Florida city sets up rainbow bike racks after being forced to remove Pride crossings
The bike racks were installed in response to the removal of Pride crossings (@stpetfl on Instagram)
The bike racks were installed in response to the removal of Pride crossings (@stpetfl on Instagram)
A city in the US state of Florida has installed rainbow-coloured bike racks after it was forced to remove Pride crossings.
In recent months, several cities across the Sunshine state have been forced to paint over Pride crossings under directives issued by the Trump administration and Republican governor – and failed US presidential candidate – Ron DeSantis.
DeSantis, who is well-known for enacting anti-LGBTQ+ policies, signed a law in July which directed the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) “to ensure compliance with FDOT’s uniform system for traffic control devices”, with the state’s transport department stating: “Non-standard surface markings, signage, and signals that do not directly contribute to traffic safety or control can lead to distractions or misunderstandings, jeopardizing both driver and pedestrian safety.”
This came after the US’s transport secretary Sean Duffy penned a letter to all 50 US states alongside DC and Puerto Rico in which he claimed rainbow crossings “distract” drivers, saying in a statement: “Roads are for safety, not political messages or artwork.”
This included the removal of a rainbow crosswalk in Miami Beach and the memorial rainbow crossing outside the site of Pulse nightclub in Orlando, where 49 people were killed in an anti-LGBTQ+ mass shooting in 2016, being painted over.
Locals have protested the erasure of the Pride crossings by re-colouring them using chalk, which has led to arrests.
In response, city of St. Petersburg, located in the Tampa Bay area, has installed Pride-inspired bike racks, with the city’s mayor Ken Welch writing in a joint Instagram post with the city’s official account that it is “a vibrant way to honor the Pride street murals that were removed earlier this year due to state requirements”.
“Pride on the streets! We’ve just installed 11 Pride-inspired bike racks along Central Ave and 25th St — a vibrant way to honour the Pride street murals that were removed earlier this year due to state requirements,” the post read, alongside a video of the racking being installed.
“These racks were funded through the City’s long-standing public bike rack program.”
Welch’s Chief of Staff, Jordan Doyle Walsh, told city council members in an email seen by Florida Politics that the bike racks are just one of the actions the mayor’s administration will take in response to the rainbow crossings’ erasure.
“We were excited that there was consensus around one of the Administration’s proposed actions discussed during the previous (Committee of the Whole) meeting and other forums regarding City and community response,” Walsh stated in the email.
“We intend that this small gesture of inclusion and celebration will be a symbol of our resolve to not be silenced.
“We thank City Council for supporting and collaborating on this effort and we look forward to working with you and the community as we move forward together.”
It is a myth that rainbow crossings distract drivers, with those opposed also claiming that the colourful road markings could cause someone to have an epileptic seizure.
Back in 2023, the team behind UK charity Epilepsy Action told PinkNews three in 100 people with epilepsy have photosensitive epilepsy and within this group some are affected by “high-contrasting striped patterns” which “can be a trigger for their seizures”.
A spokesperson for Epilepsy Action similarly pointed out that standard zebra crossings “use high-contrasting black and white striped patterns”, although the charity is not aware of any cases of these triggering a seizure.
“We are also not aware of any cases where pride flags/stripes have caused a problem for people with photosensitive epilepsy,” they added.
