More people riding their bikes than driving their cars?

[surgtech1956]

I've seen more people riding their bikes this week, even though its been chilly. Maybe people are finally deciding that the gas prices are too high? But then people are just flying pass me on the expressway(I'm doing 65 mph in a 70 mph zone) - I can almost see the dollar bills spitting out of their exhaust. Today DGF & I went shopping to a outlet mall and saw a bike parked outside of a store - someone's commuter with mustache bars. Never seen these mustache bars up close before.

[Trek420]

Never seen these mustache bars up close before.

Uh oh, now you know you're going to want some. :p

[Becky]

I've seen more people riding their bikes this week, even though its been chilly. Maybe people are finally deciding that the gas prices are too high?

I've noticed this too. I can't decide if it's that gas prices are too high or that its getting warmer here. I suspect that it's a combination of both.

I'm just glad to be commuting by bike again, even if it is only a couple of days a week. I'm a much happier person when I get to ride more and my wallet certainly appreciates filling up the car less :)

[bmccasland]

Yeah, I'll be consulting the maps, again, to see if I can find a moderately safe route between my home and office. There's this 1.5 mile part... And I want to commute on my comfort bike, it has the paniers, not on my road bike. I don't mind being slower, but I don't want to get smashed.

[badger]

I'm lucky in that I live close enough to work that I don't need to drive. In the 2 years that I've been commuting year round, I've seen a huge influx in cyclists and walkers.

Construction around here wreaks so much havoc that I can ride faster than I would in my car, so it's a no-brainer for me.

It's great to see more people leaving their cars behind, I think I've saved about $200 worth of gas a year by cycling to work.

[Trek420]

If more people are riding, taking public transit - why in my state are they doing this? From my inbox:

The state budget, under consideration now in Sacramento, includes cuts of $19 million in AC Transit operating funds, starting July 1. With fuel costs skyrocketing, these budget cuts will mean a huge funding shortfall, leading to both fare increases and service reductions. Statewide, the proposed budget would slash $1.4 billion from public transit.


AC Transit is fighting to reverse these cuts, but the Governor needs to hear the voices of bus riders! Please call the Governor to tell him that AC Transit cannot afford to lose this funding. Let him know how important bus service is for you.


A phone call is the most effective, but a faxed letter or online comment is good, too. Thank you for your help!

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
(916) 445-2841 (phone)
(916) 558-3160 (fax)

For more information on the transit budget crisis, visit www.caltransit.org or www.transcoalition.org.

[mimitabby]

and bus ridership is up too. From the Seattle PI:

During the first few months of 2008, King County Metro Transit buses averaged 376,000 boardings per day, a 6 percent increase over a year earlier, said Metro Transit spokeswoman Linda Thielke. In April, there were 395,000 boardings -- a record.

[redrhodie]

Yes to more bikes here. Every time I go into the LBS, they're swamped. I really hope they're doing as well as it looks they are! There also seems to be a lot of action at the supermarket bike rack, which makes me think more people are running errands by bike. I'm down to driving maybe twice a week.

Driving so little is making me not maintain my car as well as I used to. It hasn't been washed, and the oil change is way overdue. I really should do those things. I just hate the whole car thing.

[F8th637]

My MIL asked me the same question but at the time I told her I only really had one year's worth of experience under me to really determine whether it was indeed an increase of people riding their bikes. Now I feel more confident that the answer to that question is a resounding YES. I have seen more plains-clothes cyclists on the roads and more people whom I suspect park their cars somewhere to ride their bikes in at least part way on the trail. There are 7 bikes on the bike rack in the parking garage today where before there'd only be the usual 2 or 3. I think people are trying in some way to save some gas and are taking it to the streets instead.

[frnz]

Oh my GOD. It's single-occupancy, low gas mileage drivers that should be punished, not responsible citizens using mass transit.

[kfergos]

According to this CNN poll, people really are driving significantly less: http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/06/09/chart.gas.prices/index.html This must translate into more cyclists, even of the majority of people use buses, trains, etc. I too have noticed far more people commuting than I ever have before, and I smile and wave at every single one.

Speaking of which, I've been the Lone Crazy Bike Commuter at my job since I joined two years ago. ...Until a couple weeks ago. A pair of new hires bike to work too! My excitement at this development can't be overstated. Now I just have to not scare them off with my enthusiasm :p

[mimitabby]

Speaking of which, I've been the Lone Crazy Bike Commuter at my job since I joined two years ago. ...Until a couple weeks ago. A pair of new hires bike to work too! My excitement at this development can't be overstated. Now I just have to not scare them off with my enthusiasm :p

that is fantastic!! congrats on that!

