Advocacy & Safety - Best way to get people biking

I just returned from a couple weeks in London. They've really got the right idea there. Here are a few things I saw that we could really use in the US.

1) Bike racks everywhere
2) Bikes can ride in bus lanes and there are many bike lanes
3) Public messages everywhere encouraging people to bike
4) $7/gallon gas
5) "Congestion charge" (i.e. a fee you have to pay just to drive downtown) -- $15/day. There's talk about upping the charge to almost $50/day for gas guzzling SUV's though they are not very popular thanks to the cost of gas
6) Friendly drivers that actually pay attention on the roads.

I wonder if the Londoners on BF know how good they have it.

I'm an engineer. I'm trained to identify problems clearly before jumping to solutions.

The problem we are trying to solve is what? Not enough people taking up cycling? Cyclists not cycling enough?

Whatever it is, we have to look deeper - the root causes for the problems we want to solve.

WHY are more people not taking up cycling?
WHY are cyclists not cycling more?

Is lack of racks really what's keeping a significant number of cyclists from cycling? Maybe, maybe not? Or is there something else?

In short, I think all of your "solutions" address marginal causes of lack of cycling.

I believe, the biggest cause (among those we can do something about, potentially), by far, is the widespread perception that cycling in traffic is inherently too dangerous.

As to 6):
6) Friendly drivers that actually pay attention on the roads.

We already have that. What we don't have is the perception that we have that.

I had a really nice 22 mile ride before I went to fire practice last night. It took me to some of the nicest views of my city that I've ever seen. I had to work my butt off to get to those views, one part with about a 304' climb in 1.86 miles (according to routeslip.com).

When I told one of my friends about that workout for that reward, she got jealous. A bit more raving about that kind of thing and I may have a riding partner!

I did a bit of cycling last July while on vacation in London. I found all drivers including taxis and buses most considerate. However I did not do any riding in the rush hour.
I think more people would cycle if there were better provisions for bikes on buses and trains.

Is lack of racks really what's keeping a significant number of cyclists from cycling? Maybe, maybe not? Or is there something else?

In short, I think all of your "solutions" address marginal causes of lack of cycling.

I believe, the biggest cause (among those we can do something about, potentially), by far, is the widespread perception that cycling in traffic is inherently too dangerous.
I agree it's all petty stuff, but that's what catches peoples' attention

I think people don't ride because they think it's too much bother and they perceive it as being less safe than it is. However, if we had $7/gallon gas, I'll bet a lot more people would think about the real costs of driving and decide that it's convenient and reasonably safe (even though increasing the gas price wouldn't actually affect the price of driving as much as people think).

I have very few problems with drivers, but my biggest fear is distracted drivers which we seem to have a lot of since many people treat their car as a "home away from home". Hostile drivers are annoying, but I don't think they're that dangerous -- they want to scare, not kill you.

"Whatever it is, we have to look deeper - the root causes for the problems we want to solve."

Laziness is the real problem. I think if American cities had all six of the things listed above (plus showers at work and tax breaks for cycling to work) you might get another 2-3 pecent of the country commuting by bike. It is a mindset that we as avid cyclists have that the average person does not. And you can't force them to have it. They have to WANT it. How do you convince them to want it? That is the question.

I had a really nice 22 mile ride before I went to fire practice last night. It took me to some of the nicest views of my city that I've ever seen. I had to work my butt off to get to those views, one part with about a 304' climb in 1.86 miles (according to routeslip.com).

When I told one of my friends about that workout for that reward, she got jealous. A bit more raving about that kind of thing and I may have a riding partner!

And we have a winner! Enthusiasm about our sport/transport will go much much further to getting more involved than anything I can think of. I do this all the time, and know for a fact that I have convinced many people to at least start cycling (and one person, damn him, now puts way more km on his bike a year than I do! curses!)

I just returned from a couple weeks in London. They've really got the right idea there. Here are a few things I saw that we could really use in the US.

1) Bike racks everywhere
2) Bikes can ride in bus lanes and there are many bike lanes
3) Public messages everywhere encouraging people to bike
4) $7/gallon gas
5) "Congestion charge" (i.e. a fee you have to pay just to drive downtown) -- $15/day. There's talk about upping the charge to almost $50/day for gas guzzling SUV's though they are not very popular thanks to the cost of gas
6) Friendly drivers that actually pay attention on the roads.

I wonder if the Londoners on BF know how good they have it.



In short, I think all of your "solutions" address marginal causes of lack of cycling.

I ususally don't wade into A&S threads as they tend to get oddly devisive, but none of these seem in the slightest bit marginal to me. There is likely no magic bullet in getting Americans on bikes, but these seem like they would help a great deal (esp. gas at $7/gal.)

