Traveling the world’s great bicycle cities, I fell in love with cycling.
The ease, safety, convenience… (dreamy sigh) But as my six-month love
affair came to an end, I began to realize the reason for my infatuation:
cities like those in Denmark and Holland simply make themselves
lovable. They don’t just build cycle tracks; they inject fun, whimsy,
compassion, and even romance into cycling.
Certainly, many Americans love their bikes, but more of us would if
we learned these lessons on cycling’s soft side from the world’s
active-transport capitals.
1. Human powered is romantic. I bike home from work
with my boyfriend almost every day, and it’s one of the best parts of my
day. We talk about what we see along the way or what smells
are coming from the Hostess Cake Factory. When it’s sunny, we sometimes
stop for a beer along the way. When it’s a crisp winter night, we
stop and watch the ships pass under the Fremont Bridge.
We don’t often talk about the way our transportation choices make us feel—physically or mentally. Maybe we should.
When it’s raining, we talk about what kind of soup we want to make for dinner. Biking
together through the elements bonds us in a way that
would never happen if we were strapped into a car. Throughout my
travels, I saw all kinds of romance on the cycle
tracks—teenagers kissing at stoplights in Paris, older couples holding
hands while pedaling in Amsterdam, and a post-wedding getaway bicycle in
Copenhagen.
The average U.S. worker now spends about 48 minutes
commuting each day. Despite the billions of hours
we collectively spend commuting, we don’t often talk about the way our
transportation choices make us feel—physically or mentally.
Maybe we should.
2. You don’t have to be a “cyclist” to ride a bike. Recreational sub-cultures have owned cycling in North America for a long time. That’s starting to change, and it’s an important cultural shift. “None of these people consider themselves cyclists,” Andreas Hammershøj from the Danish Cycling Embassy explained to me last June as we stood on a sidewalk watching swarms of Copenhageners pedal across the Dronning Louises bridge, as 10,000 to 30,000 do daily.
“These are just people getting to work, school, or the grocery store, ” Hammershøj said. It turns out there are Cascadians who, like Copenhageners, would like to get from A to B on their bikes but don’t ever want to ride a "century." (They might not even care to know what a century ride is.) That’s fine. You don’t have to identify with the recreational side of cycling to use a bike for transportation. Just ask Blake Trask, the Statewide Policy Director of the Bicycle Alliance of Washington. “I’m not much of a cyclist. I just ride my bike to work most days.”
3. Remember kickstands? Henry Cutler, the Dutch-American owner of WorkCycles in Amsterdam, is convinced that urban cycling will explode once Americans get off high-performance bikes and on to bikes that are upright, comfortable, and utilitarian.
Maybe we should.
2. You don’t have to be a “cyclist” to ride a bike. Recreational sub-cultures have owned cycling in North America for a long time. That’s starting to change, and it’s an important cultural shift. “None of these people consider themselves cyclists,” Andreas Hammershøj from the Danish Cycling Embassy explained to me last June as we stood on a sidewalk watching swarms of Copenhageners pedal across the Dronning Louises bridge, as 10,000 to 30,000 do daily.
“These are just people getting to work, school, or the grocery store, ” Hammershøj said. It turns out there are Cascadians who, like Copenhageners, would like to get from A to B on their bikes but don’t ever want to ride a "century." (They might not even care to know what a century ride is.) That’s fine. You don’t have to identify with the recreational side of cycling to use a bike for transportation. Just ask Blake Trask, the Statewide Policy Director of the Bicycle Alliance of Washington. “I’m not much of a cyclist. I just ride my bike to work most days.”
3. Remember kickstands? Henry Cutler, the Dutch-American owner of WorkCycles in Amsterdam, is convinced that urban cycling will explode once Americans get off high-performance bikes and on to bikes that are upright, comfortable, and utilitarian.
Why don’t bikes have kickstands anymore?
