bicycling is not transportation
 

Says the USA Department of Transportation: http://bicycling.about.com/b/a/000071.htm

What a loser...

hard to convince politicians to favor us when bike companies arent dumping money in their pockets like oil companies are. politics=corruption.

if it's not a form of transportation, then I don't have to obey laws governing vehicles!

to be honest i WISH i could ride my bike to work, but im REQUIRED to drive car to work every day...have to have transportation to get from one end of county to other end at any given moment and within a moderate amount of time.

Well, I would have to agree that I think using federal funding for bike trails and paths is a waste of money. Most bike trails and paths in my area are for recreation; you know, families going for a weekend ride, people power walking their dogs. I'd rather the money be spent on creating and maintaining safe bike lanes on main roads and better public transit systems.

An article in today's San Jose Mercury News was about how a higher percentage of people in the San Jose area, despite the year-round great weather, despite access to public transit, still use their cars to get to work compared to hilly San Francisco, rainy Portland, and freakin' hot Phoenix.

I think the reason is that there are few main roads in San Jose that have good, safe bike lanes. F%&*K bike PATHS, we need bike LANES!

i kinda thought bike lanes fell under bike paths.....if this is not the case i think bike lanes should be a high priorty, that and "driving with bikes" education programs ;)

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source
trans·por·ta·tion http://cache.lexico.com/g/d/premium.gif http://cache.lexico.com/dictionary/g...una/thinsp.pnghttp://cache.lexico.com/g/d/speaker.gif /ˌtrænshttp://cache.lexico.com/dictionary/g...una/thinsp.pngpərˈteɪhttp://cache.lexico.com/dictionary/g...una/thinsp.pngʃən/
Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[trans-per-tey-shuhhttp://cache.lexico.com/dictionary/g...una/thinsp.pngn] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun

1. the act of transporting.

2. the state of being transported.

3. the means of transport or conveyance.

It's "not a form of transportation" possibly because no way has been found to register the cyclists and tax them.

This is what the British government tried to do (an artilce I read in Cycling Plus mag last year). i wouldn't be surprised if they're still thinking of a way to do this, but I guess they have bigger fish to fry like car-owners. Oh darn, that's me again.

this is the reason we all need support cycling advocates. With enough voices, we might convince them they are full of crap. My bike is transportation for me. Some weeks the car stays put, while I get around on my bike for a whole week.

Actually, right now the Feds are in fact funding quite a few congestion reduction measures. For example, New York City will get $350 million towards a "congestion charge" system for Manhattan, and would've gotten $500 million if the NY State Legislator had approved it last month.

At any rate, in the US the number of bicycle commuters is pretty tiny compared to other forms of transportation, so I'm hardly surprised by this.

I do not obey any laws. I can be riding 30 miles per hour on the street or on sidewalk with a woman and baby walker, petrified of me and jumping for cover. :D

I don't even stop for most red lights. Never for stop signs. Pass cars and busses. Catch up and teach a lesson people that drive close past me. Cycling on the streets is the ultimate form of outlaw. Except that you're within law.


Here is a scary fact. I can pedal my fat arse from point A to point B at 14.5 mph average, that's 24 something max on some stretches of flat.

Take a car, and measure average speed, it's hardly ever more than 7 mph in city. Cars are only faster when going on highways during times other than bumper to bumper rush hour.

True story. I can drive to work in about five minutes; if I ride fast I can be there in less than 15, close to 10 if I hit the right intersections at the right time (left turn onto a busy 4-lane street - not gonna risk getting t-boned when the car's going 35+). Only (small) problem is that now that it's later in the summer it's DARK when I ride home, which is only a problem on a few stretches.

Now...I'm a bit confused here. I've been told that a bicycle is considered like any other form of transportation (must obey traffic laws etc. etc.) and I've only seen signs prohibiting bicycles on some freeways, along with other slower-moving vehicles. I HAVE seen signs outlawing riding a bicycle on the sidewalk. So they can tell us what to do...but there's no upside for us?