[PscyclePath]

Our agency moved to a new complex way out in an industrial park, but just off one of the local bike trails last August. A 27-mile commute for me, one-way... Plus, if you don't bring your lunch, it's a 7 to 10 mile round trip out to the nearest local fast food joint or restaurant. The hospital next door opened a cafeteria back the middle of last month,and that proved to be a key ingredient for me, at least. I'd been bike commuting two or three times a month just for the change in pattern, but last month I got after it in earnest. I drive to a commuter lot on the south side of town (12 miles), park, unload the bike, and then ride the last 7 to 9 miles (depending on the exact route). Keeps me off the freeways and beltway, which are major gas savings. I usually burn a little more than 3/4s tank of gas on the weekly commute, when I bike commute at least 4 out of the 5 days, I use only a little more than 1/4 tank. Significant, when it's a Dodge Ram pickup...

Several others in our little biking circle have gotten serious on the commuting trend, and several other co-workers are doing it a lot more often.

I used to not see anyone else out there when riding in, but now I pass quite a few folks out on their bikes with backpacks...

Tom

[Aggie_Ama]

DH and I started commuting this year and we do a hybrid commute like Pscycle. We park at a grocery store halfway between work and home then ride 12-14 miles to work. By doing this we cut the bill on his Dodge Ram to $50/week or half a tank. We are filling up my car every 7 days instead of every 5 days. And in a few months we will realize the savings of pushing the timing of oil changes back, we had been changing on miles but should be changing on months now. Our commuters will probably pay for themselves by the end of the year. We are shooting for three days a week but have only made it two so far. It is an adjustment getting up 40 minutes earlier but well worth it.

I am the only bike commuter at my job even though many employees live within a 5 mile radius. Everyone who finds out I commute thinks I am crazy. I just tell them how much money I am saving and how much fun I am having doing it. :) You can just see the jealousy when I say $50 a week is saved.

I notice a lot of people riding with back packs. I do believe there is a lot of new commuters. Also our buses are experiencing a spike in ridership. In Texas mass transit is not a thing people have used in the past.

[kiwi girl]

Its happening down here too. On Monday morning at one set of lights I stopped at riding in to work there were 6 cyclists at that one stop - and its winter here and it was 0 degrees celcius at the time.

I've really noticed that there hasn't been the normal winter drop off in cycle commuters this year.

NZ $2 a litre might be the tipping point for a lot of people.

[obie]

Noticed here, too (Boston/Cambridge/Somerville). Yesterday was absolutely gross - mid-90s and HUMID - and as I rode into Boston for the Sox game, I have never ever ever seen so many people on bikes commuting back out of town. At every intersection there were 5-10. It was unbelievable! Especially because it was so gross out; I would have thought that lots of new commuters (and plenty of veteran commuters) would be turned off by the sweat and heat.

And as for buses, I was stuck behind one today on the ride in, and I was amazed to see how many people were getting on.

Things are changing!

[Aggie_Ama]

They are breaking new ground on a grocery store one mile from my house, sounds like a good excuse to get one of these. Right now the closest store is a 10 mile bike ride.

[PscyclePath]

They are breaking new ground on a grocery store one mile from my house, sounds like a good excuse to get one of these. Right now the closest store is a 10 mile bike ride.

Grocery-bag panniers would probably be a better investment... I tried tooling around with one of these tricycles a couple of weeks ago when we were helping out with an event at the local bike rental place. It just felt wierd, and wobbly...

A good set of panniers will hold about as much and the bike will likely be easier for you.

And yep... it's 15 miles from my little abode to the nearest grocery store of any sort.

Tom

[Trek420]

It just felt wierd, and wobbly...

Wobbly? :confused: I would think it would feel stable yet slower :confused:

There's a grocery store mmmm, 3 blocks from me. More of my neighbors walk there now, walk back with the carts :mad: leave the carts in the green space round here.

I get a sprint workout. Like last night ran 4 carts out to the sidewalk so the guy who picks up "escaped carts" can find them :mad:

[Aggie_Ama]

A good set of panniers will hold about as much and the bike will likely be easier for you.



