Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Ghost Bikes

Friday Video: How (and Why) To Paint a Ghost Bike

Roadside memorials can make the human costs of our traffic violence crisis visible — at least until someone tears them down. That's why filmmaker made it his mission to restore two ghost bikes that had vanished from Boston roads.

Roadside memorials to victims of traffic violence are an unfortunately common sight across America. Even more unfortunately, though, those altars are often removed by people who don't understand their importance to the people left grieving — and to advocates who refuse to allow the deadly impacts of car culture to be erased from the public realm.

Bostonian filmmaker Matt Ognibene made it his quest to restore two of his city's lost "ghost bikes," and help preserve the memory of two cyclists who were taken too soon. And he also included a handy how-to for anyone else who wants to call attention to the deadly roads where their neighbors were killed, and the slain riders whose stories deserve to be told.

Give it a watch, and check out our past coverage of the roadside memorial movement, including a 2022 interview with historian and author Peter Norton.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Could Refurbished E-Bikes Be the Secret Weapon of the Livable Streets Movement?

A high-quality used market could be the boost America needs to get would-be riders off the sidelines and into the saddle, a new report argues.

March 3, 2026

How the ‘Little Free Pantry’ Can Help Feed the Hungry Without Requiring Them to Drive

Researchers are trying to reduce the mobility barrier to food by bringing it directly to neighborhoods.

March 3, 2026

Monday’s Headlines Took the Keys Away

A demographic disaster is coming as a generation of aging suburbanites become either dangerous drivers or trapped in their homes.

March 2, 2026

Why Anti-Trans Laws Are Terrible For Transportation, Too

A disturbing new Kansas law revokes trans people's driver's licenses. Here's how it will make our communities more dangerous.

March 2, 2026

Sunbelt Cities Rank Last in National Street Safety Index

Cars and drivers continue to dominate the newest and sunniest cities in the United States.

March 2, 2026

Mass. ‘Micromobility’ Commission Recommends Improved Classification, Regulation of Motorbikes and Scooters

Among other recommendations, the commission supports expanding bikeshare systems and other micromobility options as a safer, less expensive, and more efficient alternative to driving.

February 27, 2026
See all posts