I agree it's all petty stuff, but that's what catches peoples' attention

I think people don't ride because they think it's too much bother and they perceive it as being less safe than it is. However, if we had $7/gallon gas, I'll bet a lot more people would think about the real costs of driving and decide that it's convenient and reasonably safe (even though increasing the gas price wouldn't actually affect the price of driving as much as people think).

I have very few problems with drivers, but my biggest fear is distracted drivers which we seem to have a lot of since many people treat their car as a "home away from home". Hostile drivers are annoying, but I don't think they're that dangerous -- they want to scare, not kill you.

Petty stuff works though. Sometimes.

What I would like to see is much higher gas prices personally. I drive a car, yes, and it would hurt me. But I drive a very efficient car, and much higher gas prices would make me think not once but several times before I turn the key and start it. I think higher gas prices would spell the end of the suv class of vehicle.

But that is not going to do it alone! One major problem North America has is lousy urban planning IF you go carless. Inner cores of cities are ok, but if you cannot or will not live there, where the public transit is, and are forced into a suburban hell, you are toast for getting around. Yes, you can use a bike, but in many cities, this is not as easy as it sounds when urban sprawl outstrips the effectiveness of the road infrastructure and public transit is not funded adequately.

What would help is intensifying the development in the inner parts of cities, and making the cities interesting to be in again and places that people want to live. This gives people access to transit, and makes urban utility cycling more attractive. Effective transit needs a certain population critical mass before it starts working well.

Here, where it gets cold and damp (not to mention cold and snowy and icy) for a significant chunk of the year, transit matters if you go carless since winter cycling (while doable) is not as safe or reliable in the winter months. (As much as I like cycling, I am NOT riding from my home at the edge of the Great Lakes snow belt zone over 15 to 30 km to work each way -depending on where work is at that time - in snow that is 30 to 60 cm deep at times - and yes, with the wind here, we get drifts that big fairly regularly. Even confined within city limits, there is often too much snow for efficient travel by bike - hense the need for good transit.)

The cyclist in London are transportation. Most cyclists in the US are recreational.

I think the $7 gas would be a start but in London, I read that the bus/train terror bombing made a huge impact on commuter cycling. The 'congestion charge' is a great idea.

But, prying US residence out of their cars is going to be a monumental undertaking. 75% of the fat-assed US drivers could not walk 1/4 to a bus stop even if there were a bus stop within a quarter mile.

I dont know that it has anything to do with getting people to ride or not.
But I know I dont ride to the grocery store or Walmart, or the city library, here because of a lack of a place to lock my bike.
My wife and I were discussing this just recently.

I dont know that it has anything to do with getting people to ride or not.
But I know I dont ride to the grocery store or Walmart, or the city library, here because of a lack of a place to lock my bike.
My wife and I were discussing this just recently.

You don't need a bike rack. In a suburban setting, you can lock a bike bike to cart corrals, sign posts, and light posts (to name a few). Usually in the vast parking lot, between cars. I prefer it this way, as I'm of the belief that the less visible a bike is, the less likely it is to get snatched; out in front of a store for everyone to see ... not so good.

You don't need a bike rack. In a suburban setting, you can lock a bike bike to cart corrals, sign posts, and light posts (to name a few). Usually in the vast parking lot, between cars. I prefer it this way, as I'm of the belief that the less visible a bike is, the less likely it is to get snatched; out in front of a store for everyone to see ... not so good.

I have tried to convince myself that I could do that.
I just cant get comfortable with for some reason.
But I am trying

But that is not going to do it alone! One major problem North America has is lousy urban planning IF you go carless. Inner cores of cities are ok, but if you cannot or will not live there, where the public transit is, and are forced into a suburban hell, you are toast for getting around. Yes, you can use a bike, but in many cities, this is not as easy as it sounds when urban sprawl outstrips the effectiveness of the road infrastructure and public transit is not funded adequately.

What would help is intensifying the development in the inner parts of cities, and making the cities interesting to be in again and places that people want to live. This gives people access to transit, and makes urban utility cycling more attractive. Effective transit needs a certain population critical mass before it starts working well.

yup. here in Phoenix, things are so spread out and so many people live so far from their jobs that bicycling to work would seem to be a monumental task. I'm not sure I would even commute if I didn't live so close to work. distances and public transit as well as road accomodations are all factors.

yup. here in Phoenix, things are so spread out and so many people live so far from their jobs that bicycling to work would seem to be a monumental task. I'm not sure I would even commute if I didn't live so close to work. distances and public transit as well as road accomodations are all factors.
Huh? Most live 15mi or less from work. Road are flat, well maintained, weather great year round. Sure some work 30mi, some 20mi, but most are less than 15. Lack of showers/lockers seems to be the only reasonable excuse I hear most often.
But the real reason is that not taking ones car is considered more inconvienient.
Al

My commute is 17 miles to my new far campus I would love to commute it full time , but their are two things that keep me from commuting full time one I have work before, and after school therefore no time to take the hour to ride their. Second it is commute on rural roads I am scarred of those more then heavy travelled roads. My reasoning if a dunkard or a someone with a suspended license or non license situation. They hit me I bet you 100 dollars they wouldn't stop to check they would just keep on fleeing. Second rural roads have long stretchs with no stop signs, intersections, and no cops so almost anything over 55mph is acceptable. Even the volunteer fire fighters wing past you so much for safety eh?

