Bike 'ambassadors' push safer conduct in New York

For the past three months, the New York advocacy group Transportation Alternatives has sent a dozen "bicycle ambassadors" onto the streets of the city. "There, they politely chased and persuaded cyclists and pedestrians to sign a pledge promising to be responsible riders," The New York Times reports.

The paper says "the ambassadors have persuaded roughly 13,000 people to sign the pledge that calls for cyclists to support responsible riding, bike lanes and a public bike-sharing program. They have distributed more than 12,000 biking rules pamphlets in English, Chinese and Spanish, and persuaded some New Yorkers not to ride on sidewalks or into oncoming traffic."