Convincing others to commute by bike
 

Well, I've yet to post it, but of interest:

I am 99% done (final draft phase) of a paper for my Comparative Political Systems and International Relations classes discussing what has made commuting by bicycle more acceptable outside the U.S., etc. Of note, interestingly enough, 3 of the 4 people who read it to help me move through the draft stages are now commuting by bike, thanks in part to my paper and the conversation they had with me after reading it.

Also, I convinced 2 others at my office to commute by bike, lowering the number of cars on my roads even further. I've also got an interview with the Mayor and key members of the City Council as part of the second stage of that paper I'm working on (it will eventually be 25 pages when the class ends, albiet, 4 different parts and aspects, et al.)

I thought it was interesting and pretty cool.

so what arguments work? Will you web publish your report?

Yes, I will web pub. the report.

The final step will be to post it here, and allow the community here I consider family the opportunity to slaughter it. Nothing helps create a better defense in my humble opinion.

The irony is that my graduate studies will be in nautical archaeology and social anthropology, but I'm trying to work bicycles into my dissertation.

One thing I'll be looking for is to see if the arguments are applicable regardless of population density and street layout. For example, commuting on the narrower streets in older denser cities on the East Coast, versus the high speed wide suburban boulevards in Southern California.

The arguments themselves are based off international comparisons. For the record Japan, Denmark and the U.K. compared and contrasted to the U.S. as a whole. While I've mentioned the density and logistics of design, I'm more interested in the whys.

Why is it more convient for the Dutch to ride bikes, even though they do not have a lack of oil availability (the Shell Co.); Why does an island find it more convient to use bicycles as a tool of commuting where areas such as L.A. do not, and why does N.Y. find itself in a more amiable position on par with Europeans (as it pertains to commuting alternatives like the bike). Why U.K. is becoming more bike-centric where a large threshold of the U.S. still looks at bicycles as toys.

I am not sure I would be doing justice to an interstate argument, nor would it help my grade in either class (both taught by the same professor, who is being cool as hell in letting me turn in what amounts to the same paper twice, just with a minor twist in information - rare this is, says Yoda).

I do not feel compelled to encourage anyone to do anything..I am happy to share my joy in my love of cycling to others...
Urban density would be a real hassle..Think I would pick and choose my city based on that concern.If the roads are unsafe, no amount of encouragement will work..
My sell ? woud be for a positive health change and cycle/commuting is far less stressful than driving on crowded roads.Next would be saving the planet from an energy melt down.

Fair enough - issues such as the "toy bike syndrome" lend themselves well to a country by country comparison.

Maybe it's not that bikes are more convenient, but cars are more inconvenient in areas where bike use is popular. I am thinking of densely populated areas with expensive real estate like NYC and the Netherlands. In these areas, high priced land is less used for streets, parking lots and garages. Consequently, more people are carfree because it is very expensive to store cars, and narrow streets become too congested when a lot of people drive. So many more people don't drive, and some of these select the alternative of using bicycles.

The average person could ride a bike across most European countries in a couple days.

In the US in could take a couple months.

666..I think you underestimate the size of Europe..France and Spain are each are a little larger than Montana..To drive from Warsaw to Madrid..You are not talking small distances.

Actually, when people talk about cycling in NYC, most people forget that NYC has 5 boroughs of which Manhattan is the smallest and the 4th most populated. The other four boroughs aren't quite as dense so many people who don't need to commute to Manhattan drive, although just as many if not more take buses and trains.

I'm wondering if you analyzed any other commonalities between bike commuters such as whether they're more environmentally conscious or more active in community activies, charities or politics. For example, is there a link between commuters who commute to reduce pollution and whether they care about the environment and legislation that's detrimental to the environment and thus somewhat involved in organizations and political causes that seek to improve the environment. Another example would be if they commute for their health, do they also ride in charity rides that raise money for disease research.

Since you're studying social anthropology, do you delve into the origin of the behavior governing the choice between cars, motorcycles and bicycles? Early recognition of why automobiles rose to prominence over public transportation, motorcycles and bicycles may explain current thinking regarding other modes of transportation.

Actually, since it has to be pretty beefy at 5 pages for the initial project, I've started with alternative transportation, i.e. buses and light rail systems, then broke it down to bicycles for easier consumption with the bonus that I've got a lot of experience in it myself, and a plethora of experience here, and elsewhere.

No, I've left out commonalities not affiliated with the political angles. The why is that this is a paper being written, as I said, for a International Relations class as well as a Comparative Political Systems study. Its hard enough connecting the topic to the two courses, it would become a cluster **** if I spread myself out too thin. Keeping it simple is the way to make this both efficient, and an A so I can maintain my Dean's list status (at 32 it's one of the few things I can still gloat about).

I'll go into my whole theory on this later, I'm sorta behind the eight ball at work atm; will amend later tonight if I have time.