Technorati Tags: 1-mile Solution, bicycle advocacy, cycling

That’s my Redline out front. And those panneirs are full of goodies grown locally.

Technorati Tags: 1-mile Solution, cycling, utility cycling

I am entirely serious when I say that the biggest problem I have on the streets of Springfield’s urban core is overly-polite drivers (my example yesterday, however, was mistaken — see the comments).

I say that knowing many bicyclists in Springfield have a tougher time on the streets because they live in suburbs built for cars. There are two Springfields — one that is largely hospitable to utility bicycling and one that is not. This is one reason why I promote the 1-mile Solution and Keep a Bicycle at Work.

Can the suburbs be retrofitted for walking and bicycling? I think it’s possible (although costly and, perhaps, politically unlikely), so I intend to explore that question this summer.

Right now I want to talk about two reasons I have such a smooth riding experience in Springfield.

1. The first reason I’ve already mentioned: I ride mostly in the urban core where I live. The streets here form a nice grid. The speed limits are low. Drivers in this area expect to see pedestrians and bicyclists. Goods and services are spaced in such a way that urban core residents are often a short walk from groceries, entertainment, and retail. I chose to live in this area on purpose to gain exactly the benefits I’ve listed.

2. I ride “like I mean it” — a phrase I borrowed from Keri Caffrey, of Commute Orlando, who uses it to mean taking your rightful place in traffic and driving your bicycle like a vehicle. Check out the first video on my page of must-see videos. Riding this way is easier in Springfield’s urban core.

How do we make Springfield even more bicycle-friendly so the folks in our suburbs can enjoy the benefits?

I mentioned retrofitting, which could include creating greenways that connect across neighborhoods, to retail areas, and to other greenways. I’ve also mentioned the 1-MS and keeping a bicycle at work. What else is possible?

I’ve been doing a lot of reading lately about urban planning, transportation, and the so-called great reset. The ideas I’m encountering, and the demographics of our area, tell me that suburbia as currently designed is not sustainable in a world of energy limits — a world we must prepare for.

How do we do that?

Technorati Tags: 1-mile Solution, bicycle advocacy, bicycle politics, bicycle video, cycling, sustainability, Transportation Planning, Urban and Regional Planning, urban design, Urban Planning, utility cycling, walking

We have been living “car lite” for a year. We own a 1996 Honda Civic. I drive it so little that my wife now accuses me of losing my driving skills. I think I’m simply a lot more careful I’m probably just kidding myself.

I’m happy to report that we have survived and thrived. Only once in the last year did we encounter a moment in which we wished we had a second car. I was expecting it to be more difficult. But, then, we’d been living car lite to a certain extent because I just haven’t been driving much in the last six years.

I’m still using my bicycle and my feet as basic transportation. My wife and daughter have increased their bicycling and walking. These methods are now our first choice as a family when we go out together — to the movies, the theater, the grocery, the music halls, the restaurants, and the civic events.

I’ve crowed before about this being easy. Part of the reason living car lite is easy for us is that we chose to live in Springfield’s urban core. We are 2.25 miles from the heart of downtown. I am .75 miles from work. My daughter is 1 mile from school. We have plenty of commercial services and retail within a mile of home. We are ready for the Great Reset.

Others are not so lucky. And that’s why I continue to push the 1-mile Solution and Keep a Bicycle at Work. And, others have very different values — especially in this area where having a home on 3 to 5 acres in the country is part of the attraction if one is willing to pay the price.

My daughter took the written driver’s test the other day in order to get a learner’s permit. She hadn’t studied. Couldn’t be bothered. She failed the test (missing mostly legal technicalities), but not by much. She’s learned a lot about traffic riding as a part of it on her bicycle. Back in the day when I was her age, to fail that test would have been a disaster — personally and socially. Not for her generation.

Her attitude was “meh.” She’s just really not interested in driving a car.

Technorati Tags: 1-mile Solution, bicycle advocacy, bicycle culture, cycling, sustainability, utility cycling

This idea is related to the 1-mile Solution. Basically, there are some people who cannot commute by bicycle. But some of these folks might be able to keep a bicycle at work to use for short trips around town. A teacher might ride to the administration building. A reporter might ride to an  interview. An insurance salesman might ride to a client’s house or office. Riding to lunch might become a fashionable thing to do when the weather is nice.

Just a few short trips per month would begin to pay nice benefits. I’m thinking an employer that pays mileage might really appreciate an employee’s choosing to ride a bicycle now and then.

Now it’s time to consider a few practical matters:

1. What kind of bicycles lend themselves to this use?
2. Where/how should bicycles be stored at a place of business?
3. Could employers be convinced to provide minimal accommodations?
4. Could employers be encouraged to provide bicycles?
5. What can the city do to encourage business riders?

Technorati Tags: 1-mile Solution, bicycle advocacy, Business and Economy, cycling, transportation, utility cycling