People are not going to ride as long as they have cars and cheap gas. Most Americans have become programmed to think they have to drive Johnny and Janie to school when the bus stop is 1/2 mile down the road. Even if Johnny and Janie do ride the bus, they will have to be driven that 1/2 mile to the bus stop. It's no wonder we have a problem with people being fat in this country. And, yeah, a lot of these people are the "manatee people".

The best thing that could happen on several fronts is if the federal government would do away with the subsidies on the price of gas at the pump. Let people pay the real price for a gallon if they want to drive so bad.

But the politicians will never let this happen. At least not until things get truly dire. They like holding office.

I'm an engineer. I'm trained to identify problems clearly before jumping to solutions.

The problem we are trying to solve is what? Not enough people taking up cycling? Cyclists not cycling enough?

Whatever it is, we have to look deeper - the root causes for the problems we want to solve.

WHY are more people not taking up cycling?
WHY are cyclists not cycling more?

Is lack of racks really what's keeping a significant number of cyclists from cycling? Maybe, maybe not? Or is there something else?

In short, I think all of your "solutions" address marginal causes of lack of cycling.

I believe, the biggest cause (among those we can do something about, potentially), by far, is the widespread perception that cycling in traffic is inherently too dangerous.

As to 6):
6) Friendly drivers that actually pay attention on the roads.

We already have that. What we don't have is the perception that we have that.One-trick ponies don't make for very good problem solvers.

There are tons of alternate explanations that you have totally discounted.

"Whatever it is, we have to look deeper - the root causes for the problems we want to solve."

Laziness is the real problem. I think if American cities had all six of the things listed above (plus showers at work and tax breaks for cycling to work) you might get another 2-3 pecent of the country commuting by bike. It is a mindset that we as avid cyclists have that the average person does not. And you can't force them to have it. They have to WANT it. How do you convince them to want it? That is the question.Bingo.

EDIT: Well, bingo, sort of. People aren't just lazy, they're also busy, and a car is faster, which means they get to where there busy schedule takes them that much sooner. But they're also lazy.

Then add in the fact that they arrive at work in a sweat, have nowhere to stow their gear when they get to work, plus the other factors listed, and it's just easier to drive.

^^
Been a long time since I was in London, but I'm sure one thing hasn't changed. On a lot of the subway lines the walk from where you leave the street to where you board your train is MUCH longer that the majority of Americans seem willing to walk.

I don't see this as the only problem with making biking popular, but if this one does not change it does not matter if everything else is ideal.

Bingo.

EDIT: Well, bingo, sort of. People aren't just lazy, they're also busy, and a car is faster, which means they get to where there busy schedule takes them that much sooner. But they're also lazy.

Then add in the fact that they arrive at work in a sweat, have nowhere to stow their gear when they get to work, plus the other factors listed, and it's just easier to drive.
Yeah, its inconvienient.
Look at page ix, conclusion #4 in this study:
http://www.valleymetro.org/Rideshare3/2News/3Research/2005%20TDM%20Annual%20Survey%20FINAL%20pdf%20format%20doc.pdf

Al

People are not going to ride as long as they have cars and cheap gas. Most Americans have become programmed to think they have to drive Johnny and Janie to school when the bus stop is 1/2 mile down the road. Even if Johnny and Janie do ride the bus, they will have to be driven that 1/2 mile to the bus stop. It's no wonder we have a problem with people being fat in this country. And, yeah, a lot of these people are the "manatee people".

I bet if you talked to those people though, their kids are probably more than willing to bike to the bus stop or even all the way to school but the parents won't let them because it's too dangerous. And the parents probably would like to lose some weight as well and might even know that cycling is a great way to do it, but again will tell you that it's not safe to bike the mile to the grocery store. Laziness is a big part but I think often people use laziness as an (possibly subconscious) excuse for their irrational fear of traffic.

I just returned from a couple weeks in London. They've really got the right idea there. Here are a few things I saw that we could really use in the US.

1) Bike racks everywhere
2) Bikes can ride in bus lanes and there are many bike lanes
3) Public messages everywhere encouraging people to bike
4) $7/gallon gas
5) "Congestion charge" (i.e. a fee you have to pay just to drive downtown) -- $15/day. There's talk about upping the charge to almost $50/day for gas guzzling SUV's though they are not very popular thanks to the cost of gas
6) Friendly drivers that actually pay attention on the roads.

