Category Archives: Transportation

Posts related to transportation and travel – bikes, car, commuting, sharing

Bike Palo Alto!

Posted on by Paul Heft
Reply

Join in for an afternoon of fun and learn how easy it is to bike in Palo Alto.  Bike Palo Alto! 2011 will be on Sunday, October 9, 1-4 pm.

Start at El Carmelo School (Bryant & Loma Verde) for bike safety info, helmet fitting, bike registration, and bike safety checks and maintenance. Then choose one of our highlighted routes and take a fun ride with free treats along the way including ice cream at Baskin Robbins and fruit at Mollie Stone’s & Whole Foods.

Bike Palo Alto! is a free, family friendly event, no pre-registration is necessary. Just bring your bike and helmet and be ready to lower your carbon footprint and have some fun! Event highlights:

  • Learn tips on how to bike safely on public streets and make sure your helmet is ready to protect you!
  • Get a great local bike map highlighting bike routes in and around Palo Alto!
  • Check out Palo Alto’s great bike routes and stop along the way for free ice cream and other treats!
  • Learn about bike safety accessories to make your ride safer and register your bike!
  • Want to know the best bike route from your home to your favorite destination? Ask the Route Wizard!
  • Bring your bike by for a free safety check and basic maintenance!
  • Sign up for our free raffle for a chance to win a great prize!

For more info go to: www.pagreenteams.org

Or find us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=208437172508446

Bike Palo Alto! Sponsors: Palo Alto CEAP, City of Palo Alto Way2Go & Sustainability Programs, Mike’s Bikes, Whole Foods, The Sweet Shop, Starbucks, Baskin Robbins, Mollie Stone’s Markets, Traders Joes, Kepler’s Books, REI, Palo Alto Bikes, College Terrace Association & the Barron Park Association.

 

Advertisement

Rethinking Cities: Film and Discussion Series

Posted on by Paul Heft
Reply

A look at how sprawl replaced traditional neighborhoods and what can be done to bring back community and sustainability to our cities and towns.  Group discussion follows (each evening).
 
Films start at 7 PM (Friday evenings), Laurel Room,  Sunnyvale Community Center, 550 East Remington.  Doors open at 6:45.  FREE. 

May 6–Save Our Land,  Save Our Towns. (One hour) Small town newsman Tom Hylton explores why America’s towns have declined and what we can do to revive them.  “Development and zoning issues normally make the eyes glaze…  Tom Hylton makes them downright fascinating.” Philadelphia Daily News

May  13–Creating Places We Want to Live

  • Portland: A Sense of Place. (Design e2) (30 minutes) 2008 Thanks to a  progressive public transportation portfolio that includes train, streetcar, bus and aerial tram, Portland has become one of the most livable cities in the US.
  • Community by Design. (26  minutes) 1997 Learn about the key role that design plays in building community, from some leading progressive thinkers on the subject.

May 20–Welcoming Pedestrians and Cyclists to the City (selected from Streetfilms)

  • Copenhagen’s Car-Free Streets and Slow Speed Zones. (5:08)  2010
  • An Alfresco Talk with Jan Gehl. (9:48) 2008
  • Moving Beyond the Automobile:  Bicycling.  (3:36) 2011
  • Ciclovia Bogota.   (9:41) 2007
  • San Jose Hosts Inaugural Via Velo.  (4:25) 2010

June 3–Developing Sustainable Transportation:  Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and Bicycle Infrastructure

  • Curitiba’s BRT Inspired BRT Around the World.  (Streetfilms)  (8:03) 2009
  • Guangzhou, China’s Winning the Future with BRT. (Streetfilms) (5:18)  2011
  • BRT:  LA’s Orange Line:  Bus Rapid Transit (Plus Bike Path). (Streetfilms) (4:56) 2009
  • Bike Sharing Paris:  Velo Liberte.  (Design e2) (30 minutes) 2008 The public-private Velib bike initiative encourages Parisians to forgo cars for bikes and public transportation, fostering a unique popular culture in the city.
  • Cycling Copenhagen Through North American Eyes. (Streetfilms) (10:45) 2010

This film and discussion series is co-sponsored by Sunnyvale Cool, Transition Silicon Valley, and Sierra Club (Loma Prieta Chapter).  Made possible in part by a grant from the Silicon Valley Community Foundation.

Take the Drive Less Challenge! Get your bike a free tune-up.

