 |
Bike for Peace Campaign
YOU MAY WANT TO IDENTIFY YOURSELF AS PART OF AN INTERNATIONAL CAMPAIGN...
(I make no commission on it)
Come visit my store on CafePress!
This organization is coordinated with us, and it's part of the struggle for space in the jungle...
Bike For Peace
(My motto)
The revolution starts when you ride a bike. You think of it as a kinder, gentler vehicle that will help keep Peace as well as save the Environment, and make you Sexy.
***
Of course, you and I know that BICYCLES ARE SEXIER THAN CARS, right? And yet I suspect that you, too, have friends who just don't see it. Well, help is at hand. Get these benighted souls a copy of Pryor Dodge's book, 'The Bicycle.'
http://www.rightofway.org/littera-scripta/dodge.html
Also, our new campaign "VELORUTION!" at http://webspawner.com/users/donquijote91
NEW: "The best model for our roads: the jungle!" at http://webspawner.com/users/donquijote93
Please check our sister organization, "BikeForPeace.org"
They tell you the home truths few want to hear...
"The war in Iraq isn't for oil, it's a war for Americans convenience to drive their own personal automobiles and to buy cheap subsidized gas."
But they practice what they preach, unlike some "Christians" that drive SUVs...
A SYSTEM THAT GIVES YOU THE FREEDOM TO CHOOSE AMONG 25 MODELS OF SUVs, BUT NOT THE FREEDOM TO RIDE A BIKE, CANNOT POSSIBLY BE CALLED "DEMOCRATIC" OR "CHRISTIAN."
Remember, JESUS RODE A DONKEY. ;)
Please see 'RIDING A BIKE COSTS PEANUTS' at http://webspawner.com/users/donquijote88
The Revolution Will Not be Motorized
by Robin Buckallew
So you say you want a revolution? Well, we all want to change the world. So what? Quit bitching and moaning, quit bellyaching, and get off your duff. There is no way to change the world by sitting on your ass in an air conditioned room, even if you listen to nothing but early Dylan and read nothing but Hunter Thompson. You can’t change the world unless you change yourself first. As Gandhi used to say, “Be the change you want to see in the world”.
http://www.faulkingtruth.com/Articles/GlobalWarning/1054.html
*WORLDWIDE CAMPAIGN TO TAKE THE LANE*
Yes, why not. If we are some more than a nuisance to drivers, then we too belong in the lane, the middle of the lane that is, since we can't be happy with the scraps of riding in the gutter, and then be terrorized there too, like when the bigger vehicle blows the horn with the same intention the lion uses his roar: INTIMIDATION. As if their mere presence wasn't enough to send everybody running.
Well, no more. BICYCLES BELONG TOO. Don't let fear make you miss a healthy, fun and moral lifestyle. EVOLUTION IS PART OF LIFE. DINOSAURS ARE A THING OF THE PAST! The Jungle may never be the same...
***
"When overtaking a bicyclist, motorists are worried about how close vehicles in the adjacent or oncoming lanes are rather than how close they are coming to the bicyclist - and they are certainly in too much of a hurry to stop and wait for a gap in traffic before pulling out and safely passing a rider."
http://www.bicyclinginfo.org/ee/enforce_motorist.htm
You know, many out there --even some cyclists-- deny that there's a problem for bikes on our wild roads. I say, "Hey, kids are much more honest"...
Originally Posted by Ed Holland
"I think this must be the worst case of cyclist inferiority syndrome we have ever seen?"
The 99.6% of commuters who do NOT use a bike to work seem to agree with me. Even KIDS understand this...
Question
Why do so many people who ride bicycles ride in the streets when there is a sidewalk nearby?
Now I ride my bike all the time and definitely stay on the sidewalks... so why do so many people ride in the streets and slow traffic and risk getting hit? It's sooo annoying and stupid (in my opinion)
Answerer 4
By law, a bicycle is a vehicle and belongs in the street.
Of course, common sense says that a bicycle is too frail for being in motor vehicle traffic.
Conclusion: THERE IS NO PROPER PLACE FOR BICYCLES.
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080610182657AArONFj
***
Source: "Green Urbanism: Learning from European Cities," by Timothy
Beatley.
Bicycles as a legitimate form of mobility.