I wonder if the Londoners on BF know how good they have it.I am generally one of those who argue that cyclists must obey the traffic laws (and thus, shouldn't run stop signs). But somebody here on BF took the position that bicycles should be treated as privileged vehicles (because they don't pollute), and that one of the perks of bicycling should be to treat stop signs as yield signs. I'm convinced, whoever you are. Cities could, and should, encourage bicycling by treating bicycles as a privileged class of vehicles. That can mean allowing bicycles to treat stop signs as yield signs (which might mean changes to the vehicle codes), but it can mean so much more than that. It could mean safe parking facilities; traffic laws that protect and privilege cyclists; bicycle-and-pedestrian-only areas in core downtown areas; shower, locker, and bike rack facilities in businesses (this requires cooperation between the private sector and government); bicycle transit facilities (bike routes, bike lanes, bike highways) that physically separate bicycles from motor vehicle traffic and door zones... the list of things that can be done is only limited by our imaginations, and by our will to see them implemented.

I bet if you talked to those people though, their kids are probably more than willing to bike to the bus stop or even all the way to school but the parents won't let them because it's too dangerous. And the parents probably would like to lose some weight as well and might even know that cycling is a great way to do it, but again will tell you that it's not safe to bike the mile to the grocery store. Laziness is a big part but I think often people use laziness as an (possibly subconscious) excuse for their irrational fear of traffic.

Perhaps some, but by and large I think lazyness is the real issue. Pay attention for a couple of weeks (assuming you drive). Unless you never shop or have made adustments I'll bet you get held up waiting in a parking lot for someone waiting for a car to pull out so they can get a 'good' parking spot. I've seen it happen too often in cases where anyone can see scores of empty parking spots starting just 2 or 3 places farther down. Yet cars will wait while someone is loading a full shopping cart into their car.

Sometimes the unsafe part is more real than others, and proposed solutions are often no solution. From my parents house it is only 4 blocks to the local grocery. The problem is that there is no good route. The store is the other side of the freeway. The one you would take by car is on a really nasty road. Oh for me it is no real problem, but it really does change the feeliing of a trip to the store. It would not be a nice easy relaxing trip. It is a make sure you make it alive trip. There is a pedestrian tunnel one could take. You go a block out of the way (meaning 2 blocks each way), but they are flat, no big deal. You still end up on a majot street and have a moderatly nasty left turn each way, but those are managable. BUT the pedestrian tunnel is usually full of broken glass (and often smells or urine). One could get to within a block on very reasonable roads then take the sidewalk. Otherwise you have to add an extra mile each way.

As to kids riding to school. From what I've seen of parents who are droping off their kids I think having concerns about your kid riding to school are well founded unless there is a route to school that is parent free.

Hey, I am man enough to admit that lazyness is a huge issue for me.
And while fear is probably not a good excuse, it is real hard for a parent to send their children out on the roads after hearing about so many deaths and injurys.

I bet if you talked to those people though, their kids are probably more than willing to bike to the bus stop or even all the way to school but the parents won't let them because it's too dangerous. And the parents probably would like to lose some weight as well and might even know that cycling is a great way to do it, but again will tell you that it's not safe to bike the mile to the grocery store. Laziness is a big part but I think often people use laziness as an (possibly subconscious) excuse for their irrational fear of traffic.
I agree, in a way, sort of, but I think the irrational fear of traffic is the excuse for laziness.

I know I catch myself making up excuses to not do something just because I don't want to do whatever it is.

Huh? Most live 15mi or less from work. Road are flat, well maintained, weather great year round. Sure some work 30mi, some 20mi, but most are less than 15. Lack of showers/lockers seems to be the only reasonable excuse I hear most often.
But the real reason is that not taking ones car is considered more inconvienient.
Al

you're nuts, Al. the valley has extended suburbs way past 15 miles from any commercial/industrial/office center. there's people building houses in maricopa, that's 30 miles from anywhere. Anthem? same thing. Vistancia, at the foot of the white tanks... pretty ****ing far. big developments creeping toward Casa Grande... where you want them to ride, US 60? ever been out the the west side? tons of people there, it's an hour drive... there's no way all these people work within 15 miles of their work. remember, 15 miles is also a lot of miles for people not accustomed to commuting.

I don't believe there is one simple answer to this question (other than to just ride, ride responsibly (and frequently) and have fun doing it and people will notice and they might want to do it too.)

But some of the other issues like parking facilities and bike facilities of all kinds (including lanes, trails and paths) can encourage people to ride.

