OnFootBlog.com

I’m going to stop posting on here for a long while. Possibly forever.

When I first started this site, my employer was the Annapolis Capital, a wonderful paper that (at the time) had no running or transportation blogs. Now, however, I work for the Baltimore Sun, which within the last year has launched both a wonderful transportation blog and, more recently, a very nice running section. Since these vastly outdo my blog in terms of quality and quantity, I’m happy to say that it’s now quite redundant.

That said, I’d still love to see you at a Friday meetup, as those will continue.

September 9 was planned as a big day for Dubai.

The government folks in Dubai were set to launch both a new record-holding skyscraper and a major piece of the transit system today.

And then they weren’t set to launch them both anymore after all.

But it still looks like it’s going to be a nice rail system, complete with wi-fi and other splendid tricks. It should go a long way toward repairing a perceived weakness in the city, which has long been viewed as less pedestrian-friendly than some other cosmopolitan metros. Details on the new trains can be found here.

I tend to be skeptical whenever I hear the phrase “nine out of ten.” I think many other people are too. If you can’t quote me a percent, I would rather just hear that, for example “more than 80% of surveyed people chose brand X.”

With that skeptical prelude out of the way, let it be noted that the American Public Transportation Association sent a release today saying that nine out of ten transit agencies are raising fares. The release goes on to say the usual stuff — government should spend more to fund a public service that’s every bit as necessary as publicly funded roads, transit riders are being punished for making a responsible choice, bla bla bla.

While I agree with a lot of that stuff, there must be some way of getting a bit more out of existing transit budgets. Some smarties out there must know a few dozen ways.

To get the ball rolling, here’s a freebie: For those systems that still use paper passes, put a box in each bus or train car offering a chance at a free weekly pass in exchange for a little personal data and some purchase preferences on the back of a used bus card*. That data can then be used by marketers who pay for the data (and by the transit agency, which can target information at tough-to-reach riders). This avoids an Orwellian slippery slope by keeping the information collection voluntary and meatspace-based while also vastly improving the audience figures that advertisers can get — a big step up from the simple, impression-based “eyeballs for cash” model that most transit systems use for bus-side and shelter advertising.

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*Note: I fully realize how ironic it is that I start this post by trashing selective research, then flip around and encourage selective research. But if companies are willing to pay for it, this scheme might be worth a try, especially if it saves a transit route or two from cancellation.

Here are some choices for this week:

What I’ll be doing: The Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile & 5K in Washington could be interesting.

Other options: A chance to go to Wilmington, DE, along with nearly a dozen other events.

In the future: Some very short races in interesting settings.

As always, you can see a full list of upcoming road races, transit events, training rides, walks, and runs via the on-foot calendar of events.

Oranges are for eating.

http://www.instantriverside.com/riverside-ca-news/trio-suspected-of-throwing-oranges-at-pedestrians/2009/03/26/

The Baltimore Sun’s Michael Dresser writes today about bike parking in an old car parking spot by Johns Hopkins:

The city has replaced one parking space for cars in the 3100 block of St. Paul St. with racks that can accommodate 10-12 bikes. Mayor Sheila Dixon, whose administration is seeking to encourage bicycle use, is expected to take part in the opening.

The article goes on to mention that more conversions are planned. It also says that focusing on bike parking is especially popular in cities like Portland, New York and Seattle. View the whole article here.

No word yet on whether the endposts on future conversions will be in interesting shapes.

Here are some choices for this week:

What I’ll be doing: Perhaps cheering people on at the Suntrust National Marathon. That sort of depends on whether anyone I know is running in it.

Other options: Races in Walkersville and Hampstead, among other places.

In the future: Another chance to race on the NCR trail.

As always, you can see a full list of upcoming road races, transit events, training rides, walks, and runs via the on-foot calendar of events.

As I write this, I am inflated with the happy bloativity of too much spiced sausage, meaning that any sort of physical activity at all is very unattractive.

That said, I figure I should start planning ahead a bit more for my weekends, now that the season for outdoor activies is getting closer. So here are a few choices:

Nearby: The Howard County Striders are putting on the rrca challenge this Sunday, which at 10 miles should offer a nice chance for marathon and half-marathon runners to blow off some steam.

Farther out: On Saturday, the Frostbite 5-Miler makes its way through Ambler, PA.   It’s a bit of a trip, but handy if you’re out there anyway.

Other options: There are a handful of other events — all running/walking (sorry, no bike stuff) — on my calendar for this weekend. Many of the most interesting appear to be in Virginia, and most of those are links from the Run Washington calendar.

What I’ll be doing: Probably not much. Maybe a training run, plus some walking to and from the grocery store.

In the future: The marathon (and half-marathon) on the old Baltimore and Annapolis Trail is what I’m personally excited about next week, but there’s plenty of other stuff too. E-mail me something!

As always, you can see a full list of upcoming transit events, races, training rides, walks, and runs via the on-foot calendar of events.

Montgomery County has come out in favor of light rail rather than RTB service for their long-debated Washington-area, suburb-to-suburb connector.

This is a big step toward getting light rail service between Bethesda and New Carrolton, and bloggers have wasted no time speaking up. DCmud and The City Fix have already weighed in.

While it’s not heavy rail like the Dulles extension, it’s at least a start.

It’s taken awhile for me to come around to the idea of marathons as more than just big races, but I’m starting to see how an event with thousands of people can become a celebration of community — even if it’s an event full of sweaty, fast-moving people.

Baltimore’s decision to have a “running festival” seemed silly to me at first, but as I watched the way that fans, families and post-race runners brought life to usually-dead-on-Saturday streets last month, I was sold. I wish I could have seen how the Washington event staffers did at leveraging the race.

Now Philadelphia does their version. From the Inquirer:

With runners competing from across the United States and more than 30 countries, officials decided to highlight Philadelphia as a destination for marathon weekend, offering Marathon Fan Shopping Passes with 15 percent shopping discounts at businesses along the route.

If this type of thing becomes truly routine, you might start seeing smaller cities jump into the marathon circuit — especially at a time when people aren’t shopping as much. Volunteers at water stands are cheap, but getting eyeballs into your store can be quite expensive. It’s definitely something for folks in places like my hometown of Lansing to mull over.