some good numbers about bicycle sales

[nathank]

well, there's a collection of three short writeups on the Sierra Club website from October 2002 about the "Two-Wheeled World"... http://www.sierraclub.org/currents/bike_news.asp

Sales of SUBS [sport utility bicycles] are on the rise, having enjoyed a seven-percent spike since last year.

The spike in bike sales is not limited to the United States. According to Lester Brown of the Earth Policy Institute, the year 2000 saw world bicycle production climb to 101 million, surpassing by more than double the 41 million cars that rolled off the assembly line in the same year.

The reason is simple enough. As author John Ryan notes, only about 10 percent of the world's population can afford a car versus the 80 percent that can afford a bike.

[aerobat]

Good news! Now if more of that will translate into actual use of bikes, particularly instead of vehicle usage, we'll really have something.

I've been disapointed to not see much in the news surrounding the Kyoto accord about creating more opportunities for cycling to help alleviate fossil fuel burning.

[Pete Clark]

{Quote}
"The reason is simple enough. As author John Ryan notes, only about 10 percent of the world's population can afford a car versus the 80 percent that can afford a bike."

Compare to driving a doggone car, riding a bike is almost free...

(I've been longing to give payback for all those years of being soaked financially just for the right to go somewhere.)