Well my commuter bike is a road bike and is comfortable with a moderate load but not sure about groceries.

Maybe I can get a BOB trailer and connect it to my mountain bike? My husband thinks I am crazy but my real reason is I want to park near the exit. :p

[Tuckervill]

The middle school near here has a bunch of bikes, and I helped with a race they had on Field Day. Two of the bikes are trikes like that one, for kids who need them. Apparently no one who actually needs the trikes actually rides them. Two boys hopped on and did the entire race with one rear wheel cocked up off the ground! Needless to say they were very slow, but they were having the BEST time, and I wanted to try it, but I was afraid to "go there" and get in trouble with the other adults. lol.

Karen

[Melalvai]

They are breaking new ground on a grocery store one mile from my house, sounds like a good excuse to get one of these. [picture of trike]
Or get a trailer.

[surgtech1956]

The other day we were on the expressway and passed this one exit where there is a I call it a 'park and ride' - where people leave their cars to carpool, the lot was packed with at least 30 cars. Over the years the most I've seen there were maybe 5-6 cars.

[bikerHen]

Well my commuter bike is a road bike and is comfortable with a moderate load but not sure about groceries.

Maybe I can get a BOB trailer and connect it to my mountain bike? My husband thinks I am crazy but my real reason is I want to park near the exit. :p

A+ recomendation for a BOB trailer. I got one for christmas and have been using it to haul all sorts of things. I got an "atta girl" for beating the cost of gas, from an elderly gentleman as I was loading BOB up at the grocery store on Monday. :D

And . . . I saw four bike commuters on my way home yesterday. That's three more than I have ever seen on my commutes! bikerHen

[Geonz]

http://www.wildberrys.org.uk/non_blog_images/xtracycle2.jpg

This is the creature to get, tho' now they are getting so popular they're hard to find.

(here's mine: )

http://probicycle.com/uticyclist/sj_xtracycle_s.jpg


You can put it on the bike you have. Turns the back of hte bike into the back seat of a car.

[Aggie_Ama]

Sue- You're my idol. Actually that is pretty darn cool.

The store is still a year or more from completion, so it is not any time soon. I might convert my mountain bike to an errand bike with a rigid fork and do the BOB trailer. My mountain bike was always intended to be a starter. She doesn't see the trail enough but she does get me to the community swimming pool! It is so odd all the neighbors will drive the .5 mile to the pool. It is a 10 minute walk from any house in the neighborhood, takes us 2 minutes or less to bike!

I met another commuter today who has just started. He was lamenting that I was riding way too fast to keep up. :p On Mondays I usually see Mr. Gary Fisher, that is what I call him since he rides his Gary Fisher and talks to me. He just started for this year, did some last summer.

[mudmucker]

Geonz, I love that!

I've just started commuting myself. A 22 mi one-way trip biking with still a half hour or so 30 mile drive. I posted in another commuter thread earlier. I have a 104 mi/day roundtrip to work. I saved 88 miles of driving this week. I see several commuters on the road, but I am probably new to them as I've just started.

Unfortunately there are no buses and trains where I am. The nearest commuter train is still a 25 minute drive and it wouldn't take me northwest to Lowell where I work, but due east into Boston.

I know many people I talk to are very conscious on saving trips, thinking twice about that trip to the store until they can bundle it up with other errands nearby. I think it really is on the forefront of people's minds. Although these people I know wouldn't get groceries with a bike.

My nearest really good has everything grocery store is about 14 miles in either direction. There is one closer convenience store for emergencies that is about 6 miles although there is a 3 mile hill between me and it on the way back. If I wanted yogurt or anything good like that I'd have to go the 14. I make a lot of things from scratch just to save me a trip to the store.

Since I still am driving for my commute to work I always stop to get groceries on the way home. But I am going to refurbish my old mt bike and make it into a commuter of sorts. It has a broken sun-tour derailler, now obsolete (now you know how old it is - front suspension, what is that). A friend actually sold me an entire xtr used gruppo for $60 so I'll overhaul with that. I have an old rack with panniers from the early 90's which are still in excellent condition.

Right now there are quite a few existing rail trails throughout the state here in MA. Some link to each other, some link to those in NH. The longer ones seem to go north-south. There are a few proposed rail trails. My company is bidding to do the environmental permitting on a 26-miler that goes from Danvers through Newburyport past Salisbury Beach up to the MA-NH line. I would be jealous over that one. There is also one that is proposed in Townsend. Unfortunately here in MA, several abutters are contesting the rail trails. NIMBY, Not in My Backyard.