Just today the college I work for opened it's new bike parking facility to faculty. This is a 50 bike "bike room", which is in an old storefront the college took over and completely revamped for bikes. It's clean, well lit, modern, safe, video monitors, uses the college ID of the registered users, we each have our own assigned space, we can leave the bike overnight on an occasional basis and it costs only $5/year.

A colleague walked from our office together and we were talking about biking in as opposed to driving. He lives right down the road from me, commutes in by car and pays $150/month for parking downtown. He was finding all kinds of reasons not to ride in and when we walked into the bike room and he saw how convenient (and respectable) it made bike commuting he began to ask what kind of bike he should get and where he should get it. I walked him to his parking garage and by the time we got there we were making plans on going bike shopping together for him and getting him set up for commuting by bike.

So, do facilities make a difference?- you tell me.

Are they the only answer? of course not.

Perhaps some, but by and large I think lazyness is the real issue. Pay attention for a couple of weeks (assuming you drive). Unless you never shop or have made adustments I'll bet you get held up waiting in a parking lot for someone waiting for a car to pull out so they can get a 'good' parking spot. I've seen it happen too often in cases where anyone can see scores of empty parking spots starting just 2 or 3 places farther down. Yet cars will wait while someone is loading a full shopping cart into their car.

Sometimes the unsafe part is more real than others, and proposed solutions are often no solution. From my parents house it is only 4 blocks to the local grocery. The problem is that there is no good route. The store is the other side of the freeway. The one you would take by car is on a really nasty road. Oh for me it is no real problem, but it really does change the feeliing of a trip to the store. It would not be a nice easy relaxing trip. It is a make sure you make it alive trip. There is a pedestrian tunnel one could take. You go a block out of the way (meaning 2 blocks each way), but they are flat, no big deal. You still end up on a majot street and have a moderatly nasty left turn each way, but those are managable. BUT the pedestrian tunnel is usually full of broken glass (and often smells or urine). One could get to within a block on very reasonable roads then take the sidewalk. Otherwise you have to add an extra mile each way.

As to kids riding to school. From what I've seen of parents who are droping off their kids I think having concerns about your kid riding to school are well founded unless there is a route to school that is parent free.

Laziness and fear seem to cause a downward spiral I guess. If you are lazy, you don't mind living somewhere that you "need" to drive to get anywhere. Living in those types of places and not seeing cyclists on the roads plus becoming numb to the high speeds typically used on the roads will easily add to the fear. If you live in fear of using the roads by any means other than a car, then again you are likely to not care if you live somewhere that isn't within reasonable cycling/walking distance of anything. Having to use a car for everything will make someone lazy.

But I still would put fear higher on my list simply because it was the number one thing that kept me from starting commuting (and I laugh at how irrational my fear of traffic was less than two years ago when I was already cycling plenty on the roads, just not to work during rush hour) and it's the number one reason I hear from others. But I obviously haven't talked to everyone, yet :)

Perhaps some, but by and large I think lazyness is the real issue. Not in my experience. Whenever I tell people I ride a bike everywhere the comments are mostly focussed on how brave I am to ride in traffic, not how fit I am to be able to handle those distances. Maybe though it has something to do with my social circle, I dunno.


Pay attention for a couple of weeks (assuming you drive). Unless you never shop or have made adustments I'll bet you get held up waiting in a parking lot for someone waiting for a car to pull out so they can get a 'good' parking spot. You know, I ride my bike almost everywhere, but whenever I'm in a car (usually as a passenger), I really appreciate it when we can get a "good" spot, even if we had to circle around the lot a couple of times to find it. I think the reasons for wanting that spot are not so much laziness. For one thing, places where you observe such behaviour are huge drab concrete fields and I think people are just depressed and overwhelmed by this antiutopic landscape and want to spend as little time walking around there as possible (and somehow it doesn't feel as bad in a car). Secondly, if you park too far from the entrance, you'll have a hell of a time trying to find your car after you emerge from the store.

People are not going to ride as long as they have cars and cheap gas. Most Americans have become programmed to think they have to drive Johnny and Janie to school when the bus stop is 1/2 mile down the road. Even if Johnny and Janie do ride the bus, they will have to be driven that 1/2 mile to the bus stop. It's no wonder we have a problem with people being fat in this country. And, yeah, a lot of these people are the "manatee people".

The best thing that could happen on several fronts is if the federal government would do away with the subsidies on the price of gas at the pump. Let people pay the real price for a gallon if they want to drive so bad.

But the politicians will never let this happen. At least not until things get truly dire. They like holding office.

When I was in school, it was 1km each way, that's 5/8 mile, or just over 1/2 mile, we had two options, walk or bike, for rainy days you had rubber boots and a rain coat with hood. In winter you had winter boots, coat, mitts, hat and we had cold winters back then. We survived, nobody even thought of driving their kid to school.... Now of course the people of my generation, are the ones doing the driving, you can't win.

