Letters to the editor

From a Concerned Drinker

As we approach this so-called "Summer of Lush" ("The Summer Guide 2007," May 16-22), I would like to warn readers of a dangerous virus infecting bars across the globe: the digital jukebox.

As I entered what used to be one of my favorite pubs, Shakespeare's, I was appalled to discover that they had replaced their top-notch jukebox with a digital. Now, for fifty cents a song, you can choose from an insufficient list of "hits" by artists ranging from Christina Aguilera to Matchbox Twenty to Trapt.

Radical!

Or, you have the option of downloading songs for your playlist, at an unholy rate of one dollar per song.

May I ask who is befitting from the asininity of this new device? It isn't the consumer, who is forced to shell out 10 bucks just to choose a handful of songs. And it sure isn't the bartenders, who are forced to hear shitty song after shitty song.

What happened to the old jukebox, the one that contained records and compact disks that reflected the character and individuality of a bar? You know, the jukebox that distinguished Shakespeare's from other dismal venues. Now, Shakespeare's is just as unoriginal as other lackluster bars like the Sports Page or Ale House.

Yet this digital phenomenon is continuing, and we are forced to subject ourselves to poor music selections at horrible rates.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I've saved up 20 dollars in quarters this week and I have to rush down to Smoking Joe's to beat out the guy who plays nothing but Saliva and Creed.

Andrew Bailes, Sarasota

Fruitville For Everyone

As gas prices continue their relentless march toward inflation-adjusted record highs, we can only hope that Sarasota will eventually join the conversation on how to kick our oil addiction. There are countless alternatives to explore -- better hybrids, improved public transportation, a Segway for everyone -- but I would like to discuss the humble option that most of us have used since we were wee little children: the bicycle.

I am a bike commuter. I bike to work. I bike to the beach. I bike to bars. I bike everywhere. It's fun and -- contrary to popular belief -- it's safe. Plus it's cheap: No gas, no oil changes, no shady mechanics. Pretty cost effective when you think about it.

In a time when global warming has assumed boogey-man status, you would think Sarasota would be encouraging this transportation alternative (especially after endorsing the US Mayor's Climate Protection Agreement in April). Unfortunately, the City is making it harder to leave your car at home. As part of a Fruitville Road "pedestrian sleeve" reconstruction project, the city is slated to remove the bike lanes from Fruitville Road between U.S. 41 and U.S. 301.

The plan in a nutshell: Improve pedestrian crossings along Fruitville by adding countdown pedestrian signals, better lighting and fancy crosswalk stripes. With some encouragement from the Downtown Partnership, they'll expand the sidewalks to make room for lights, trees and other aesthetic enhancements.

This last part is where taxpayers get to spend $4 million to move the sidewalk curbs over -- over the bike lane, that is. I can see the ill-considered rationale behind this: that no one uses the bike lanes, and that these bike lanes are unsafe because they are on such a busy road.

Obviously bike commuters are not the ones behind the drawing board here.

I use that stretch everyday on my way to work, and I know a number of other folks who use it too. Fruitville's fast and straight and convenient for cyclists, just as it is for drivers.

The safety argument is what's really critical to this issue. Bike lanes are perfectly safe on a 35 mph road, and police data shows that the Fruitville lanes are very safe (and safer than the sidewalks, where cyclists are often hit by cars turning or leaving driveways).

City officials want to move the "bike route" to Sixth Street, where traffic moves slower and is thus hypothetically safer. This is untrue; roadways with bike lanes are the safest facility for cyclists to use. And by switching to Sixth Street, cyclists will lose a signalized intersection where they can cross 301. At Sixth Street they'll have to fend for themselves. Homework assignment for city public works staff: Go cross 301 at Sixth street at 9 a.m. and let me know how safe you feel. While the city plans to add a "safety zone" (essentially a raised chunk of concrete where the suicide lane -- aka the median -- is now), there's no plan to add a light, so the danger remains the same.

This is an important issue for bike commuters. It's dangerous for city staff to argue that biking on Sixth Street will be as safe as using the bike lane currently striped on Fruitville Road, especially without much verifiable data. Fruitville should safely serve all users, and the current proposal puts an important group at much greater risk.

If you're tired of enriching Exxon, et al. and you want alternatives, call the Commissioners at 954-4115. Tell them to improve Sarasota's bike facilities, not remove them, and keep the bike lanes on Fruitville.

Alex Krieg, member, Alliance for Responsible Transportation, Sarasota

Pissed? Happy? Melancholy? Sound off to max@creativeloafing.com.