Even though our state budget is hurting like everyone else's, I think there is a new mindset as there is funding for these rail trails. As gas prices increase I believe there will be pressure for things to happen.

[Melalvai]

A+ recomendation for a BOB trailer. I got one for christmas and have been using it to haul all sorts of things. I got an "atta girl" for beating the cost of gas, from an elderly gentleman as I was loading BOB up at the grocery store on Monday.
I think the Xtracycles are very cool, but I don't have one. (yet.)
I used a Bob trailer once and hated it. Everyone I know either loves it or hates it.
For a very cheap trailer, buy a used kiddie trailer. Even if the cloth or plastic seats are unusable, it's really easy to take the axle & hitch off the old trailer and put it on a piece of plywood. Or just use it as is until the plastic falls apart, then salvage it.

[KnottedYet]

I have "plans" for SKnot's Kona Smoke, when he outgrows it.

Mmmm, 26" wheels, sturdy steel frame, comfortable stable geometry, simple reliable components.... Xtracycle!!!!

The boy is almost 6' these days... got it for a 5'8" rider... I can see the future, and the future is almost now! ;)

[Trek420]

Knott, where do you "plan" to put this? Are there x-tra bike racks :p

[KnottedYet]

Weeeellll... this is the bike that currently lives in the dining room. I figure there is enough room along the wall to accommodate the extra length of an Xtracycle.

or there's always the bathtub. 23 3/4 of the day it is the idea bike storage area! :D

[Becky]

Maybe I can get a BOB trailer and connect it to my mountain bike? My husband thinks I am crazy but my real reason is I want to park near the exit. :p

Get the BOB! We love ours! We just did a grocery store run with it the other night, and packed so much stuff into it. They're building a grocery store that's right on our commute home from work. This time next year, we'll be able to take the BOB to work one day a week and shop on our way home. (Though I don't know how well ice cream will fare...)

[Trek420]

Refrigerated Bob Trailer?

[Blueberry]

Soft sided cooler for the ice cream??

[runner2]

I have been commuting since there is light out in 7am, like everyone else I am still trying to find out why the gas price is sky high, and as you know most of the reasons are out of our control. I will commute to work even the price is 99 cents per/g, because a easy morning run and commuting are the best way to start my day, and I live close to the office.:)

And I would like to see more commuters on the road, that means less cars around me.:)

Be safe all.

[TahoeDirtGirl]

I find when I ride in the morning I can deal with the rest of my day better.

I notice people riding in the a.m. but I'm not sure they are commuting though. I live in a rural area of Mass and if I see someone wearing a bike jersey I'm not sure if they are commuting.

You know, when people start complaining about the gas prices, I say there is a silver lining- people are more mindful of what they buy now, they don't waste food because heck, you can't afford it and they are taking to the roads by walking or riding. More exercise means people might be a little more laid back, and less crappy air too!

[mimitabby]

wow, today riding home i went the long way because i had to go to the library.
I passed an invisible cyclist going up the hill (he was on the sidewalk), and a couple of school kids on bikes (walking their bikes up the hill) then i went left a couple miles to the library, did my thing and continued home, where I passed the invisible cyclist again, still riding on the sidewalk. While passing him I was passed by a younger woman on a bike (no helmet) barreling through traffic. As i passed a bunch of stores, I saw yet another cyclist, a 60 something man, looking very happy on his bike on the sidewalk. That's a lot of bikes for a commute day!!

[GLC1968]

It's interesting. I see a ton of people on bikes. TONS...every day. I'm sure this is partly due to being in the Portland metro area where bicycling is hugely popular to begin with...but I'm sure part of it has to do with gas prices. I find myself thinking about the 'wave to other cyclists' debate and now I see how there could be too many people on bikes to make waving at each one utterly impossible. It's a very different cycling world here from what I experienced in NC!

I will say that while I see way more cyclists here than I ever did in NC, I also see many, many more of them riding without helmets. It was a very rare occurance to see a cyclist without a helmet in NC, but here it seems fairly common place. I wonder why the difference?

[Grog]

I will say that while I see way more cyclists here than I ever did in NC, I also see many, many more of them riding without helmets. It was a very rare occurance to see a cyclist without a helmet in NC, but here it seems fairly common place. I wonder why the difference?

