Let’s Get Bike Lanes in Hoboken!

bikehoboken — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 21:29:03 +0000

Bike Hoboken wants to do all we can to garner support for passing the bike lane ordinance in town. Please print out a few copies of the flyer and hang around town, hand them out at key points in town, tape it to a bike rack or tape it to non-abandoned looking bikes.

Click the link below to access the flyer.

Hoboken Get out the support for Bike Lane Ordinance Flyer 2 8-17-11

New Safety Page

bikehoboken — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 00:31:57 +0000

Bike Hoboken knows that safe riding is of the utmost importance; in light of that, we’ve added a new “Safety Tips” page, which will be periodically updated with helpful biking tips. Please take a look!

Jersey City Ward Tour Tomorrow

bikehoboken — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 20:39:58 +0000

Just a reminder that Bike Hoboken is organizing a team to ride in the Jersey City Ward Tour. The money we raise is going to a great cause and we are excited to get as many people out as possible.

We will be meeting by the war memorial at the corner of 1st St and Sinatra around 9:30 am tomorrow before we ride over to Exchange Place.

For more info check out http://www.bikehoboken.com/ward-tour/

and http://bikejc.org/WardTour

Ride in the Jersey City Ward Tour with Bike Hoboken

bikehoboken — Tue, 17 May 2011 03:33:10 +0000

The second annual Jersey City Ward Tour, hosted by Bike JC, is around the corner. Hundreds of area residents will be joining up with Bike JC to participate in the 10 mile tour of our neighbor city and we would like to encourage everyone to join the festivities.

So strap on your helmet for Bike JC Ward Tour 2.0 on June 4 and ride for a great cause! Bike Hoboken is teaming up with the Hoboken Family Alliance to field the biggest pack of riders for Team HobokONE to benefit children with disabilities.

The goal is simple: to field the biggest team for the ride and raise $1,000 for the camp. Register with us and proceeds will benefit Lose The Training Wheels, a bike camp that will run July 25-29 in Hoboken to teach children with disabilities to ride a two-wheeler. It will be the first camp hosted in New Jersey and we want to make a big impact, so ask your friends and family to help. Donate in increments of $25.

Register for Team HobokenONE today!

HobokONE riders will be treated to a post-ride gathering at Carpe Diem.

Donating through the paypal link above will place you on Team HobokenONE, but for more information about the tour check out.

http://bikejc.org/WardTour

Bike to Work Week – Monday May 16th – 20th

bikehoboken — Sun, 15 May 2011 18:02:25 +0000

Hey Bike Hoboken -

Bike to Work week officially begins Monday, and with this in mind I wanted to send everyone a great article from a Bike Hoboken member who has been writing a frequent column about riding in Hudson County. Brian Wagner is an active member of Bike Hoboken and a lifetime cyclist. I highly recommend following his postings on a weekly basis.
http://www.examiner.com/cycling-in-jersey-city/commuting-by-bike

On Tuesday the Hudson TMA will be at the PATH station giving brief safety lessons and distributing bike information. Members of Bike Hoboken are also going to be there helping out. Try to stop by and say hello.

BiketoWorkWeekFlyer_R5_FINAL

Completed City Council Candidate Questionnaires

bikehoboken — Tue, 03 May 2011 04:32:38 +0000

Bike Hoboken sent out a questionnaire to the candidates for the May 10th, 2011 city council elections. We believe it’s important for voters to understand the candidates’ perspectives on all things Hoboken. In our position, we serve as a representative to all biking-related matters in Hoboken, and as such, it is our duty to inform our members of the potential Council Members’ outlook on biking in town.

Please see the Candidate Questionnaire tab above of click the below link

http://www.bikehoboken.com/candidate-questionnaire/

Hoboken City Council Candidates’ Forums Tonight and Tomorrow

bikehoboken — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 19:01:37 +0000

I wanted to remind everyone about the City Council Candidates’ Forums set for tonight and tomorrow. Due to the large number of candidates the forum is broken into two nights so please check which ward you live in and attend the night your candidates will be appearing. The city posts a map of the ward breakdowns so you can take a look here or enter your address at the county site here

One of the best ways for Bike Hoboken’s members to make an impact is to participate in the city council elections, so please come out and meet your candidates this week, and then register and vote in the elections scheduled for May 10th.

Candidates invited to participate tonight are:

First Ward: Theresa Castellano, Eric Kurta
Third Ward: Michael Russo, Greg Lincoln
Fourth Ward: Tim Occhipinti, Rami Pinchevsky
Sixth Ward: Nino Giacchi, Jennifer Giattino
More information below.

Regards,

Chris Giannini
chris@bikehoboken.com
facebook.com/BikeHoboken
twitter.com/BikeHoboken

Hoboken City Council Candidates’ Forums Set for April 12-13
Public is Invited to Join in Moderated Q&A with City Council Candidates

Due to the number of candidates in Wards 2 and 5, the April 12 forum will include Wards 1, 3, 4 and 6; April 13 will be for Wards 2 and 5

Hoboken voters will have the opportunity to pose questions and hear directly from the candidates vying for the six City Council ward seats in the May 10 election. Two moderated forums will be conducted by the Hoboken Quality of Life Coalition and People for Open Government, and hosted by The Parish of Our Lady of Grace and St. Joseph.

The first forum will feature candidates for the four wards with just one incumbent and one challenger (1^st, 3^rd, 4^th and 6^th) on Tuesday, April 12, from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in the auditorium of the school at Our Lady of Grace, at the corner of Willow Avenue and Fifth St. The second will feature candidates for the two wards (2^nd and 5^th) with an incumbent and three challengers, on Wednesday, April 13, from 7:30 – 9:30 p.m. in the same location. All candidates will be invited to participate.