“Americans ride bikes that are like race cars; Dutch bikes are like
Honda Civics and mini-vans,” Cutler joked last July as I admired his
fleet of practical bikes. They come outfitted with
child seats, baskets, bells, chain guards, and front and rear lights
powered by your pedaling. Oh, and kickstands: Why
don’t bikes have kickstands anymore?
Tom Fuculoro, author of the Seattle Bike Blog, got it right when he wrote recently that buying a bike ought to be more like buying a car. “Most people aren’t fascinated by the technical aspects of car engines; they’re sold by the sunroof or cup-holders.” David Schmidt, owner of The Dutch Bike Shop in Seattle reports that the useful-bike trend is gaining steam. “Ninety percent of our clients haven’t ridden a bike since they were kids. They’re rediscovering cycling because it’s fun and simpler than driving. These aren’t the crusader commuters. They’re just people who want to start biking to the grocery store.”
Tom Fuculoro, author of the Seattle Bike Blog, got it right when he wrote recently that buying a bike ought to be more like buying a car. “Most people aren’t fascinated by the technical aspects of car engines; they’re sold by the sunroof or cup-holders.” David Schmidt, owner of The Dutch Bike Shop in Seattle reports that the useful-bike trend is gaining steam. “Ninety percent of our clients haven’t ridden a bike since they were kids. They’re rediscovering cycling because it’s fun and simpler than driving. These aren’t the crusader commuters. They’re just people who want to start biking to the grocery store.”
4. Does your city have a bike culture? North Americans
all understand what “car culture” means, but it’s a term that
increasingly comes with a negative connotation. Cars are
now being called an “older generation technology.” Despite the billion-dollar marketing budgets of car companies, many millennials would rather not own a car.
Unlike car cultures, bicycle cultures are in demand. Many of the world’s most vibrant and thriving cities are going to great lengths to support their citizen cyclists because having a “bicycle culture” has suddenly become an asset and an important part of “attracting the types of workers that an innovation economy wants to attract.”
Unlike car cultures, bicycle cultures are in demand. Many of the world’s most vibrant and thriving cities are going to great lengths to support their citizen cyclists because having a “bicycle culture” has suddenly become an asset and an important part of “attracting the types of workers that an innovation economy wants to attract.”
“Demographics is destiny," said Brian Surratt, business development
director at the City of Seattle’s Office of Economic Development, while
speaking about the importance of developing a
bike culture. “People no longer relocate for industry. Industry
relocates for talent. Seattle wants to be
recognized as a bike-friendly city because it simply helps attract good
talent. The most successful cities—economically,
culturally, and socially—must compete for intellectual capital and
talent.”
5. More cyclists encourage more compassionate roads. Numerous studies document the relationship between an increase in the volume of cyclists and an increase in cyclist safety.
The relationship between these two factors is
sometimes remarkably linear. Odense, Denmark, embarked on an ambitious,
multi-year cycling promotion campaign and saw cycling levels increase by
20 percent, while traffic accidents involving cyclists
decreased by 20 percent.
Why? People behind the wheel become more accustomed to seeing people on two wheels on the roads. Also, it’s often the same people: drivers and cyclists are the same folks at different times of the day, or at least drivers are more likely to have cyclists in the family.
Why? People behind the wheel become more accustomed to seeing people on two wheels on the roads. Also, it’s often the same people: drivers and cyclists are the same folks at different times of the day, or at least drivers are more likely to have cyclists in the family.
Driving “with your heart” becomes a much easier sell when citizens—like in Groningen, Holland—have friends and family members who commute by bike or on foot. Lucky for us, cycling rates have increased dramatically
in many American cities: bike commuting doubled in Seattle and tripled
in Portland as a share of all commutes from 2000 to 2010, according to
the League of American Bicyclists, while New York
City's Department of Transportation reports
that commuter cycling there doubled between 2007 and 2011. This growth
helps make roads a lot safer for everyone—even roads that lack cycling
infrastructure.
