Night bike ride planned to promote safe bicycling in Ann Arbor
The route for the Lite Bike night ride through Ann Arbor on Sept. 15.
City of Ann Arbor
The event is being hosted by a nonprofit group called Bike A2. Participants are encouraged to dress their bicycles in lights and come out for a "critical-mass style" ride from 7-9 p.m.
Riders will then embark on a ride through the city and return to a beer garden sponsored by Arbor Brewing Co.
The Ann Arbor City Council approved a resolution Monday night to close a portion of East Washington Street for the event.
The plan is to close half a block of Washington in front of Arbor Brewing between Main Street and Fourth Avenue, starting at 5 p.m. and ending at 11 p.m.
The intersection of Main and Washington will remain open during the event.
The mission of Lite Bike is to inspire leaders, business owners and citizens of Ann Arbor to support initiatives that will enable more people to ride bikes more often. The ride also is designed to create awareness around the issue of bike safety, especially at night.
Though there will be a four-mile bike ride through the city, city officials said no street closures are required for that part of the event.
The ride is open to cyclists of all skill levels. Marshals are expected to ensure that riders are compliant with all traffic laws — obeying traffic lights, and only riding two abreast.
The cost to register is $12.
A special liquor license for the post-ride event is being approved by the city, contingent upon approval from the Michigan Liquor Control Commission.
Musical enjoyment is being provided by The Finer Things and Light Out for the Territory, who will take the stage outside Arbor Brewing. Tree Town Sound's Matt Altruda is the emcee.
There also will be a raffle with prizes from Joshua Tree Products, Moosejaw, Planet Rock, REI, Sonic Lunch and more.
In addition to the Lite Bike event on Sept. 15, the City Council approved requests from Arbor Brewing, Grizzly Peak and Blue Tractor to close portions of Washington between Ashley and Fourth Avenue for Oktoberfest, which starts Sept. 20 and runs through midnight the following night.
Ryan J. Stanton covers government and politics for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at ryanstanton@annarbor.com or 734-623-2529. You also can follow him on Twitter or subscribe to AnnArbor.com's email newsletters.
Comments
Seasoned Cit
Thu, Aug 22, 2013 : 4:08 a.m.
Do they have plans for designated peddlers to take bike riders home after they've been celebrating the successful ride with the local beer? It's one way to insure that bikes out after dark will have lights that make them visible to others on the road.
Peter Eckstein
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 5:46 p.m.
The real good that might come from this would be not to just "dress their bicycles in lights" but to install permanent lights and reflectors on the bikes and to provide reflectors for shirts and helmets. Many cyclists (and pedestrians) in dark clothing seem to have no idea how invisible they can be to motorists, especially on curved streets.
jrad1978
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 5:36 p.m.
so how excactly is serving alcohol supposed to encourage safe bike riding? .....I'm not against having a beer.....just seems a little counter productive To encourage alcohol at a nighttime road safety event
leaguebus
Thu, Aug 22, 2013 : 2:14 a.m.
I guess a cyclist cannot be trusted to have a beer and drive their bike? I wonder why? Most of the drinking mayhem is caused by drunk car drivers!
Mick52
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 5:13 p.m.
I bike as often as I can and while I won't do this I can say by experience that downtown Ann Arbor in the middle of the night is a great ride in the summertime. And often the lights blink yellow so I don't have to stop. Yup, I am one of the few bicyclists who obey all traffic law.
a2biker
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 4:07 p.m.
The next thing you know us Michigan drivers will have to watch out for pedestrians. They just keep taking away our rights.
jrad1978
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 5:43 p.m.
Ya.... what a concept ...the road wasn't made just for me....I actually have to share it with other people ..so illogical
M-Wolverine
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 4:58 p.m.
Be careful of the slippery slope. Next thing you know bikers will have to watch out for pedestrians too.
John Q
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 3:49 p.m.
This will be a non-event traffic-wise for cars or bikers. But it won't stop the complainers and whiners here at A2.com from coming out in force telling us all how terrible it will be.
