Father Takes To Bike To Save Gas
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 05. 7.08
In Alabama, that is actually headline-worthy news. Florence, Alabama: SUVs and minivans circled around the parking lot at Kilby School, and parents darted back and forth to collect their children and buckle them in for the ride home. With one exception. Scott Infanger walked over from his nearby office at the University of North Alabama, greeted his 7-year-old daughter and unlocked the family trail-a-bike, a tandem bike with a junior seat....In the entire state of Alabama, 1,656 residents bike to work. ::Times Daily
Bike Lanes, Intended for Safety, Become Traffic Battlegrounds New York City: James Frederick was in Manhattan cycling west in the Prince Street bike lane on a recent morning when a green Ford parked in the lane forced him to swerve into the narrow roadway where cars and vans were rushing past.“It’s kind of scary because the cars next to you just keep going," says Frederick, "The city just put this lane in a few months ago, but it’s not respected by drivers.” ::New York Times
More on bike commuting in TreeHugger:
Seattle's Bike to Work Day is Taking Place on May 16, 2008
Lance Armstrong Says: Commute by Bike!
It's More Dangerous NOT To Ride a Bike
My husband and I both commute by bike and have done it for most of our working lives. Right now, I bike 14 miles each way to work and my husband, 15 miles. On any day that I am not able to, which is not often, it is not as good of a day.
My days start better when they start with a bike ride, and at the end of the day, I look forward to the ride home. I am lucky, I live in Portland OR, and it is pretty conducive to bike riding. But one thing I always factor in to any job is whether or not I can ride my bike there. If I can't I generally won't consider the position.
Everyone at work always asks me what I eat for breakfast because I have so much energy, but it is not that as much as it is the bike ride every morning and evening I undertake. I am proud to be a bike commuter.
I'm sorry. But anyone that knowingly parks in a bike lane deserves a flat tire. That will make them think about parking there next time.
i've always thought that a can of pink spray will also deter drives from driving too close to you - too close and they have to pay for a spray job!
Michael, I'd go even further. Anyone who flaunts their disregard for bike lanes or sidewalk safety deserves whatever comes to them. A flat tire, keyed doors, spitting, and flipping the bird come to mind.
Being annoyed at the rudness of a cyclist or skater is the least these inconsiderate drivers should suffer, and I have had the good fortune of running into (not literally) fair-minded police officers at such moments, and they issued warnings if not outright tickets to jaywalkers & drivers. I still wanted to do grievous property damage to them, tho'.