At each event, written questions will be solicited from the audience and screened by members of QLC and POG for clarity, general interest and absence of partisanship. Both events will be moderated by longtime Hoboken resident Bob Bowdon, a veteran TV reporter, anchorman and creator of the acclaimed independent film The Cartel. Bowdon is an op-ed contributor to the Huffington Post website and Onion Radio Network.

QLC and POG are nonprofit, nonpartisan citizen organizations that have been active in Hoboken during the last decade and have organized previous candidates’ forums. Our Lady of Grace Church is joining in the sponsorship of these forums in order to make information available about the candidates in this important May election and as a means to urge citizens throughout the city to exercise their right to vote.

Group Rides

bikehoboken — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 18:47:20 +0000

Hi Riders~

My name is Jen Santangelo and I have been part of bike Hoboken since last May when Chris and Josh started this incredible group. I will be organizing leisurely group rides throughout the year.

On Sunday, April 3rd we will be going on our first group ride for spring. I know we haven’t had the spring weather yet, but I thought it was a great opportunity to get everyone together. It will be an easy ride around Hoboken and if everyone feels comfortable we can go further.

We will be meeting at the war memorial at the base of Pier A and 1st Street at 2pm.

Looking forward to see everyone!

Jen

Jen@bikehoboken.com

grouprides@bikehoboken.com

Added a new Calendar page to the website

bikehoboken — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 15:52:39 +0000

We will begin to announce and keep track of events using this calendar. The calendar is a free and public google calendar so anyone should be able to search for and subscribe to this.

Please let us know about relevant events and we will be happy to post.

Meeting Update

bikehoboken — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 21:45:26 +0000

We had a great meeting last week and we wanted to share the press release here.

Bike Hoboken held its first meeting last night (Wednesday February 24th) at Carpe Diem restaurant in Hoboken. In attendance were 5th Ward Councilman, Peter Cunningham, 3rd Ward Councilman, Mike Russo and his wife, candidate for 2nd Ward, Tom Greaney, Jay DiDomenico of the Hudson Transportation Management Association (TMA) and Ian Sacs, Hoboken’s Transportation Director. Founding members Chris Giannini and Josh Meyers led the meeting which was attended by over 20 residents.

The round table format addressed a multitude of important issues. Residents said often they felt unsafe when riding a bike in and around Hoboken, in particular when with their children. The need for better enforcement of existing vehicular traffic laws was discussed, especially with regard to cars parked too close to the corner, which diminishes visibility for everyone, double parking and speeding. Cyclists and pedestrians need to ride and walk in a responsible, safe fashion. It was agreed that texting while crossing the street and riding the wrong way down a one-way street were examples of unacceptable behavior. The discussion focused on the important need to balance competing interests of various modes of transportation. It was noted that a 4,000 pound car traveling at 25 miles an hour or more posed a much greater risk to pedestrians and cyclists than any pedestrian or cyclist ever could pose to a driver.

The need for additional, safe bike parking in many areas of Hoboken was mentioned, such as at the PATH, along Washington Street and at the sites of other business establishments and recreational areas. Residents expressed frustration at not having bike parking in their apartment buildings and in local parking lots. Proposals to possibly convert the existing, now unused parking meter poles into bike parking and to expand bike parking into the no-parking areas currently partitioned off by the orange ballasts on many Hoboken corners.

Jay DiDomenico, of Hudson TMA, explained resources his organization offers to promote safety and public education programs at no cost to the City; including seminars for children and community groups. In the past, these events have not been very well attended, but it was hoped that greater publicity would increase attendance. The desire to reduce traffic, increased gas prices, the need to reduce congestion, the recent increase in bike lanes and bike parking in Hoboken, have caused a shift to take place in our transportation mix. With the goal of reducing traffic congestion and the difficulty of finding street parking, more and more Hoboken residents are taking to the streets and bike path on bicycles. Addressed safely, this change can help alleviate many local problems and can become another of the many attributes Hoboken has to offer. For a geographically small city, Hoboken is an ideal place for bicycling for pleasure, sport and to commute.

The many recent improvements made in Hoboken’s transportation environment were highlighted by Ian Sacs. The mere existence of bike lanes have proven to significantly reduce vehicular traffic speeds along Grand and Madison Streets. Ian explained the possibility for a full-fledged bike sharing program in which residents would have use of bikes parked throughout the City at minimal cost. Bike sharing programs have been extremely successful in almost every European city and many places like Washington D.C. and Boston. Future initiatives Ian and the group discussed include encouraging local businesses to sponsor new bike racks; the possibility of indoor free or paid bike parking at the municipal and possibly private garages; having delivery people deliver food by bike rather than by car; and working within the recommendations of the Hoboken Master Plan and the extensive study the RBA Group completed. This study resulted in the Hoboken Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan, created by RBA with extensive community input.

Another idea already underway is the creation of a directory for all residential buildings in Hoboken which offer bike parking to residents and a description of the type of parking offered (i.e, locked room, a rack, etc.). Many Hobokenites live in very small apartments and don’t wish to keep a bike in their living room or feel it is not safe to park overnight on the street. A condo like Garden Street Lofts, that has a state-of-the-art, double tier bike rack inside a locked room in the parking garage is an enviable amenity for home buyers.

For many of us a bicycle is the first step to adulthood and independence. It is a way to move around while still remaining connected to your surroundings. Riding a bike is convenient, inexpensive, and fun. The members of Bike Hoboken together with the cooperation of the local government and involvement of Hoboken’s residents can make riding a bike in Hoboken safe, freeing and fun again. This meeting was the beginning of a great journey toward a worthy goal of making Hoboken a bike friendly place to visit and live.