Barzoom
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 3:36 p.m.
Just a stunt to get publicity and make drivers crazy.
Matt Postiff
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:59 p.m.
It seems to me that one way to promote safe bicycling is to avoid bicycling at night.
John of Saline
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 3:11 p.m.
Well, if they have proper lights and actually abide by traffic laws, they should be fine (absent drinking). Bikes with out lights scare me, though; those reflectors don't always work so well.
Brad
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 3:05 p.m.
They might also want to rethink drinking both before and after biking. Just saying. Nice of the city to close off a street to enable that. Is there anything they won't close a street for?
pest
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:56 p.m.
How many of the cyclists will be drinking? Rather concerning...
leaguebus
Thu, Aug 22, 2013 : 2:10 a.m.
So what, who gets hurt when a cyclist screws up? Never heard a car crying while someone was setting its broken fender.
John of Saline
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:52 p.m.
"Critical Mass" rides usually are intended to block the roads to other traffic as bikes violate every traffic law out there, to make some sort of point. Not a good tactic.
David Frye
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:52 p.m.
As a2cents indicates, routing this bike ride the wrong way down Madison (which is torn up and almost impassible on bike even if you are going the right way) is... interesting. I hope the organizers try out their route before sending people on it.
Jack Gladney
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:48 p.m.
LOL. Start at the bar. Go riding through town. Go back to the bar. Ride home. What could go wrong there?
Jack Gladney
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:52 p.m.
Second thought: This might be a safer although less amusing event if they substituted riding lawn mowers for the bikes.
SonnyDog09
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:20 p.m.
Does this route take them past the new Justice League Headquarters building so that they can enjoy the blinky lights on the hurinal?
Brad
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:16 p.m.
"Marshals are expected to ensure that riders are compliant with all traffic laws — obeying traffic lights, and only riding two abreast." We need those full-time.
leaguebus
Thu, Aug 22, 2013 : 2:08 a.m.
yes, for car drivers. They kill many more by being stupid than cyclists do.
Hugh Giariola
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:12 p.m.
Why don't we tempt fate some more and run across US 23 at night?
DeeDee
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 1:48 p.m.
Hoping they are providing training to the riders about stopping at signs and lights, not riding the wrong way on one way streets, or creeping up on people's right side at stop lights and signs, and all of the other things that give "sharing the road" a bad name.
LaMusica
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:44 p.m.
John, I agree, cars making "rolling stops" is a problem with drivers too. Thanks for alerting the drivers to the broken brake lights! You are one of the good ones!
John
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:35 p.m.
I a made a similar comment to the following a few minutes ago but it was deleted along with the rest of the thread. Most cars do not come to a complete stop at stops signs, either. Not unless they actually see a vehicle or pedestrian in the way. A frequent comment after a crash caused by the failure to stop is the driver simply didn't see the other vehicle or pedestrian. Just for fun, I counted on my way into work into work this morning. 12 cars and 1 work truck at stop signs with nothing visible in their way. Only 3 cars came to a complete stop. The other 10 rolled right on through without stopping. "Creeping up" at stops signs and lights is actually legal unless the cyclist crosses a solid yellow or white line. Pretty much everywhere it's legal for a car to "creep up" on a bicycle, it's legal for a bicycle to "creep up" on a car. That said, it's pointless for a bicycle to pass a car at a stop only to have the car immediately re-pass the bicycle after the stop. For that reason I usually just wait in line behind the cars in front of me. I do make exceptions from time to time, e.g. I've crept up to tell three different drivers that they had a brake light out. Cyclists running red lights is a problem. Most cars will run a red that's changing over from yellow but most won't run a light that's been red for more than 5 seconds or so. Some cyclists will blatantly run a red light and that's a bad behavior. However not all cyclists do that. E.g. just this morning at the corner of Washington and Fifth Ave I saw three other cyclists. All four of us were stopped and waited for the light to change.
LaMusica
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:12 p.m.
