making bikes more practical in america

Imagine giving millions of American families tax free rebates of thousands of dollars a year ($5k to $10k would be common) and making a big dent on obesity.  It has been demonstrated in other parts of the world, but it may be politically impossible in America. 

We've mentioned John Pucher of Rutgers.  He has done public policy studies on human powered transportation for some time and has carefully sorted out why biking works in Northern Europe and not in the US.   Recently he put together a three part summary in Momentum Magazine

part one focuses on safety

part two on parking

part three on training (cyclists and drivers) and restricting cars

He argues that a systematic approach is needed to make biking a mainstream activity.  The countries where biking is practical spent decades getting there.  It is possible in the US and some cities are going in that direction, but baring dramatic external forces (say $10 gallon gasoline), it seems unlikely that widespread bike use in coming anytime soon. 

snip

Cycling remains a marginal mode of transport in most North American cities because it is widely viewed as requiring special equipment and training, physical fitness, and the courage and willingness to battle with motor vehicles on streets without separate bike lanes or paths. Cycling is a mainstream mode of urban travel in Northern Europe precisely because it does not require any of those things.

Providing safe and convenient rights of way is the most important element in making cycling possible for everyone, but it alone is not sufficient. The remaining two articles in this series examine other, complementary and necessary policies.

There are clearly health and family-level economic benefits if you can bike safely and can shed a car.  A few towns and cities are moving in that direction, but try to present some of these ideas to your local city council.  

A video of one of John's talks is here.  

Perhaps a marketing approach is necessary.  In the early sixties motorcycles were considered unrespectable.  Something big, noisy and ridden by someone you wouldn't want your kids to know.   Honda had a brilliant ad campaign to introduce a very small 50cc motorcycle - "You Meet the Nicest People on a Honda"

Bikes seen to be used for recreation rather than utility in the US.  Bicycle companies sponsor racing, but this only addresses a small segment of the population.  I haven't seen the message that regular people can use bikes for some of their trips.   

Making a real dent in a land where the car is so entrenched is tough sledding and I would imagine any policies that severely discourage cars are non-starters.   If biking can be made safer through bike paths and better intersections, perhaps a larger segment of the population would use them.  It may be possible to have a larger positive impact than high speed rail would give for a fraction of the cost and with the added benefit of a healthier population. 

Comments

[sara]

i go through some frightening sections of road to use my bike. last year i was in amsterdam for a week and thought it was a biking paradise. you really don't need a car there and people look so much healthier than the round citizens we have in america.

i save so much not having a car that i'm comfortable on what i make as a grad student.

[Karen Murphy]

The change is going to have to be organic; in other words, increased awareness so that people know that cycling is a viable method of transportation, infrastructure assistance for cyclists, better/cheaper/more prevalent bikes, are all going to have to happen at the same time. There's a huge difference in attitude toward cyclists across the US: I used to ride in rural Pennsylvania where bikes were an uncommon sight for sport/exercise only, contrasted with Vancouver BC and Portland OR where it's just another mode of transportation. It will continue to spread but it's going to happen slowly, I think, without a major impetus (like $10 gas).