BIKEPGH MESSAGE BOARD ARCHIVE

All their polls are clickbait, but this one is particularly leading: "Do you think it is a prudent use of resources for the city and Allegheny County to limit vehicular traffic on bridges and roadways year round for seasonal street biking?"

The radio version has a paragraph ahead of what they have on the website. I'll see if I can get a recording of it and transcribe it here. As of 8:30, it's about 9:1 against cyclists. *begins counting bean hills*

Full text of the radio poll: "Penn Avenue has become the spine of the on-street biking network that links the city's riverside to commercial and cultural areas downtown. The network also includes bike lanes on several bridges and outlining neighborhood roads. During the recent storm and frigid wind chills, those bike lanes were snow covered and abandoned by all but the most extreme cyclists. So today, we are asking: Do you think it is a prudent use of resources for the city and Allegheny County to limit vehicular traffic on bridges and roadways year-round for seasonal street biking? To vote yes call 412-333-9190. To vote no call 412-333-9192."

Ya know, when I-80 becomes nearly impassable due to weather conditions, I rather doubt there's many people asking if maintaining it is a prudent use of resources.

What's a "KQV"?

Turns out their IT isn't that sophisticated. I set up an auto-clicker and we're currently at 1:8 and rising.

Poll is now at 79% against 21% for. Just amazing how supportive Pittsburghers are of bike lanes, even with the leading question.

I love push polls.

I'll get final numbers in the morning, but the online results were 28% for, 72% against. I'm sure the anti- crowd has a few automated dialers in play, too. Some mornings they have 400 calls by 7:30 a.m., other mornings more like 100 total. Can't all be actual listeners with a variation like that. I've noticed that their Sunday question tends to be more of a chain-yanker, click-baiter, than some other days, often on a religious theme, so I was surprised to see bikes make the Sunday question.

I worked for KQV in college. They're old, conservative, curmudgeonly car-culture people. I wouldn't stress out about it.

It's amusing. The poll ended up I think 84-16, because somebody else started up an auto-clicker (or similar technology) on the other side after I went to bed (it was 72-28 at that time). The total number of votes from auto-clickers far exceeded anything else. So it's not even a question of it being an "unscientific poll" with a leading question -- what they're reporting is whatever somebody with an auto-clicker decides to do.

I'm wondering if the jump in numbers was when they added in the phoned-in votes to the Interwebs votes.

Nah, auto-clickers rule. Jon: next time, post your code. That way we can all share in the fun. Maybe even have KQV reconsider their whole "voting" thing. [BTW, the P-G does the same kind of thing. Especially for their favorite "causes".]

What ALMKLM said.