Sioux Falls installing ‘See how long before it is broken’ park

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The Parks Department (or probably the mayor’s office) is building a fitness pad park by 26th and Southeastern. Many have asked ‘how long will the equipment last’? I went by the park yesterday while they were installing the equipment in the ground. While the frames of the stationary bikes and equipment are made of very durable cast steel the rest of it is plastic. Even with normal wear and tear and the weather this stuff will have trouble lasting more then a few seasons but it’s the vandals that concern me more.

Canton proposes building swimming pool with garbage fees

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You got to hand it to them for being creative;

  • Right now, Canton has private garbage services, meaning residents choose whichever provider they’d like to come collect their trash.
  • In a city-run garbage collection system, Canton would put out a bid to trash collectors and choose the lowest offer.
  • Because the city would take care of billing logistics, Gannon anticipates collectors would offer much lower rates to the city than they’re able to offer directly to customers.
  • Customers’ bills won’t go up, but because costs are lower, the city would have extra income from garbage collection to then help pay for the pool.

While I will leave it up to the citizens of Canton to determine if they want to pay for their pool with garbage fees, I do support the idea of municipal garbage. I have argued for a long time that if the City of Sioux Falls did this you would save consumers because the billing could be processed thru your water bill and the private contractor(s) the city would hire wouldn’t pay tipping fees and would have shorter planned routes.

I also would implement a city ambulance service since right now the city is already assisting in mutual aid, sometimes showing up before the private ambulance, and we are getting NO reimbursement from the private ambulance provider for our aid.

Some argue against having these services provided by the city, but if done correctly they can be very beneficial and cost effective for citizens.

Bravo to the Sioux Falls Parks Department!

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With the weather getting it’s thaw on I have been trying to get my bike riding miles in, and it has been glorious. Yesterday I went on an extensive bike trail ride (my 4th in a week). While I like to bitch a lot about city services, the city deserves a gold star on plowing the bike trail. Don’t be fooled by winter. I have seen walkers, joggers, bike riders and pet enthusiasts on the trail and we are extremely fortunate to have the city plow our bike trail. Thank You!

City of Sioux Falls has survey on E-Bikes

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While I do appreciate this survey, I’m not sure the questions really encourage E-Bike usage, but I did like the question about who speeds the most on the bike trail (the winning answer is regular bicyclists NOT baby strollers).

But there still seems to be some misinformation being spread about E-Bike classifications;

E-bikes come in four classes: 1, 2, 3 and “out of class.” Class 1 e-bikes allow assist up to 20 mph, which means you have to be pedaling for that to work. Once you hit 20 mph, the assist stops, and you rely on your own power. Class 2 allows for a throttle-based system, meaning you don’t have to pedal for the assist to work, but it still cuts off at 20 mph. Class 3 is pedal assist, but it goes up to 28 mph. Anything outside of those parameters is considered “out of class.”

While there are classes they vary much more then this. If you have a Class II or higher you can actually control the speed with what level you are locked into. So if I want to go below 15 MPH (the bike trail maximum speed) I can lock that in. While I get the premise of ‘out of class’ that really only applies to actual electric motorcycles that can usually top out at 80 MPH. While they are getting more affordable and powerful they are still a long ways from being mainstream. Anything that is a class II or higher is really just a moped despite the rhetoric;

“Anything that doesn’t fit in that class system and goes more than 20 mph with a throttle only is a motorcycle,” according to Chad Pickard, owner of Spoke-N-Sport. “It’s going to need insurance and have a licensed rider and mirrors and headlights and turn signals and anything that a motorcycle has. I don’t think people realize that.”

Moped classification under state law is simple, anything under 150 CC is classified as a moped and only requires that the operator have a valid driver’s license (not motorcycle). While you don’t need a license plate on the vehicle it is wise to have it covered under your homeowners insurance.

Comparing CC to electric output can be difficult, but there are horsepower comparisons. It really comes to maximum output. At full charge an electric class II bike can really have a lot of torque, similar to when you hit the throttle on a moped. It is really what is the maximum output of the moped NOT based on a speed or power source.

I love my E-Bike and encourage people to buy the safest and most powerful one you can get for maximum usage and let Pierre try to figure out what a moped is and what a motorcycle is.

Denver, CO sees measurable results from incentivizing E-Bikes

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While many people have told me to get off my high-horse about helping low income folks with an E-Bike leasing program, Denver has found that it has measurable results;

Researchers at Portland State University are tracking 65 programs nationwide that are active or that have been approved to help people get on e-bikes, either through subsidies or loaning a bike. California plans to launch a statewide program next year backed by $10 million.

E-bikes, which have a motor and battery to propel riders, can cost about $2,000, putting them out of reach for many low-income families. Denver’s program has two tiers, with one that offers $400 to any city resident — an amount aimed at sweetening the deal for would-be buyers. For low-income residents, the second tier increases the voucher size to $1,200, a sum city officials say should make the bikes more widely affordable.

Two other elements of the program are designed to encourage buyers to use their bikes for transportation: a bonus of $500 for cargo bikes, which can carry children or a large load, while full-suspension mountain bikes used primarily for recreation aren’t eligible.

And after Denver tried this pilot program, guess what they found out;

A city survey found new e-bike riders were riding, on average, 26.2 miles per week, and that low-income buyers were riding about 32 miles per week. Respondents said they had replaced 3.4 car trips each week with bike rides.

“It’s so much faster,” said Rink, who commutes by e-bike. “It’s much less of a chore. There is an element of joy in riding the e-bike.”

I would agree, my main reason I like riding my E-Bike is because it is enjoyable, but if you look at the results of this successful program it is also equitable. I hope the new transportation board in Sioux Falls looks at this.