It's interesting, in Europe 75% (on average) of gasoline prices is tax, in Canada 35% of gasoline prices are tax, in the United States it's 20%. Yet Americans seem to be the ones complaining the most. In Europe, and Canada (to a lesser extent), people fought back, buying smaller cars, small V8s are rare, big V8s are only found on old cars.

People aren't just lazy, they're also busy, and a car is faster, which means they get to where there busy schedule takes them that much sooner. But they're also lazy.

That's so funny. I know it doesn't happen all of the time but there was a work meeting I attended last week with 2 other people from my office. It was about 2.5 miles from the meeting space to our site, all urban and about half in the downtown core. They got in their cars after the meeting and left. I was standing outside talking to someone after the meeting for 5 minutes. I got on my bike and was in the office 10 minutes later, obeying traffic signals and stop signs the entire way. Took me another 5 minutes to change my clothes and rebraid my hair. I was at my desk checking my email and drinking tea for another 10 minutes, and finally they arrived. It took them 30 minutes to travel 2.5 miles because of traffic and parking. The guys thought I must have run into the starship Enterprise and used their transporter. :D I have found at best traveling by bike to the meetings I need to go to in Portland shaves off 15-20 minutes from my travel time and at worst adds 10 minutes.

I think the irrational fear of traffic is the excuse for laziness.

It could be that some of the parents have a fear of their children interacting with traffic based on what kind of driver they are. :rolleyes:

I'm an engineer.

We've spent nearly a century working on the following engineering problem, often to the exclusion of lots of other problems: How can we accomodate cars?

At some point, this also became: How can we integrate cars, at any cost, into our engineering problems?

Not surprisingly, this has led to cities in which people would rather use cars than other forms of transportation. By design. You could probably assume that cities designed specifically for riding on the backs of emus would be filled with emu-riders -- or that any object designed for a particular function will, in fact, be used according to its design. That's why you undertake the design in the first place, right?

As an engineer, I'm sure you can recognize the mechanisms that inform this process. Cities are an iterative design, in which accomodating cars has been one of the primary goals. Older cities have been systematically retrofitted, in ways which have often been tremendously destructive to other urban functions -- and other forms of transportation, like bicycles. And you have simply to drive west, or outward from city centers, following the chronology of development, to witness the progression of autocentric design over the last century, to places where people have little choice but to drive in order to live within the engineered constraints of the system.

Perception is the reason people would rather not ride a bike? Sure, inasmuch as the design -- the stuff we've built (and by its designed ommission, the stuff we could have built instead) -- has created fertile places for that perception to propagate.

most traffic engineers today agree: a transportation infrastructure that vigorously supports bicycling in its roadway network and regional plans is what has the greatest effects on increasing bike ridership.

"Build it, and they will ride."

Most of the people I work with would have to ride their bikes at least 20 miles to get to the office, part of which would be on the freeway. Once they got here they would find adequate showers and a place to lock the bike up, but that's just going to take way more time than anybody is willing to spend. And I'm sure 20 miles is not quite right. It's probably 30 or more. 20 miles is just the distance from the edge of Ventura to the office.

Oh, and another thing. Since our company is global and does a lot of outsourcing many people have to go to 7am meetings and then 9pm meetings later in the day. The day gets too chunked up to really be able to plan a routine. I'm fortunate in that I don't have those kind of meetings.

This whole hangup on showers eludes me. People in other parts of the world manage on bikes without showers at work. I commuted for 2 years 5 miles each way and never had a shower.

It's not a training ride people..it's a commute. If you treat it as such and just noodle along and coast down the hills, you will barely break a sweet unless it's 95* out...... And then, a little powder will clean you right up.

We've spent nearly a century working on the following engineering problem, often to the exclusion of lots of other problems: How can we accomodate cars?

At some point, this also became: How can we integrate cars, at any cost, into our engineering problems?

Not surprisingly, this has led to cities in which people would rather use cars than other forms of transportation. By design. You could probably assume that cities designed specifically for riding on the backs of emus would be filled with emu-riders -- or that any object designed for a particular function will, in fact, be used according to its design. That's why you undertake the design in the first place, right?

As an engineer, I'm sure you can recognize the mechanisms that inform this process. Cities are an iterative design, in which accomodating cars has been one of the primary goals. Older cities have been systematically retrofitted, in ways which have often been tremendously destructive to other urban functions -- and other forms of transportation, like bicycles. And you have simply to drive west, or outward from city centers, following the chronology of development, to witness the progression of autocentric design over the last century, to places where people have little choice but to drive in order to live within the engineered constraints of the system.

