Commuting - What if...

The thread "Why am I alone" sparked my memory. I was riding the other day, shopping or some such thing, and was being passed by steel coffins, real close. And I had to wonder how many of these nuts were just going 1 or 2 miles, like to Targets, or Wal Marts, and then home, a 4 mile round trip. They were in their SUVs, and carelessly, haphazardly driving. I thought of the news item about the lawyers suing the fast food industry for making Big Macs and fries so delisious their client was unable not to eat the stuff. Then the question escaped my lips, and although no one was there to hear it or answer it, it then became my thought for the ride.

"What would it be like if these nuts would ride to Target and the grocery store? How many of these short little trips would help battle their weight problem? How much gas was wasted on these short trips?"

Yeah, I know not everyone can ride a bike. But there is the alternative there. I wonder how many walk right by a bike in the garage without even thinking twice about it, and climb in that SUV and head off? I wonder how many would benefit from the excersize.

Fortunately they chose to drive that day, it meant I didn't have to share the road with chuckle heads in Lance outfits. At least in an SUV they get out of your way quicker.

I feel the same way. Don't get me wrong, I'm not anti-car. There are many practical uses for them, like hauling a bunch of stuff or kids. It's just there are so many cars. Then, I look and see that hardly any cars have more than one person in them. Then I think about the car payment. OUCH! Then I think about our dependance on foreign oil. Then I forget it all and just keep riding. I am thankful for emission laws. The occasional diesel spouting exhaust in my face is a reminder of that. Imagine if EVERY car smelled like that.

I do see hope though. There have been quite a few places I've visited that now have bike lanes. I usually don't see people on them, but I'm sure it has gotten a few more people on bikes.

The funny thing is that after the "recession" began, I thought people would turn to bikes as an alternative mode of transportation. After talking to a few of the LBS, my theory was dead-wrong. If anything, bike sales went down.:confused:

But, for the meantime, I'll just keep riding. When my fellow co-workers ask questions, I'll see it as an opportunity to recruit a few others into the cult.

Originally posted by danr
The funny thing is that after the "recession" began, I thought people would turn to bikes as an alternative mode of transportation. After talking to a few of the LBS, my theory was dead-wrong. If anything, bike sales went down.:confused:


It's not really a surprise. For some reason, commuting and such just don't seem sexy enough for most bike manufacturers. They only seem interested in the "sport" of cycling. As a consequence, most people, having been influenced by this marketing, only see the bike as a toy that they might use to get fit one day. They just don't see it as a viable form of transport that could save them lots of money.

Excesses, Naisme, excesses. This is the era of having everything, wanting nothing and being wasteful, at least on the surface.

It is unpleasant to look deep enough down to see that all that glitters is not gold.

Being into my second year of full time commuting there are some things that have become evident.

The majority of 2 - 3 mile trips are unnecessary or could be combined into a single trip with just an iota of planning.

There is no good reason to accelerate up to a stop sign or red light.

Energy supplies are finite, whether it be mine or the worlds, so I conserve by giving thought to when and how to expend my supply.

I see a parallel situation being played out this year. The area I live in is experiencing the worst drought since 1988 and getting water from the well is giving some people trouble. Yet many don't realize, until the well has run dry, that maybe watering the lawn for hours each day isn't the best use of their available resources. Those on the municipal supply have seen the rates paid for water more than double over the last few years (with another rate increase announced just recently) as the city tries to discourage wastefulness and plans for the increasing cost of providing water in the future.

Still I'm betting these same clueless people won't draw a correlation.

Another issue with these short car trips is engine damage. It is really bad for your car to drive it a short distance because the engine doesn't warm up completely.

Originally posted by threadend
I see a parallel situation being played out this year. The area I live in is experiencing the worst drought since 1988 and getting water from the well is giving some people trouble. Yet many don't realize, until the well has run dry, that maybe watering the lawn for hours each day isn't the best use of their available resources. Those on the municipal supply have seen the rates paid for water more than double over the last few years (with another rate increase announced just recently) as the city tries to discourage wastefulness and plans for the increasing cost of providing water in the future.


Here on the Gold Coast we are 18 months into our worst drought ever. Like you said, people don't think before using the water. The thing is, running out of water won't make them think about their habits - they'll just demand the local council do something about it (as is going on over here right now). We have a farcical situation where people are saying "build another dam". Oh yeah? And fill it with what exactly?

Originally posted by Chris L
...We have a farcical situation where people are saying "build another dam". Oh yeah? And fill it with what exactly? Water, of course. What's to say that the drought situation you're experiencing today will persist next year? And won't it make you look silly if you avoided today the very remedy that will make the next drought more sustainable?

You're obviously facing a dearth of supply in the face of presumed consistent or possibly inccreasing demand. Are you arguing that we should cut demand or increase supply?