Portland DOES have a whole lotta cyclists. Vancouver, BC, has lots of commuters, but I noticed when I first visited Portland last December, and again just recently, that the Portland ones seem more numerous, and more dedicated, too. And they have much more cool gear (like YELLOW fenders).

I think the helmetlessness (!) you observe may be similar to that seen in many European commuter cycling meccas like Amsterdam. Just like driving, for North Americans, is not perceived as something that's dangerous (despite enormous evidence to the contrary!!), cycling also feels less dangerous when there's a mass of people practicing it, when it's practiced daily, and when there are some proper infrastructures to practice it.

Whether or not it is true that it's safer is a complex statistical matter. My own take has been to wear a helmet for commuting and road riding here in my corner of the continent. However if I was riding a Dutch bike in the middle of Amsterdam, I'm not sure what I'd end up doing. Our social mind plays tricks on us...

On the thread topic: I have just started commuting in my new area so it's hard for me to make an enlightened observation, but my father-in-law who's been road riding (not for commuting) for years on a few of the local bike routes says he's never seen so many cyclists around 4 p.m. on that route...

[Jolt]

I've been seeing more people on bikes here in Worcester lately, although I wish a lot of them would learn to ride properly in traffic (and I'm not even talking about the ones who ride on the sidewalks instead of the road). Today a guy was riding on the wrong side of the road right toward me (I was running errands on my bike) and recently as I was riding down a really busy street some MORON was not only on the wrong side, but weaving in and out of traffic going the wrong way and could easiily have ended up hitting me head on!! :eek: I like to see more people out on bikes, but I don't like having to dodge them when they're not where they should be. Maybe somebody should do a class in this area on riding in traffic.

[Crankin]

Jolt,
Did you get a RN job yet? Just wondering...
Robyn

[Jolt]

Jolt,
Did you get a RN job yet? Just wondering...
Robyn

Working on it--the market is really tough for new grads here right now (and in Boston too). I've been doing my darndest, applying at every hospital in the area, but most of the positions are only hiring experienced nurses. That said, I had an interview last week (on another floor at the hospital where I had worked as an aide last year--the floor I worked on didn't have any positions available) that went really well and I am supposed to be hearing something by Friday. So, hopefully I get that job--it's a general surgical floor, which would be a good place to start out, the schedule would work with school, and it's extremely close to where I live. Stay tuned...

[lauraelmore1033]

I used to see a handful of hardcore roadie commuters here in Everett, but I've been seeing more and more people on mountain bikes and hybrids navigating the sidewalks around retail centers with extremely heavy traffic, like Everett Mall way (not even the hardcore ride on Everett Mall Way, but then the Interurban trail does go right to the mall). I have NEVER seen any other bikes in the rack at my grocery store in the year or so since I started making grocery runs by bike, though. People used to look at me like I was insane when I first started, but now people will come up and ask questions about the bike or the panniers, or they will comment about how "that looks handy". I've never been yelled at while hauling groceries, as I have been while out on the road bike. I guess it looks like I'm doing something productive...

[shootingstar]

Hard to know if there are alot more cyclists now in our area compared to several years ago..unless I ask for statistics.

I live downtown and already live in an area where there are already on-road and off-road bike paths and routes.

However methinks that people respond to me on the idea of bike commuting more positively when they see me in my gear with more general acceptance and not totally strange (but still we're abit rare) compared to 10 years ago when I commuted by bike.

Their positive attitude is more on becoming fit/more healthy vs. saving gas money...so far.

I still think there is a huge difference between volume of regular cyclists in downtown core area vs. the sprawling suburbs. Where I work in the suburbs, it's highly unusual to see a cyclist on the road vs. bobbling on the sidewalk. Of course, I don't cycle in this area because my commute is too long already, but also there are too many transport and construction trucks and heavy equipment swinging around/speeding along.

In fact, the cycling advocates representing the suburbs in our area, really have a much tougher time on improved cycling facilities and routes. It's a serious uphill battle for them ...to convince municipal council.

[Trek420]

And in other news: Portland outbikes Copenhagen :D

http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-23138740;_ylc=X3oDMTF1ODRlczZjBF9TAzI3MTYxNDkEX3MDMjcxOTQ4MQRzZWMDZnAtdG9kYXltb2QEc2xrA2Jpa2VjaXRpZXMtMjAwOC03LTEx