Posted on by promiserani
Reply

Take the 2011 Drive Less Challenge! April 22 – May 5th, 2011

The Drive Less Challenge is a fun way to try alternatives to driving your car to work, school, shopping and other local places. Walking, biking and taking transit instead of driving are great ways to live healthy and reduce car traffic, the largest source of CO2 emissions in the Bay Area!

Sign up at drivelesschallenge.com to use a game-like trip log, share your stories, and to join the Transition Palo Alto group. You can join and also form your own additional groups – friends, co-workers, neighbors, and others – to compete for fun and for prize gift certificates from local shops.

The Drive Less Challenge is an innovative, grassroots movement that encourages people to use alternatives to solo driving as a way to live healthier, do more local shopping, and reduce car traffic and CO2 emissions. To volunteer or sponsor please contact drivelesschallenge at gmail dot com

See you out there walking, biking, on the bus or train!

If you do any biking (or want to), get your bike a free tune-up at Mike’s Bikes! More info …

Free Maintenance Clinics

Mike’s Bikes is here to teach you how to fix, maintain, and improve your bike – every Wednesday night, for free! All you need to bring is your bike and your questions. Our expert mechanics will provide you with hands-on instruction on just about anything you want to know.

Wednesdays at 6pm
Mike’s Bikes
3001 El Camino Real @ Olive Ave.

Learning how to fix your own bike will not only save you money, but will also empower you to tune and troubleshoot your bike out on the road or trail.

Every Wednesday night, we’ll provide participant-determined, hands-on instruction on common maintenance topics such as:

  • Fix a flat
  • Tune your shifters, derailleurs, and brakes
  • Fix a broken chain
  • Install accessories
  • Adjust your bike to better fit your body
  • Swap out worn components

And more (participant-determined)

Grand Boulevard Initiative

Posted on by Paul Heft
Reply

Envisioning the Future of El Camino Real

Speakers from VTA, Strategic Economics, and ReConnecting America discuss:

  • Bus Rapid Transit along El Camino Real
  • Economic and environmental impacts of clustering jobs and homes on a transportation corridor
  • Successful corridor development

Wednesday, March 30, 2011
7- 8:30 PM
Sunnyvale City Hall: 
City Council Chambers
456 W. Olive Avenue
FREE

Sponsored by the American Planners Association of Northern California, Strategic Economics, VTA, ReConnecting America, Sunnyvale Cool, Urban Habitat, the City of Sunnyvale, Greenbelt Alliance and the Grand Boulevard Initiative El Camino Real.

Free Film Series – Energy and Transportation

Posted on by bart
Reply

Films of Vision and Hope – September 17 – October 22

World Centric 2121 Staunton Ct., Palo Alto (behind JJ&F Market)
Time: Fridays 7:30 – 9:30 P.M.

Concerned about the environment and climate change?
Looking for ways to make a positive, sustainable change for people and the planet?

Don’t miss our third Films of Vision and Hope film series,
focusing on hopeful and positive solutions to environmental problems affecting our world.

Provocative films, great discussion, and opportunities to connect with
others who want to make a difference.

September 17 – Energy Crossroads　This award winning film exposes the problems associated with our energy consumption and offers concrete solutions. The film features passionate individuals, entrepreneurs, experts and scientists at the forefront of a new energy future.

September 24 – Kilowatt Ours Another award winner that explores energy sources and problems, then highlights people making a difference in energy conservation, efficiency and renewable, green power, all while saving money and the environment. This often amusing and always inspiring story shows, “You can easily make a difference and here’s how!”

October 1 Fossil Fuel Free Film, and More　Meet filmmaker Matt Harnack, and follow his adventures as he tries to live life without fossil fuels. “I was determined to break my addiction to oil. I did the only thing I knew how to do. I made a movie.”

October 8 Bicycle Night　Enjoy some great short films about how cities from Bogota to Havana to Copenhagen are working to make their communities bike friendly. Residents are lowering carbon footprints, getting healthier, and enjoying life much more.

October 15 In Transition 　An inspirational film about how local communities, like ours, can respond to peak oil and global warming while building community and enjoying life. Do come again, even if you saw the film last time – we’ll have more great discussion.

October 22 Join us for our second 100 mile potluck. Connect with others and learn about opportunities to get involved.

FILM SERIES POSTER (pdf) – Print out and post!


Sponsored by Silicon Valley Action Network, Transition Silicon Valley, World Centric, Acterra, and Transition Palo Alto