Perception is the reason people would rather not ride a bike? Sure, inasmuch as the design -- the stuff we've built (and by its designed ommission, the stuff we could have built instead) -- has created fertile places for that perception to propagate.

interesting and accurate perspective. thanks for this post.

What I would like to see is much higher gas prices personally. I drive a car, yes, and it would hurt me. But I drive a very efficient car, and much higher gas prices would make me think not once but several times before I turn the key and start it. I think higher gas prices would spell the end of the suv class of vehicle.



Over here in the UK we are paying £4 ($7.55) for a gallon of diesel. On top of that we pay nearly £200 ($377.50) a year for Road Tax for a 4x4, I believe that is rising to £220 shortly, and on top of that is the high cost of insurance. At the moment I pay nearly £500 per year for insurance, so I think the motorist is being hammered more than enough.

My husband recently changed his job and needs the car as he has to travel around with his job. I was reluctant to get another car, partly because of the cost and partly, because I'm self employed and my business is within a 4 mile radius, I didn't feel getting another car was justified, so I've got myself a lovely second-hand bike instead.

What put me off cycling was that when I used to cycle many years ago before I learned to drive (8 miles uphill to work and 8 miles downhill home) I used to be so out of breath by the time I got there, it took ages to recover (I'm an asthmatic). The bike I had then was way too big for me and it was heavy too. However, the bike I bought at the weekend (I've got a couple of pics of it in the C&V forum) is soooo lightweight and an absolute dream to ride - even uphill that I'm sure cycling is going to be an enjoyable form of transport/leisure - and my bank balance will be a lot healthier too.

We've become too dependent on cars. In our case, we still need the car and one that can get through snow and ice, hence we've got a 4x4 as my son is a renal dialysis patient (dialyses at home) and if there is a problem, which invariably happens at 2am we need to get to the renal unit which is 40 miles away. When the government increases fuel tax or road tax, they don't take into consideration people like us who need a car. Our car is a necessity, not a luxury but the motorist has been an easy target for this government to squeeze even more money out of us in taxes.

For the rest of the time, I shall use my bike. We are very lucky where I live as there are a lot of cycle paths and routes, some of which cut through beautiful scenery. There are many place in town where you can park your bike - some of them are covered and in full view of CCTV cameras.

I do think some people are just plain lazy and no amount of persuading will ever make them try cycling.

There is also the danger factor. The times I've heard "the roads are no place for a bike" but everything we do carries a risk and I believe, with the amount of cars and the effect that is having on the environment, bikes should be much more advocated than they are and there should be more cycle lanes and paths - something which many Councils here are doing something about. In our town there are several new cycle paths planned for the near future. Here's one who will be using them:D

As for me, well I'm back on a bike after not being on one for over 30 years - and I'm enjoying it thoroughly. Now, I've got to pop up to the shop - by bike of course:D

you're nuts, Al. the valley has extended suburbs way past 15 miles from any commercial/industrial/office center. there's people building houses in maricopa, that's 30 miles from anywhere. Anthem? same thing. Vistancia, at the foot of the white tanks... pretty ****ing far. big developments creeping toward Casa Grande... where you want them to ride, US 60? ever been out the the west side? tons of people there, it's an hour drive... there's no way all these people work within 15 miles of their work. remember, 15 miles is also a lot of miles for people not accustomed to commuting.
Sure metro phx is a huge sprawl 60mi across or more. But transport survey after transport survey every year show that the average commute in metro phx is less than 15mi. No where did I say 'all these people live within 15mi of work'
Al

As to 6):
6) Friendly drivers that actually pay attention on the roads.

We already have that. What we don't have is the perception that we have that.

In know within MD drivers inattention is a big safety issue, I thought this was a national trend.

You know, I ride my bike almost everywhere, but whenever I'm in a car (usually as a passenger), I really appreciate it when we can get a "good" spot, even if we had to circle around the lot a couple of times to find it. I think the reasons for wanting that spot are not so much laziness. For one thing, places where you observe such behaviour are huge drab concrete fields and I think people are just depressed and overwhelmed by this antiutopic landscape and want to spend as little time walking around there as possible (and somehow it doesn't feel as bad in a car). Secondly, if you park too far from the entrance, you'll have a hell of a time trying to find your car after you emerge from the store.

Well you phrased it well. But I'm not talking about big distances. 3 or 4 parking places seems to be enough that people will wait 5 minutes for a space. I have had experiences where I've been stuck behind them. I've also had experiences where I had some way to get past or take a different row and was able to park and be in the store while they were still waiting.

If we take the argument that 'and somehow it doesn't feel as bad in a car' to the logical conclusion it is obvious why no one rides a bike in the city.

