets, it's dangerous." Evidence of her claim can be found in this fact: Ms. Servedio--an "avid cyclist" according to a friend--is the fifth person to be killed in a police chase this year.

Oh, and the suspects, who abandoned the Dodge Ram 1500 (with "ghost" plates), are still at large. 

Call me cycnical, but I wonder whether those cops gave chase for the thrill of it--just as my old classmate dreamed of doing.

This Shouldn't Be A Shock

The bicycle has been described as the parent of the automobile and grandparent of the airplane.  Indeed, most of the technology found in early--and, in some cases, current--cars and planes was created for bicycle.  The most famous, and possibly important, example is the pneumatic tire:  Automobiles would be no faster or better than horse-drawn carriages, and modern aircraft couldn't take off or land, without them. Ball bearings and variable gears are among the other innovations that "crossed over" from two wheels to four.

Moreover, many of the early designers, engineers, manufacturers and even mechanics for automobiles of aircraft got their start with bicycles.  Henry Ford and the Wright Brothers are among the most famous examples. Speaking of whom:  Mr. Ford didn't "invent" the assembly lines for automobile production.  It had already been in use in bicycle factories, and he adapted that innovation for the automobile company that bears his name.

As the cars overtook bicycles as the primary means of land transportation, "borrowing" shifted the other way.  But as the bicycle industry in the US saved itself by selling its wares as toys or, at best, transportation for kids who weren't old enough to drive, the car-to-bike migration wasn't as technological as it was stylistic:  Bike makers chromed parts for a "streamlined" look and added stick shifters and steering wheel-like handlebars to make their machines adaptable to childrens' fantasies of driving cars and motorcycles. (The "muscle bikes" of the 1960s--on the eve of the North American Bike Boom--are examples of what I mean.) 

The cycle of innovation and borrowing continued when mountain bikes were first created.  Many used brake levers and other parts from motorcycles and early suspension systems could trace their development--from springs and cables to air and elastomers, and back--to what was found on Harleys, Hondas and BMWs. And, whatever you think of them (I'm still not using them), disc brakes have been standard equipment on all but the smallest and lightest cars for about 50 years and are becoming more common on bicycles.

Now, it seems that the trend may be coming "full circle."  A crew in Stray's Garage, an Italian custom motorcycle shop, created this "cafe racer" from a Soviet-era Ural motorcycle.  Its most striking element, apart from its engine, is the front-fork suspension which, according to Cristian Curmei, blends elements of mountain bike rear suspension systems.

Oh, and the suspension system's piggyback oil reserve (near the top of the spring) bears a name familiar to mountain bike riders:  Manitou.  

 

The Latent Demand For Bike Lanes

I took one economics course as an undergraduate. What did I learn? Well, there is a subject at which I am worse than I am at math, which is saying something. Oh, and I learned a few terms that come up every now and again, including “induced demand” and “latent demand.”

The former term refers to, among other things, what happens when new roads are built. Contrary to what people expect—and, too often, planners and politicians promise—building new roads or adding traffic lanes doesn’t ease congestion. Instead, it induces people to drive for short trips and on occasions when they otherwise might not have, and to move further away from their workplaces, schools and other places they need and want to go to—and public transportation.

On the other hand—again, counter to common perception and the claims of grandstanding politicians—bike lanes bring out latent demand. That is to say, they encourage people who wanted to cycle to their jobs, schools or favorite stores and restaurants but were reluctant because they didn’t feel safe. I imagine there are more such people than there are folks who want to drive two hours each way to work, or to put up with the hassles of driving and parking to buy some cereal and milk.

Cyclist on path in front of Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto. Photo by John Rieti for CBC.

Recent research bears out what I have just said. Moreover, it shows that in many places—including my hometown of New York—bike lanes actually help to reduce the amount of time it takes to drive because bike lanes, which are often installed with left turn lanes, allow cyclists to proceed more quickly through intersections and keep cars from blocking other cars.

Research also refutes another misconception: that bike lanes are “bad for business.” They might be in the short term, which is how most small businesses owners operate because a bad month or two can ruin them (as the pandemic showed us). But loyal customers tend to return, whatever the circumstances, and stores and restaurants can gain new customers in cyclists (and pedestrians) who happen to pass by.

In other words, they benefit from latent demand. Hmm…If my economics course had included more examples like that…math would have remained my worst subject.