Bicycling to work - Census

Okay - this is pretty remarkable.

According to a U.S. Census report released today, bicycling to work has seen a 60-percent increase over the past ten years.  But even cooler from a local standpoint... Boise, Idaho is listed as the #4 "large city" with the highest percentage of transportation cyclists, at 3.7%.  Portland is #1 at 6.1%, and Minneapolis and Madison, WI, are both ahead of us... but we have more cyclists per capita than such traditional cycling cities as Seattle, San Francisco, and Tucson.  (Nationwide, the Census people say 0.6% of people use bikes to get to work.)

Why the uptick?  Here's my "expert analysis" (nudge-nudge, wink-wink):
- Gas is considerably more expensive than it was 10 years ago.
- Despite suggestions to the contrary, the economy is still pretty stagnant; people have to economize.
- The young adults of 2014 don't have the same perception of a fancy single-occupant vehicle as their parents did.  It's no longer an essential symbol of status and "success."

I expect bicycles-as-transportation will continue to become more popular over the next ten years.

Might Boise move up on the list?

I sure don't know why not!

Think about it - the weather and "geography" of Boise are more bike-friendly than those of Portland or either of those Northern-Midwest cities.  We get less rain than any of them... a lot less than Portland.  Our winters are shorter and milder than Minneapolis or Madison winters.  And our terrain is relatively flat.

More and more, the local administrators seem to be willing to provide accommodations for casual or timid cyclists... witness the month-long test project downtown.

What's working against us?

Urban sprawl will always be the enemy of bicycle transportation.  People who live in their Little Piece of Country Heaven, 20 or 25 miles from where they work and 5 miles from where they shop, are never likely to do much bike-transportation, all other things remaining the same.

We are lacking in education and enforcement.  There are still too many idiots-on-bikes who either don't know how to use the public roadways, or are willfully disobeying the rules of safety and common sense.  And as long as there are no consequences, that's unlikely to change.  (As the percentage of cyclists increases... MAYBE "peer pressure" will have a positive impact.  If just one guy is hollering "Wrong way!" at the against-traffic cyclists, nothing will change.  But if they get hollered at every block or two, maybe they'll take notice.)

Boise Bike Week starts this Saturday!  I believe we have good reason to celebrate, now more than ever... pick out an event or two or five to participate in. I'd suggest the Pedal Power Parade on Saturday 5/17.

Bike awareness cop car

These are heady times for cyclists in Boise.  The street developers, ACHD, have laid down several miles of "demonstration" bike lanes downtown... at the expense of car lanes on significant thoroughfares.  They will remain in place for a month, and citizens are asked to comment on them.

I've tried the bike lane up Capitol Boulevard... I won't use it regularly because it's off my most direct route.  But I can say confidently it's a boon for cyclists who travel that way... but at what cost?  A traffic lane can carry a lot of cars, that are suddenly squeezed into other lanes.

I've got this theory - and I may be totally wrong.  Our mayor and ACHD have had some public spats over the years, and the mayor is a proponent of more bike lanes downtown.  I'm suspicious that ACHD is maybe doing this pilot project in such a massive and potentially-disruptive way, specifically so the general public will oppose it, and they can shelve the plans.  (But on the other hand, I have to give props to ACHD... I think they have a track record of including bike infrastructure in their projects, when it makes sense.  Does it make sense to steal traffic lanes and on-street parking for downtown bike lanes?  I s'pose the community should decide that.)

"But... what about the bike awareness cop car?" you ask.

The police department today deployed a shiny new cop car with bike awareness graphics on it.  Sah-WEEET!

(Now if only they would use it to prosecute scofflaw cyclists... and impatient or inattentive motorists who increase the danger factor for law-abiding cyclists!)

Bike crash season is underway

We're not even through April yet, and already two young riders have been gravely injured (one fatally) in motor-vehicle / bicycle accidents.

A little five-year-old boy was riding with his five-year-old sister on Fairview Avenue (!), when he was struck by a giant cement truck.  Preliminary reports lead me to believe the little fellow was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and went into the side of the big truck.  At last report, he was still in the hospital with serious injuries.

And then on Easter Sunday, 13-year-old Olivia Schnacker was crossing Ustick Road while riding with friends, when she was struck by a car.  It was at the intersection of Jullion Street - there is a crosswalk with flashing lights there, and witnesses seem to believe the lights were activated.

According to a STORY on the KTVB website, the setting sun may have been a factor. I'm sorry - the incident took place "just before 6:30 pm," and the sun set at 8:34pm on April 20. I'm not buyin' that lame excuse! And then the lady gets out of her car, and hysterically cried out, "I'm going to go to jail!"  I should probably feel sympathy for her, but I'm having a hard time summoning it.  I feel bad for poor Olivia, whose life was cut tragically short, and for her family and loved ones.

