Damien Newton
Recent Posts
DamienTalks 40 – Brown’s Housing Legislation with Jason Islas
| | No Comments
Today, #DamienTalks with Jason Islas, the editor of Santa Monica Next. This podcast featured Islas a couple of months ago to discuss a proposal by Assemblymember Richard Bloom to make it easier to build more housing. The spirit of Bloom’s proposal lives on in a rider to the California Budget by Governor Jerry Brown. Islas […]
#DamienTalksSGV 11 – Metro, Cacciotti and 626 Golden Streets
| | No Comments
UPDATE VIA BIKE SGV, JUNE 23 : BREAKING NEWS: #626GoldenStreets POSTPONED for a future date given unfavorable conditions due to San Gabriel Valley Complex Fire ??? Please be advised: Openstreets and all activities planned for #626GoldenStreets will no longer be held this Sunday. Thank You to all those who ALMOST made this truly special event […]
#StreetsR4Families- The Los Angeles River Ride
| | No Comments
Yesterday was the 16th Annual Los Angeles River Ride. The River Ride serves the three-part purpose of fundraiser for the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition (LACBC), tour of the L.A. River, and a group ride that brings together hundreds of bicyclists. After missing the ride for a couple of years due to my vacation plans, […]
#DamienTalksSGV 10 – David Diaz and Viva SGV
| | No Comments
This week, #DamienTalks with David Diaz (again), the Programs Director for Bike SGV about this weekend’s two-city open streets event, Viva SGV! The cities of El Monte and South El Monte have worked together to program a 5-mile open streets event that will run this Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. While the event […]
Review: The Expo Phase II Bike Path Is Going to Be Great…
| | 12 Comments
…if they ever finish it. Advocates for a bicycle path to run parallel to the recently-opened Phase II of the Expo Light Rail Line have long contended that the Exposition Construction Authority viewed the fully-funded separated bike path as an afterthought. Maybe they were right. The bike path, which officially opened with the rail line […]
#DamienTalksSGV 9: Nancy Bond of Move Monrovia
| | 1 Comment
This week, #DamienTalksSGV with Nancy Bond of Move Monrovia. Move Monrovia was originally formed to help the city plan for the Gold Line Station that opened earlier this year. However, the citizen’s group has continued to grow and has become instrumental in pushing the city to embrace infrastructure improvements to create safer avenues for walking and […]
#StreetsR4Families – Preparing Livable Streets Presentations for Kindergartners and Pre-Schoolers
| | No Comments
Last week, I used the dual media events of Bike Week and the opening of the Expo Line extension to speak at my kids’ schools about Livable Streets issues. Joe and I thought it could make an interesting follow-up to our 2014 guide to planning a Walk/Bike to School Day for a school that does not already […]
Bike to Work Day Open Thread
| | No Comments
Yes, it should be every day, but it’s still fun to get out and cheer on or be cheered on in recognition of the general awesomeness of riding a bike. Also, Bike to Work Day/Week/Month is a great way to get people to try riding. People don’t want to be left out of the fun, […]
#DamienTalksSGV 9 – The State of Bike Planning in the SGV with Wes Reutimann
| | No Comments
This week, #DamienTalks with Wes Reutimann, the executive director of Bike SGV. With Bike Month nearly half over, it seemed as good a time as any to get an update on the state of bicycle advocacy in the San Gabriel Valley. Of course we discuss the open streets mega-event 626, but there’s a lot of […]
#DamienTalksSGV 8 – Roland Cordero and the Foothill Transit E-Bus Program
| | No Comments
Welcome back to #DamienTalks! Today, #DamienTalks with Roland Cordero with Foothill Transit. Did you know Foothill Transit was the first transit agency in the country to have a completely electric bus route? I didn’t. It’s kind of cool. It may have taken eight episodes, but we finally got around to interviewing our sponsor. In recent […]
#DamienTalks 35 – Mike Gatto and Parking Placard Reform
| | No Comments
Parking placard abuse. Arguing for reforms in the placard system is one of the few times parking reformers don’t sound overly wonky to the larger car driving public. In California, one out of every eight drivers has a disabled parking placard, a number which doesn’t correlate to data concerning how many drivers SHOULD have such […]
#DamienTalksSGV 7 – Michael Cacciotti and the 626
| | No Comments
As excitement builds towards the 626, the mammoth car-free festival spanning six cities on, you guessed it, June 26, #DamienTalks with Michael Cacciotti. Cacciotti is the Mayor Pro-Tem of South Pasadena and has been a critical figure in the effort to create the 626 and organize the half-dozen cities that are taking part as well […]