Yes! I constantly see cyclists not following the rules of the road. I have been nearly run down by cyclists numerous times because they were riding on the sidewalks (it's really bad on Ashley), see them run stop signs or red lights even, and riding the wrong way. Drivers have to be responsible and be aware of cyclists on the roads, but if cyclists want to "share the road" they need to follow the rules as well.
Dog Guy
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 1:07 p.m.
At 11p.m. they will hang bicycles on cars and drive home satisfied.
Billy
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 12:34 p.m.
Heh...nice route....but you should have taken broadway ALLLLL the way up....heh.
Local Yocal
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:31 p.m.
Was biking past a spinning class on Ann St ( across form the Children.s Museum ). I'm thinking, just spin all the way up Broadway several times for a real workout
a2cents
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 12:29 p.m.
But Madison is all torn up and one-way westbound...
David Frye
Thu, Aug 22, 2013 : 2:08 a.m.
The sidewalk isn't in much better shape than the street. Even before they officially tore up the street, it was in such bad shape that I would take Jefferson over Madison any day.
Ryan J. Stanton
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:51 p.m.
Yeah, they might have to ride on the sidewalk there.
TheDiagSquirrel
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 11:52 a.m.
Will they actually stop at stop signs and red lights?
leaguebus
Thu, Aug 22, 2013 : 2:07 a.m.
Well, when a cyclist runs a red light and gets hit by a car, the car does not go to the hospital with life threatening injuries. I have ridden daily for over 30 years and in the last few years, car drivers have gotten much more aggressive. What peeves me the most are the guys that want to turn right on red. Most of them will roll over the stop lines on the pavement and sit halfway around the corner waiting for traffic to clear. If I am on my bike, I never really know if that person turning red sees me or not. I behave as if he doesn't see me, but this is just wrong. I was actually honked at in my car behind me in the northbound right lane on Stadium at Jackson because I did not go right on red. Of course I pointed at the no turn sigh, but then they flashed their lights and beeped. An idiot behind the wheel of a car is much more dangerous than an idiot on a bike.
John
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 1:58 p.m.
Well, for what its worth, most cars don't stop at stop signs, either. Not unless they see another vehicle or a pedestrian in the way. Just for fun I counted on my way into work this morning. 12 cars and 1 work truck at stop signs with nothing in their way. Only 3 cars came to a complete stop. The other 10 vehicles rolled right on through without stopping. Stop lights are a different story. A majority of cars will run a red light changing over from yellow but most won't run a light that's been red for more than 5 seconds or so. Some cyclists do run red lights and that's a real bad behavior. However by no means do all cyclists run red lights. E.g. at the corner of Washington and Fifth Ave this morning I saw three other cyclists. All four of us were stopped and waited for the light to change.
Billy
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 12:37 p.m.
No he didn't miss it...but he understands that a LOT of bicyclists DO miss that part and was curious.
Bob Zuruncol
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 12:32 p.m.
TheDiagSquirrel, You probably missed that part in the headline about " promote safe bicycling" and further down in the body of the text: "Marshals are expected to ensure that riders are compliant with all traffic laws — obeying traffic lights, and only riding two abreast."
BernieP
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 12:28 p.m.
A good night to make observations; say at the corners at the Co-Op or Zingerman's. Get a coffee, sit back and enjoy.
smokeblwr
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 11:26 a.m.
So how will all these bikers get home in the dark after drinking at the bar?
David
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 5:28 p.m.
Riding a bike while drunk is not illegal in Michigan, and it shouldn't be. At least not to the same degree that driving while drunk is. Driving while drunk is illegal because you are operating a machine that could kill other people while incapacitated, not because commuting while drunk is illegal. A drunk biker isn't likely to kill someone. That being said, biking while drunk is still a stupid idea, and being drunk in public is illegal.
Brad
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 2:36 p.m.
Surely they will have designated bikers.
aabikes
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 12:27 p.m.
How do drivers get home in the dark after drinking at the bar?
MyOpinion
Wed, Aug 21, 2013 : 12:10 p.m.
It's called BUIs.