I wrote a guest opinion over on the BOISE GUARDIAN, urging bicyclists and motorcyclists to be careful! And motorists too! Cyclists do stupid stuff all the time, but usually they're only endangering themselves. I want EVERY motorist to consider how he or she would feel, if he were getting out of his car to survey the damage he just inflicted on a child during a moment of inattentiveness... and drive so that NEVER happens!

Bike/ped infrastructure of the future

It's been awhile since I posted anything.  I hope you are well; I've been busy with lots of things... and at the same time the cycling has been fairly steady.  As the weather is getting nicer, the two-wheeled population is increasing meaningfully; 10 days or so ago, on one of the nice early-spring days, I was riding to the office and saw five cyclists in the bike lane up ahead!  Exciting.  (And also exasperating - the Greenbelt and other popular bike paths get complicated as "amateur hour" begins for another season.)

There is an ongoing discussion about an effort to make downtown Boise more "bike friendly," with additional striped bike lanes, etc.  I commented about it just last month.  (As a "vehicular cyclist," I don't feel a personal/selfish need for improved infrastructure.  But when I put on my "bicycle advocate" hat, I acknowledge that if they build facilities for the casual/timid cyclist, it's likely those cyclists will increase their cycling... perhaps even to the point that they're less casual/timid and will expand their bicycle horizons.)

There's always need for bicycle advocacy... because there are always plenty of non-cyclists who advocate against more bike infrastructure.  They lack the vision, and lack confidence that investments in bike/pedestrian facilities will make the community a better place for everybody.  They only see precious car/truck facilities - part of our culture! - being taken away.

Maybe I lack vision... and occasionally it's good to take a look at "what might be."

In that vein... recently my friend Bob T. emailed me a link about a totally unique bike/pedestrian roundabout in the city of Eindhoven, Netherlands.  It blew my mind!  It's extremely functional, and is also a fantastic melding of art and science.  It's called the "Hovenring."  You've got to see this thing.

"The bridge comprises a 70-metre high pylon, 24 steel cables and a circular bridge deck and is made out of steel. The cables are attached to the inner side of the bridge deck."  So, it's a roundabout with ramps at the corners, that hovers above the motor vehicle intersection.

You'd be hard-pressed to find somebody in the Netherlands who pooh-poohs the idea of bicycles being a significant component of their transportation culture. Maybe if they can put up a Hovenring, it's not preposterous for us to stripe down a few more bike lanes.

More info about the Hovenring can be found HERE. And the video Bob sent me can be seen HERE.

Wildlife viewing

I've enjoyed some early-spring wildlife viewing.

It's not uncommon at all to see a deer along the river banks, as one traverses the Greenbelt.  And any regular cyclist will attest that occasionally you find yourself slowly zig-zagging among the abundant Canada geese.  (For me it invokes the haunting final scene in the Hitchcock classic, The Birds, when Rod Taylor drives his Aston-Martin into the sunset, as millions of birds slowly clear a path for him.)

But a few wildlife viewing opportunities have been a little less common.

I've ridden the Greenbelt out to Eagle Road a couple times this spring.  And on the most recent trip, I saw several swans taking rest in the dredge ponds.  Beautiful!

And a bit farther downstream, it's nesting time for the cormorants... hundreds of 'em perched in the trees.

Even more uncommon in these parts is a giraffe viewing.  Which should convince even the most ardent global warming skeptic.  There was a time when giraffes were rarely spotted outside of Africa.  But Africa's too warm for 'em nowadays.

 

Owning the road

In most places in the USA, cyclists "have all of the rights and all of the duties applicable to the driver of any other vehicle" with few exceptions.  (Idaho statute)

(Obviously, it has to be acknowledged that the laws of physics trump the laws of the state... if your choice of riding location exposes you to irrational danger, being legal may not be much comfort if you're lying in the hospital or morgue.)

Some roadway users refuse to accept that cyclists have a right to be there.  And others - particularly, it seems, drivers of giant pickup trucks - seem to believe that the right to use the road is proportional to the size of the vehicle being operated.  This is obviously something that I often observe - read HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE.

If they ever changed the rules of the road, so that the driver of the big vehicle has priority over the driver of the smaller vehicle, I will start driving one of these...

(Spotted in a neighborhood I occasionally drive through.)

New ridin' buddy

My granddaughter Bonnie turned 1 end of February... I'm thinking she and I are going to enjoy some nice bicycle adventures over the next few months.

We went on our longest ride yet a couple days ago - 11+ miles.  Since I can't see her face except for occasionally when she looks up at me, I have to go on sounds... but the sounds are uniformly happy sounds.  Our long ride was down to the greenbelt; she seemed to really enjoy the sights and sounds of the water.  We also engaged some Canada geese in a low-speed chase (them waddling, we following) across the grass.

On the way home, we swung by the Boise Depot.  If you haven't been there recently, you need to check out the roundabout at the northwest entrance; it's been finished in beautiful style by some mosaic artists... spectacular!