There are few mobility options more environmentally-friendly than
bicycles. They are zero emissions, take up relatively little space,
are inexpensive, are available to the young and old alike, and provide
their users with important physical exercise. In the United States and
many other developed countries, we have ignored or "forgotten" this
relatively low-tech mobility option. Yet, in many northern European
cities, bicycles are a significant and legitimate mobility option and
an increasingly important part of the transportation mix there.
Bicycle use as a percentage of the modal split is consistently much
higher in most of the cities examined in this study and vigorously
promoted as a more environmentally friendly mode, which provides
greater mobility than the automobile (specially for shorter
distances). Most of the cities studied here have developed, and
continue to develop, extensive and impressive bicycle networks. Berlin
has 800 kilometers of bike lanes and Frieburg has 410 kilometers.
Vienna has more than doubled its bicycle network since the late 1980s
and now has more than 500 kilometers. Copenhagen has about 300
kilometers of bike lanes and now has a policy of *installing bike lanes
along all major streets*. Bicycle use there has gone up 65 per cent
since 1970. These cities show commitment to making bicycle use easy
and safe, and they reveal the key ingredients to building
bicycle-friendly cities.
Bicycle use in these exemplary cities is year-round proposition.
Summer use of bicycles is usually higher in northern cities such as
Copenhagen, where 40 per cent of work-commutes are by bicycle during
these months. Nevertheless, in Copenhagen some 70 per cent of those
normally bicycling also bicycle to work during the winter months.
Similar experience can be found in Finnish cities, suggesting that the
notion that bicycling is feasible or acceptable only in ideal weather
is untrue. That such high rates of usage can be achieved in northern
European cities suggests *great promise for American cities*. And, while
bicycles are specially promising for shorter trips, it is clear that
many people are prepared to ride their bicycles considerable
distances. It has been estimated that in Copenhagen, an average
bicycle commute is 7 kilometer, or about 20 minutes --many commutes
are longer, which indicates that many residential areas will, given
facilities and safe routes, be within a reasonable bicycle commuting
range.
WHAT I PROPOSE:
Public transportation should be A1. (The city of Curitiba, in Brazil,
offers us a functional model of transportation; BICYCLE LANES
SHOULD BE IMPLEMENTED ALONG ALL MAJOR
STREETS.)
...
LETTER OF SUPPORT:
I am glad that the conversation includes some of the root causes of
our attitude to the rest of the world. This country is truly addicted
to oil, and we behave just like an addict in that sense - nothing else
matters as long as we can continue to feed our addiction...
It is true that there are things to be learned from the European
cities to make this country less oil dependent. I would suggest
reading "Asphalt Nation" which points out that those who are most
affected by our automobile dependent country are those whose voices
aren't heard: the poor, the young, and the old, who for reasons beyond
their control do not have access to the freedom of movement given to
us who use a car. This is a tough problem for a community to consider.
As a long time bicycle commuter in Miami ( I have over 45,000 commuter
miles logged on three bikes), I disagree with the idea that you can't
ride a bike in S. Florida. Yes, you do end up getting wet (either due
to internal or external factors) on most days. Yes, we do need bike
lanes (NOT BIKE PATHS) added to the streets to separate autos from
bikes from pedestrians. None of those three methods of transportation
are compatible with sharing the same space. That doesn't prevent us
from doing what we can - taking advantage of the bike racks that have
been added to the Metro Busses to allow one to only ride part of the
way (the same can be done at MetroRail), dressing appropriately,
taking a change of clothes (including a towel) in your backpack (along
with a spare tube), and most importantly letting the local government
know that these are important issues to us.
Source: book 'Home Ecology,' by Karen Christensen
When I mentioned that I was thinking of getting a bicycle to two male
friends, both regular bike riders, they were horryfied. A passing bus
would blow me over--IT WAS NOT SAFE. There's no doubt that the
main problem for a bike rider is the sheer mass of metal which threatens
you every time you venture out, and in a collision the person on the bike
is always the one at risk. Many drivers behave appallingly badly to bike
riders, while others are simply oblivious of us.
...
A transport strategy giving high priority to bicycles would change
everything. How wonderful it would be to have separate bicycle paths,
plenty of marked bicycle routes...
***
CITIES TURNING TO BICYCLES TO
CUT COSTS, POLLUTION, AND CRIME
by Gary Gardner
For safer streets, less congestion, and cleaner air, the bicycle is
poised to become an integral part of urban transportation systems for
the 21st century, says the Worldwatch Institute in a new report. Too
often relegated to weekend jaunts and children's use, bicycles are
emerging as a solution to some of today's most intractable urban
problems.