Why can’t activity just be engineered into our
daily lives so that we can stay healthy without the added
chore of working out?
6. We don’t have time to compensate. Most people
reading this article are sitting in front of a computer. More and more
of us are “knowledge workers” who sit in front
of computers for much of our careers. If you also choose to use
passive forms of transportation such as driving or taking the bus,
doctors recommend that you compensate for your
sedentary lifestyle by “working out.”
Unfortunately, I didn’t find much time in my schedule to compensate—and I wasn’t alone. The Center for Disease Control reports that 80 percent of Americans fail to meet federal guidelines for physical activity despite the $19 billion we shell out for gym memberships each year. Why can’t activity just be engineered into our daily lives so that we can stay healthy without the added chore of working out? Cycling has been the solution for me. I typically burn about 500 calories a day pedaling myself to the places I need to go, and going to the gym is never on the to-do list anymore. Having one less chore means I have more free time to spend with the people I love.
4 New Ideas for a Bicycle Planet
A school bus pedaled by kids, the world’s largest bike-share, and other innovations that are changing how we cycle.
7. Focus on women. Women are the “indicator species” of a city’s cycling ecosystem. Studies have shown that women are more risk-averse than men, so a profusion of women pedaling in a city shows that cycling feels safe there.
Unfortunately, I didn’t find much time in my schedule to compensate—and I wasn’t alone. The Center for Disease Control reports that 80 percent of Americans fail to meet federal guidelines for physical activity despite the $19 billion we shell out for gym memberships each year. Why can’t activity just be engineered into our daily lives so that we can stay healthy without the added chore of working out? Cycling has been the solution for me. I typically burn about 500 calories a day pedaling myself to the places I need to go, and going to the gym is never on the to-do list anymore. Having one less chore means I have more free time to spend with the people I love.
4 New Ideas for a Bicycle Planet
A school bus pedaled by kids, the world’s largest bike-share, and other innovations that are changing how we cycle.
Women are also far more likely to participate in and benefit from
cycling encouragement and training programs than men. A
study done in
London showed that 73 percent of London residents who participated in
on-road cycling training programs were women. The same
study interviewed female cyclists and found that “cycling helps bolster
a self-confident, independent identity” for many women. An Australian
study
shows that cycling outreach and support events have a greater positive
impact on behavior change among women than among men. Why else is it
important to get more women riding? American women make more
major household decisions
than men and can hence influence the entire family to get out of the
car and on to bikes. Some people also assert that more women cycling can
contribute to a more visually pleasing urban environment.
None of these ideas are revolutionary. I’ve witnessed each across the
world. What’s important is that sometimes it’s not just about
infrastructure. Getting folks to fall in love with cycling will take
more than signage and street paint (although those are important, too!).
What bicycling could really use is a good marketing department.
Source: http://www.yesmagazine.org/happiness/seven-reasons-bikes-are-for-everyone-not-just-cyclists
Chrisitine M. Grant is the active transportation lead at Cascadia Consulting Group. You can learn more about her travels and see more of her pictures of great cycling cities on Shift, her personal blog.
Interested?
What bicycling could really use is a good marketing department.
Source: http://www.yesmagazine.org/happiness/seven-reasons-bikes-are-for-everyone-not-just-cyclists
Chrisitine M. Grant is the active transportation lead at Cascadia Consulting Group. You can learn more about her travels and see more of her pictures of great cycling cities on Shift, her personal blog.
Interested?
- How Biking Benefits Everyone
Just because someone doesn’t bike, doesn’t mean they can’t benefit from cities and towns making biking a priority. - How to Build a Bike Train
Forty years ago, almost half of American kids biked to school. A smart idea for getting kids pedaling again. - Complete Streets: It’s About More Than Bike Lanes
Forty years ago, almost half of American kids biked to school. A smart idea for getting kids pedaling again.