Originally posted by naisme
"What would it be like if these nuts would ride to Target and the grocery store? How many of these short little trips would help battle their weight problem? How much gas was wasted on these short trips?"
Naisme,

How long, how long?

:(

Originally posted by Andy Dreisch
Water, of course. What's to say that the drought situation you're experiencing today will persist next year? And won't it make you look silly if you avoided today the very remedy that will make the next drought more sustainable?

You're obviously facing a dearth of supply in the face of presumed consistent or possibly inccreasing demand. Are you arguing that we should cut demand or increase supply?

I disagree. For one thing, there has never been a drought here as bad as the one that is being experienced now. This is based on freakish weather conditions. It's also brought on by the fact that none of the houses around here actually have their own water tanks, which, in itself, is a massive piece of stupidity.

The other thing is, of course, that reducing water demand around here would actually be very easy. Most of the water use comes from people watering their lawns/gardens. Doing this in the middle of the day causes 80% of it to be lost in evaporation. If people used their brains and actually waited until 7pm to do this, the water consumption around here would plummet dramatically.

I have to agree about the planning. If I'm going to bother dragging my whale of an Oldsmobile out onto the city streets, I spend a couple minutes thinking about a sensible itinerary. I can go about two months on 18 gallons of gasoline most of the time.

Going shopping on a bicycle does present some challenges, however. How many bags of groceries can your SUV driver haul on a bicycle? Be fair :)

Fair yes but the he is still right there are to many people out there using their cars when there are viable alternitives to driving. I can do a quick trip to the grocery store faster on my bike than in the car yet my neighbors always drive no mater how much they are buying. We are even ckose enough to walk. The point her also should be it is that mentalty that is costing society the most in health (stress, obesity, out of shape) taxes (roads, freeways, police to enforce the laws, DOT workers to maintain, all the infrastructure it takes to keep it all going) to enviromental( it is a huge waste of a non renwable resource, the polution the green house affetct, droughts hmmm) it just boils down to a huge waste, I don't hate cars and I do have one but even living 30 miles from work I can get to and from by using my cycle and a bus, and leave the vehiclke for fun. It has saved me a ton of money of the years and at 46 I can pretty much eat what ever I want :beer:

Originally posted by Chris L

The other thing is, of course, that reducing water demand around here would actually be very easy. Most of the water use comes from people watering their lawns/gardens. Doing this in the middle of the day causes 80% of it to be lost in evaporation. If people used their brains and actually waited until 7pm to do this, the water consumption around here would plummet dramatically.

In East Anglia, we once had water shortages because of leaky transportation systems. We had a hosepipe ban for about 3 years, which stopped people watering their gardens unless they used watering cans, or just hosing their cars down etc. Now most people are on water meters, like their gas meters. And in theory they've fixed the leaky water systems! :rolleyes:

Ellie

Seems to me people always get by, doing what ever it takes to
solve a problem.

If I had to use my bike instead of my car to go shopping, I'd probably use a trailer.

I think most of the excuses we give for driving are simply a matter of convenience. Who wants to arrive at a cold grocery store all sweaty? Who wants to drag a heavy load in the heat, or cold? Who wants to take the extra time to cycle instead of drive? All these things seem against using the bike, but all can be surmounted.

In the end, the "hinderances" to shopping or commuting on a bicycle are never as bad as they seem. In fact, I consider the challenges an adventure, something I choose to spice up my life.
The hardships people put up with when camping or bicycle touring
only seem to make these activities more fun.

Originally posted by naisme
T"What would it be like if these nuts would ride to Target and the grocery store? How many of these short little trips would help battle their weight problem? "


Hey, I like Lance!

But anyway: I agree with you. If they did, things would be a lot better. In many ways.

Originally posted by mechBgon
..... Going shopping on a bicycle does present some challenges, however. How many bags of groceries can your SUV driver haul on a bicycle? Be fair :)

With a bit of creativity, I can stack approx. 5 paper bags (traditional large size, well stuffed), or approx. 15 plastic bags) in a full set of panniers. My point of comparison is that I can fill, but not overfill, the grocery cart. This works well for a bit more than a week for a family of four... BTW, don't try that with a skinny racing bike, but carrying 40-50 kg of grocery is ok on a touring bike.

If I use the children trailer, I can carry still a bit more. Hills command real low gears, however...

Regards,

really, most people are just not in tune with their bodies enough to know that there can be an efficient way of losing weight. i think that people of any age say to themselves....well, i'm fat... or - i'm middle age, what did you expect?!

i see guys guts all the time and wonder: that took years of cultivating. at some point, having 25 lbs in front of you in your gut must be a burden, no?

people don't want to expend the energy, but i am only on my bike for a couple of hours on most days....the energy savings during real life just in being fit far outweighs (haha) the effort put forth on the bike.