Putting bicycles to work could produce enormous savings, like reduced
air and noise pollution, better land use, less congestion and lower
health costs. "Americans drive cars and taxis more than 1.5 trillion
miles each year," said Gary Gardner, author of "When Cities Take
Bicycles Seriously," an article in the September/October issue of
World Watch. "Shifting just 5 percent of those miles to bicycles would
save at least $100 billion."
Much of urban travel is already "bike-sized": 40 percent of all trips
in the United States (and 50 percent in Britain) are 2 miles or
shorter. More than 25 percent of all trips are under a mile in the
United States. "Cycling could eliminate some of these short,
air-polluting trips," Gardner said, citing estimates that 90 percent
of emissions in a 7-mile trip are generated in the first mile before
the engine warms up.
Strong support from citizens and local officials has been driving new
bike policies around the world. In several major cities in the
Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany, bicycles now account for 20 to 30
percent of all trips. In many Asian cities, the bicycle's share of
trips is even higher, accounting for more than half of all trips in
some Chinese cities-more than buses, cars, and walking combined. In
stark contrast, bicycles are used for less than 1 percent of all trips
in Canada and the United States.
In addition to bicycles' environmental and health benefits, mayors all
over the world are finding that bicycles can also fight crime and cut
administrative costs. City inspectors, health workers, meter readers,
parks and recreation officials, paramedics, and a host of other
employees can use bikes for at least some of their work.
...
Gardner cites numerous examples of how cities around the world are
encouraging the use of bicycles by making inexpensive but effective
changes in their transportation systems:
-In Muenster, Germany, bus lanes can be used by bicycles, but not by
cars. Special lanes near intersections feed cyclists to a stop area
ahead of cars, while an advance green light for cyclists ensures that
they get through the intersection before cars behind them begin to
move.
-In Japan, local governments bolstered the "bike and ride" link with
railways. The number of train station bike parking spaces rose from
600,000 in 1977 to nearly 2.4 million in 1987, maintaining the high
levels of railway use despite rising levels of car ownership.
(Construction of covered and locked bike racks costs from $50 to $500
per space-a fraction of the $12,000 to $18,000 to build garage space
for each car.)
-In Lima, Peru, the city set up a micro-credit program to help
low-income citizens buy bicycles. By eliminating dependence on public
transportation, which runs about $25 per month, workers making $200
per month would see their income effectively rise by 8 percent during
the repayment period, and by more than 12 percent once the loan is
paid off.
-Copenhagen's City Bike program makes 2,300 bicycles available for
public use around the city. Users pay 20 krona (about $3) to check out
a two-wheeler, but the fee is refunded when the bike is returned. The
bikes are intensively used: a Danish newspaper reported that the City
Bike it tracked for 12 hours spent only 8 minutes at bike stands
waiting for new patrons. This program is a public-private partnership,
with businesses buying the bikes in return for advertising space on
the bikes.
"By 2025, the share of people living in cities is expected to reach 5
billion," said Gardner. "Increasing bicycle use will be key to making
the urban habitat, now home to nearly half of humanity, a far more
livable space."
***
We need someone like...
"As mayor of Bogota, Colombia, Enrique Penalosa accomplished
remarkable changes of monumental proportions for the people of his
country in just three years.
Penalosa changed the way Bogota treated its non-driving citizens by
restricting automobile use and instituting a bus rapid transit system
which now carries a 1/2 million residents daily. Among other
improvements: he widened and rebuilt sidewalks, created grand public
spaces, and implemented over one hundred miles of bicycle paths."
Random Comments
"Bring Mr. Penalosa to Cleveland please! Seriously, how can you get a
hold off him? Is there any way?"
Comment by GaryE
"Another great example of the power of possibility and creativity.
Just because it had never been done before doesn't mean it couldn't be
done!"
Comment by Clarissa
http://www.streetfilms.org/archives/interview-with-enrique-penalosa-long/
Living Carfree
Bikes are better than cars
Burn the calories!
Copenhagen's City Bike Program
Bicyclist's Decalogue
HOMEPAGE
Send E-Mail to: comandante.banana@yahoo.com
Copyright © 2010 . All Rights Reserved