Government Workers in Tainan Ordered to Cyclo-Commute

After visiting China for almost two weeks last Spring, I flew to Taiwan for a few days. The differences in transportation choices were striking. In China, most people used bicycles or e-bikes. In Taiwan, the vehicle of choice seemed to be the gasoline-powered scooter.

The city of Tainan is doing its part to change this situation by requiring city workers to ride their bicycles, walk or take public transportation to work every Friday. A story in the China Post states that this is "an effort to conserve energy and cut carbon emissions."

Government official in Tainan, Taiwan

The measure is meeting some resistance from city workers. "Those who said they will have difficulty cited reasons such as frequent bicycle thefts, lack of bus stops near their homes, the need to use cars to transport their children to and from school, long distances to the city government offices and the inability to ride a bicycle."

Some female workers also expressed concern regarding their personal safety.

Requiring people to stop driving gasoline-powered vehicles may seem to be a drastic measure. In doing so, the city government in Tainan is recognizing that the problems caused by our dependence on fossil fuels need to be addressed before they cause an irreversible crisis. Cycloculture applauds the bravery of the government officials who made this decision.

Suit and Tie Cycling in the Real World

An article by Ilana DeBare in the business section of the San Francisco Chronicle hints that cycling as a means of transportation is becoming more accepted and encouraged in certain professional firms. The Emeryville architectural firm, Siegel & Strain, reimburses employees who bicycle to business meetings the same 58.5 cents/mile that it gives employees who drive.

The article quotes Nancy Malone, a principal at the firm, as follows, "It's a really effective way for staff to reduce emissions and encourage good health... Our practice is focused on sustainable design, and we had been looking for ways to walk the walk."

Image by Chronicle graphics

What about meetings involving hardhats and other items which are difficult to carry on a standard bicycle? Malone indicates that Siegel & Strain is approaching the possibilities creatively. "In the future, we may look at having an office bike with attachments allowing people to carry a little more - a new version of the company car."

The article is encouraging, as is a related post in Debare's blog, the Village Green, which presents a list of Bay Area companies offering innovative encouragements designed to get employees on bicycles. One company provides employees with $250 toward the purchase of a bicycle. Another company offers free lunches, movie tickets and even massages as rewards to cyclo-commuters.

Electric Tricycles for Australian Postal Workers

In an effort to move away from oil-dependent vehicles, the Australian Post is considering replacing some of the motorcycles used by letter carriers with electric tricycles.

A recent article by Rhys Haynes in Australia's Daily Telegraph states, "Yesterday an Australia Post spokesman said the move was a way of 'searching for initiatives to make its fleet more energy efficient' and trials would include several new modes, including electric bicycles and tricycles."

The electric tricycles under consideration are sold by Australia's Electric Bicycle Company. They cost 2000 Australian dollars (roughly 1830 U.S. dollars)/each and can carry up to 150 kg (331 pounds).

The tricycle Australian postal officials are considering for use in mail delivery

The Australian postal union counters that the main goal of the switch would be to open up certain mail delivery jobs to people who do not have motorcycle licenses. Whatever the real reason for the change, Cycloculture says, "Good on ya'!" to all those supporting the proposal.

If You Build It, They Will Ride

Adam Voiland wrote an article entitled, "Bike Commuting By the Numbers" for today's US News and World Report. It describes the success that certain European countries have had in encouraging transportation by bicycle rather than by car.

Some interesting statistics from the article:
- 37% of trips under 2.5 kilometers in the Netherlands are made by bicycle
- 0.02% of trips to work in Kansas City, Missouri are made by bicycle
- Motorists in the Netherlands and Germany are legally responsible for collisions with children or elderly people on bicycles, even if the cyclist is not obeying the law
- 1.1 cyclists are killed per 100 million kilometers cycled in the Netherlands, while 5.8 cyclists are killed in the United States over the same distance cycled
- One third of cycling fatalities in the United States involve alcohol use by the driver or cyclist

A bicycle parking area in the Netherlands

The article states, "Transportation planners in the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark have invested heavily in bicycle paths and lanes, discouraged the use of cars, and gone to great efforts to protect the legal rights and safety of cyclists." The results of these efforts seem definitive. When a country makes a sincere effort to encourage cycling as a form of transportation, it works. When a country allows oil companies to dictate transportation policy, we get what we should expect.

The Dangerous World of Cyclo-Commuting in L.A.

There was an excellent article about the dangers faced by Los Angeles cyclo-commuters in yesterday's Wall Street Journal. Rhonda Rundle, the author, describes cyclists dodging potholes and car doors. More intimidating are the "caffeine-infused psychotics" who yell at cyclists to get off the road. Even in my peaceful L.A. exurb, Santa Clarita, I have experienced this. It seems that many drivers throughout L.A. County have no patience for slowing down their SUVs, even momentarily, to accommodate cyclists.

The Thrills and Chills of Cycling in L.A.
Photo by Jason Varone, from www.streetsblog.org

The car culture in Los Angeles is so pervasive that almost everyone views bicycles as toys or exercise equipment. Cyclo-commuters are often looked at as silly and strange. These are cultural barriers which will be hard to break, but rising gas prices may be the catalyst we need to make the change happen.