I understand "bike lane" to be physically connected to the street, what one might normally consider a "shoulder" but wide enough for a bike; and "bike path" to be that which does not connect to the road, goes through the woods, around your rec center, etc. Like the emerald necklace in the Cleveland Metroparks.

I don't live in the states, but that is one big fat ****ing idiot right there.

Are you talking about the Secretary of Transportation or the person that appointed her?

Here's what I wrote to her.

Madam Secretary-

I use my bicycle to get to work, to access public transportation, and to shop. Therefore, my bicycle is transportation. The Department of Transportation needs to recognize this. Let's stand up as Americans and recognize that is our patriotic duty to find alternatives to transportation only by means of fossil fuels. It is the first line of defense against terrorism.

So when you say that money spent on bicycle paths is not really money spent on transportation you are sadly mistaken. I would hope for a more enlightened approach from such a forward thinking, anti-terrorist administration.

Respectfully submitted,

Another Bush appointee. No surprises here.

Leave your car at work? That's what I do.

My email:

Dear Secretary Peters,

Your recent comments that DOT funds being
used for bike paths diverts the money from legitimate
transportation needs were rather astonishing. Whenever
I think the Bush Administration can’t get more imbecilic,
it DOES. So that’s something.

Should I have shown more respect for a top government official? I did try. It wasn't happening.

Of course what was actually said was quite different from the title of this thread (and of the referenced article).

And for themajority of bike paths and trails in the Los Angeles area I'd haveto say she is correct.

Also notice bike lanes are not mentioned. Perhaps because they actually are part of the transportatin infastructure.

>>Of course what was actually said was quite different from the title of this thread<<

Oh, I'd completely disagree. I think the title of this thread conveys the tone of her comments rather accurately. Is that subjective? Perhaps. That's how I perceived it. If you provide people alternatives will they use them? You won't know unless you TRY. It is quite arguable that anything that simultaneously encourages exercise AND alternative transportation is a stupendous no-brainer in a society that is dying enmasse of heart disease, overweight related health issues, and choking on pollution in an increasing global warming situation. Duh. Well, not to this Administration appointee I suppose, but Duh to the rest of the world.

Don't worry, when gas hits $8+ per gallon Americans will discover the transportation benefits of the bicycle. Trust me. There is a major silver lining to stupid oil prices. It will jump-start alternatives all over the place. It is already happening. $8 per gallon gas might be an energy 'crisis' but it's also a major opportunity. To me expensive gas isn't a crisis. NOT being ABLE to get gas at all... now THAT would be a 'crisis' for more Americans. Pricey fuel is more of a pain in the assets.

I'm a contractor at one of the DOT Agencies... and I've been bike commuting to DOT HQ a few times a week for the past 3 months.

I come into DC from Arlington via said bike paths and when i-395 is a mess, it can take an hour to get into work. Without traffic its a 15 minute ride, but there's always traffic. Its just 35 minutes out and 45 minutes back on the bike with ZERO emissions.

If you've ever had the pleasure of working for our Federal Government, you wouldn't be surprised at the wonder generated when you tell others that you rode your bike into work.

In the DC Metro area, it just shows your dedication to your job (and/or insanity) with how much of a commute you can put up with. Me, I wouldn't live in the burbs like many of my co-workers... the commute would drive me insane.

There are some enlightened folks in DC however. The new mayor is set to require a ration of 1 to 10 bike parking to car parking in all city buildings. A small, rental fleet of cycles is due to launch soon in the District. Arlington is set to do the same with a larger fleet of bikes.

Bring the next critical mass to the Soufeass Waterfront instead of Dupont ;-)

Well, you exhale CO2... ;)

This is an exact quote of what the Secretary of Transportation said:

Well, there's about probably some 10 percent to 20 percent of the current spending that is going to projects that really are not transportation, directly transportation-related. Some of that money is being spent on things, as I said earlier, like bike paths or trails.

Here is the complete transcript of the interview: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/trans...ure_08-15.html

I trasnport myself to work via bike nearly everyday... I would say that's transportation...