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Only On 9: Activist, 11, Wants To Remind Drivers They Share The Road With Bicyclists

SILVER LAKE (CBSLA.com) — An 11-year-old who rides his bike to get to and from school says he's fed up with drivers who treat him rudely.

Matlock Grossman wants to remind drivers they share the road.

It's a story that is Only On 9.

Adrianna Weingold reports Matlock is one very independent kid.

He rides his bike 5 miles from his home in Silver Lake to school in Glendale. He's done this for the past four years, no less.

Grossman told Weingold he's fed up with the rudeness.

"It's scary to have motorists who some are purposely aiming their car at you who hate you, who yell obscenities at you," said Matlock.

His frustration has grown so bad he took his concerns to the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council. On Monday night, he got to address the crowd.

The meeting was centered on a stretch of Rowena that used to be two lanes in each direction but is now one lane in each direction.

The city specifically added a turn lane and bike lanes for pedestrian safety after a young woman was struck and killed while crossing the street in 2012

But some residents say the changes pushed drivers off the main road and on to residential streets. They want the two lanes back.

"It's terrible because it's more slow, it's more slow and more difficult for everyone here in the area," said resident Romann Barjau.

Barjau wasn't at Monday's meeting when Matlock voiced his concerns. The young activist says it was his idea to speak at the meeting. He said his parents actually made him tone down his comments.

"They think that they're never the problem, and it's always cyclists and most of the time it's actually the motorists and the drivers who are the problem," Matlock said.

He is so passionate about cycling safety that he plans to run for neighborhood council as soon as he's old enough, and he told Weingold his priority will be to lobby for even more bike lanes across the city.

Matlock also says he plans to run for mayor of Los Angeles when he grows up.

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