View the full story here.

Are Shared Lanes for Bikes and Cars a Good Idea?

An article by Christopher Smart in yesterday's Salt Lake Tribune described a pilot program in which Salt Lake City will designate certain traffic lanes as shared bicycle/automobile lanes, or "sharrows." Per the article, "The green lane would carry the white bicyclist's symbol and chevrons (markers shaped like an inverted V) to alert motorists to expect to share space with two-wheelers."

The idea behind sharrows is to maximize available space for both bicycles and cars while alerting drivers that they should drive cautiously and expect to see cyclists in their traffic lanes. Tim Harpst, director of transportation for Salt Lake City, states "We want bicyclists out in the center of the lane... We want them to take ownership of the lane."

A "sharrow" in Montreal
Photo from UrbanPhoto/Christopher DeWolf

The article states that sharrows have been implemented successfully in cities in Europe and North America, but I still have reservations. Perhaps cyclists could share traffic lanes safely with Smart cars and 500cc Fiats in Europe, but the thought of sharing a lane with clueless drivers in Escalades and Suburbans scares the dickens out of me. In fact, I have noticed that any time I see a "Share the Road with Cyclists" sign on a street or road in Los Angeles county, it can be taken as a warning that things are about to get really dangerous for folks on bicycles. These signs, put up by transportation officials, are generally placed where bike lanes end in heavily trafficked areas or where there is no shoulder whatsoever.

Do not misunderstand. I am not dismissing the idea of sharrows. I am adopting a "wait and see" attitude until we know whether they are a real solution or just a "feel good" idea that does not have a beneficial impact on cycling safety.

Jonathan Maus on Bikes, Portland and BikePortland.org

I first came across BikePortland.org a few years ago when a virtual acquaintance posted a link to a story about a Starbucks manager firing an employee for riding his bicycle to work. Since then, I have had many occasions to visit the website. It consistently brings us real news about bicycle-related issues, and its impact extends far beyond Portland, Oregon. At times, it is the first news source to break important stories, as was the case last week when it ran an article on the proposed law which would require all cyclists in Oregon to wear helmets.

I have communicated with Jonathan Maus, the founder and editor of BikePortland.org, through e-mail and flickr. He is very helpful and insightful. Plus, he is a really nice guy, so I was glad when he agreed to let me interview him for Cycloculture.

Jonathan Maus
Photo courtesy of Ethan Jewett with all rights reserved

Q: Bicycle culture in Portland seems to be growing explosively. Is that true? What are some of the most impressive developments?

A: That's definitely true. What we have here is the simultaneous flowering of many different aspects of the bike culture – frame builders, shops, racing, non-profits, fun rides, the political scene, everything seems to be hitting on all cylinders. Most impressive is just the sheer amount of bike traffic out on the streets. During peak times, on popular bikeways there are often more bikes than cars waiting to cross intersections. The local racing scene is also very impressive. On any given week, there are all types of events going on... from road criteriums to velodrome action, and even a mountain bike series just a few miles from downtown that pulled in record numbers this year (over 400 entries on Monday nights!). The other thing that continues to amaze me is the number of people building frames and other bike-related products and accessories. I think we're getting close to 20 handmade bike builders in Portland - from icons like Sacha White of Vanilla Bicycles to up-and-coming builders like Aaron Hayes of Courage Cycles, it seems like every other month or so I discover a new one.

Q: Has readership of your blog, BikePortland.org, been growing rapidly as well? Where do you see your blog headed in the future?

A: Thankfully, yes. BikePortland.org has grown a lot in the past 3 years since it was started. These days I am seeing more traffic than I could have ever imagined just a year ago. In the future, I will strive to make the stories even better and I hope it can become regarded as one of the best independent news sources (on any subject) on the Internet. I can also see the addition of some dedicated staff to help me with a lot of the day-to-day tasks and reporting that are starting to get pretty overwhelming.

Lots of Portland cyclists
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Maus/BikePortland.org with some rights reserved

Q: According to ForbesTraveler.com, Portland just displaced Copenhagen as the second most bicycle-friendly city in the world. Do you agree with that assessment? What are your thoughts on the matter?

A: I don't really put too much faith into any of those lists, but I think it depends on how you define “bicycle-friendly.” Without a doubt, Portland is far behind Copenhagen (and several other European cities) in bicycle facilities and infrastructure (which explains why 35% of their trips are made by bike and in Portland the number is about 6%). We are also behind several of those cities in how the bicycle is respected by local politicians and city bureaucrats. Relative to the rest of America, Portland is fantastic in these regards, but compared to the World Class biking cities, we still have a lot of room to grow. On the other hand, I think Portland has arguably the most exciting and vibrant "bike culture" in the world. When you take in all the grassroots energy, annual events, racing scene, personalities, sub-cultures, etc... there really is no city that compares.

Q: What could Portland do to become more bicycle friendly?