You know, I ride my bike almost everywhere, but whenever I'm in a car (usually as a passenger), I really appreciate it when we can get a "good" spot, even if we had to circle around the lot a couple of times to find it. I think the reasons for wanting that spot are not so much laziness. For one thing, places where you observe such behaviour are huge drab concrete fields and I think people are just depressed and overwhelmed by this antiutopic landscape and want to spend as little time walking around there as possible (and somehow it doesn't feel as bad in a car). Secondly, if you park too far from the entrance, you'll have a hell of a time trying to find your car after you emerge from the store.
When I park a car its the opposite for me. I head straight to the most convienient place to park without any hassle of looking for a spot. That is the most obvious open spaces, which are most often not the closest open spaces. This is because I want to get out and get on with whatever I was driving to go do. Driving around looking for a close spot in a lot (when it happens when I am a passenger) is innanely tedious to me.
Al

This whole hangup on showers eludes me. People in other parts of the world manage on bikes without showers at work. I commuted for 2 years 5 miles each way and never had a shower.

It's not a training ride people..it's a commute. If you treat it as such and just noodle along and coast down the hills, you will barely break a sweet unless it's 95* out...... And then, a little powder will clean you right up.

2 years without a shower?

Sure metro phx is a huge sprawl 60mi across or more. But transport survey after transport survey every year show that the average commute in metro phx is less than 15mi. No where did I say 'all these people live within 15mi of work'
Al

well, you said "most" people live 15 or less miles from work.... and I just doubt that that's true anymore. if you can find a link to such a survey I'd love to take a look at it. I did find this interesting fact.

"In Maricopa County about 40,000 adults travel 450,000 miles to work by bicycle each day." a lot more than I would have thought.

well, you said "most" people live 15 or less miles from work.... and I just doubt that that's true anymore. if you can find a link to such a survey I'd love to take a look at it. I did find this interesting fact.

"In Maricopa County about 40,000 adults travel 450,000 miles to work by bicycle each day." a lot more than I would have thought.
In Maricopa county 2% of commuters use a bicycle as alterate transport.
Yes, median is not the same as average, I know, but in Maricopa the average commute is 14.4mi.
Its all in the survey I provided a link to above.
edit: attachment from the study (66% drive less than 15mi to work or school, 13.5mi average) - the other study I saw showed 14.4mi average for driving to work only
Al

Maybe not the best way, but effective nonetheless.

Equipment and supplies needed.
1: Van with no windows.
2: old bicycle that you feel comfortable loosing.
3: duct tape.

Process.
Load bicycle into van.
Find an accomplice
Drive van around town until you find unsuspecting individual.
Pull up next to individual, jump out and wrestle them to the ground and bind their hands and feet with previously acquired Duct tape.
Load said duct tape bound unsuspecting individual into van.
Drive to remote location, far from other life forms.
Unload bicycle, and previously bound unsuspecting individual.
Remove Duct tape from angry unsuspecting individual.
Get in van very very quickly. (This is the hard part).
Drive van away very quickly.
Find river or lake to dump van in.
Wipe van down to remove fingerprints and fibers.
Push van in river or lake.
Procede home acting like you know nothing about previous abduction.

I just returned from a couple weeks in London. They've really got the right idea there. Here are a few things I saw that we could really use in the US.

1) Bike racks everywhere
2) Bikes can ride in bus lanes and there are many bike lanes
3) Public messages everywhere encouraging people to bike
4) $7/gallon gas
5) "Congestion charge" (i.e. a fee you have to pay just to drive downtown) -- $15/day. There's talk about upping the charge to almost $50/day for gas guzzling SUV's though they are not very popular thanks to the cost of gas
6) Friendly drivers that actually pay attention on the roads.

I wonder if the Londoners on BF know how good they have it.

Great post. If all were implemented, it would definitely be enough reason to get many people who are now 'on the fence.' I've had lots of conversations with people who kind of want to start commuting, but haven't yet. I've had one convert - a guy who likes to be active.

Another impediment to many people commuting by bike is image. Most people in the U.S. want a big $$ car as a status symbol. Once they buy it, they want to drive it to show everybody what they have. If biking were viewed as normal, that would also help people take the plunge. At the moment, there are probably more people pimping their cars with aftermarket crap than commuting by bike.

In Maricopa county 2% of commuters use a bicycle as alterate transport.
Yes, median is not the same as average, I know, but in Maricopa the average commute is 14.4mi.
Its all in the survey I provided a link to above.
edit: attachment from the study (66% drive less than 15mi to work or school, 13.5mi average) - the other study I saw showed 14.4mi average for driving to work only
Al

Thanks! although in this case I think an "average" is not that informative... but as you noted that table does show that 66% of those surveyed had a 0-15 mile commute, while 29% had a commute of 16-20 miles. hmmm. a fairly astounding (to me) figure is that 42% have a 10 mile or under commute, definitely easily bikeable.

dang, Al. sorry I called you nuts.