A: We could be a lot more innovative and bold in the type of bikeway treatments we use. – for instance, begin to try some physically separated bikeways. We can also start to allocate more roadway space to bicycles (and away from cars). We could form a task force to comb the city and fix small trouble spots that disconnect our bikeway network. Many of the things Portland could do are not being done because the traffic engineering standards our city planners are forced to work with are outmoded... but that's a national-level problem and not really Portland's fault.

Photo from a recent Portland event, the "Chariot War Death Match"
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Maus/BikePortland.org with some rights reserved

Q: Cycloculture has already spoken to Portland frame builders Joseph Ahearne and Jordan Hufnagel. Who else in Portland should I interview? Note that I am not just looking for frame builders, but anyone doing interesting work in the field of "real world" bicycles. Who in Portland is inspiring you from a bicycle perspective?

A: I've discovered several new bike-powered businesses lately. There's a "Fossil Fuel Free" landscaping business, a women who bakes cookies and delivers/sells them via her trike, a real-estate agent who gives bike tours of neighborhoods and points out local bike-friendly amenities to prospective buyers. On the other end of things there is the amazing Community Cycling Center. This non-profit has bike summer camps for young kids, they empower lower income folks by teaching them to become self-reliant bicyclists, and they recycle used bikes and give them to kids in need. They've got a new executive director, Susan Remmers, who is really taking them in a great direction.

Q: Tell me a bit about your own bicycles. What kind of bikes do you own? Which is/are your favorite(s)?

A: I have a lot of bikes in my basement at home and a few in my office. Right now, my daily bike is a Batavus trekking bike from Holland. It's got all sorts of bells and whistles like a wheel-lock, full fenders and a skirt/pant guard, hub-generator front light, etc... It's heavy but it's super strong and it practically rides itself. I also have a Bike Friday Tikit folding bike (which is great to have around), a Kona Major Jake cyclocross bike (I raced it a bunch last season), a custom Co-Motion Ristretto road bike (that I got years ago thinking I might race again...but never did), and then I've got a few old Schwinn three-speeds.

Cycling is a family activity in Portland
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Maus/BikePortland.org with some rights reserved

Q: What kind of riding do you do? Do you travel more by bicycle or by car?

A: Most of the riding I do these days is just around town, covering events and getting to meetings, interviews, etc... I very rarely drive anywhere. We own a mini-van but I only get in that as a last resort (I don't really enjoy driving).

Q: Electric bicycles are sweeping across much of Asia and Europe as a practical way to address some of the limitations of bicycles for commuting purposes (or maybe the limitations have more to do with the riders and less to do with the machines). Millions of e-bikes are being sold across the world, and sales numbers are still rising dramatically. As the bicycle trend leader in the USA, Portland could be the first city in this country to experience a surge in e-bike popularity. Have you seen any indication that e-bikes might be catching on? What are your thoughts on e-bikes? What is the general attitude amongst Portland cyclists toward e-bikes?

A: The e-bike thing is strange. They've been around for several years but I rarely see them on the roads. I'm not sure why that is, but my hunch is that many people enjoy the simplicity of a bicycle and perhaps e-bikes are a bit intimidating from a technological/logistical standpoint for people. They also lack the distribution network that would put them in front of likely customers (where can you buy those things!?). Another factor is that biking makes you strong and for some people, the added weight of the battery might be annoying because they can ride at a comfortable speed around the city with their regular bike. The other thing likely going on with the e-bike trend is that the market it appeals to – folks that aren't your regular bike commuter crowd – are the same group of folks that are afraid to be out on the roads on a bike. If we had a network of safe, more comfortable bikeways, I think we might see more e-bikers hitting the streets.

Q: You recently reported on a proposed bill which would require all cyclists in Oregon to wear bicycle helmets. What are your thoughts on this proposed legislation?

A: I am not convinced of the benefits or necessity of such a law. There are many dangerous things people do on a daily basis but a mandatory law that requires safety equipment is not always the best approach. I am usually skeptical of laws that come from reactionary emotions (like the death of one person) and that are based on personal anecdotes. It's not as simple as saying, "if we can save one life than it's worth it,"... we have to consider the larger context of a proposal like this. And at the end of the day, is there any conclusive research that shows mandatory, all-ages helmet laws actually improve safety? No. Have mandatory seatbelts in cars led to fewer deaths and injuries in cars? No, because the number of cars on the road and the speeds and carelessness with which they're driven have increased. The problem is not that people on bikes need more head protection... the problem is a culture in the U.S. that is in love with the speed, power, and "liberty" of cars and is afraid to really deal with the problems they cause in a direct manner. We should focus on making our roads safer, not on padding ourselves against the dangers our roads create.

Another distinctly Portland cycling moment
Photo courtesy of Jonathan Maus/BikePortland.org with some rights reserved

Q: What else would you like to say?

A: Thanks for the work you are doing, Forbes! (Editor's Note: Aw, shucks. Thanks!)

Q: What do you like for breakfast?

A: Coffee and toast with avocado and eggs over easy.