Bike Chattanooga Bicycle Transit System

. . The City of Chattanooga and Alta Bicycle Share announce on July 24'th that the Bike Chattanooga Bicycle Transit System opened to the public last night, providing 300 bicycles in a network of 28 stations throughout downtown and into the North Shore.  It is the first large scale bicycle transit system in the Southeast.

Report - Physical inactivity causes 10% of all worldwide deaths

CNN reports that a report series in The Lancet notes that physical inactivity is just as deadly as smoking or obesity. (Obviously the latter and physical inactivity are also linked.) If inactivity rates drop by 10-20%, then anything between one half to 1.3 million lives can be saved annually worldwide. The authors consider such inactivity to be equivalent to a pandemic.

In the third article of the series, Gregory Heath of the University of Tennessee wrote that "Because even moderate physical activity such as walking and cycling can have substantial health benefits, understanding strategies that can increase these behaviors in different regions and cultures has become a public health priority," and that improvements in mass transit and the walking and cycling environment can produce real benefits. As has been previously mentioned, we have engineered much physical activity out of our lives, but we can reverse the trend. Support for improved cycling and walking infrastructure in our communities have the following beneficial effects.

1. Improved health,
2. Decreased cost - I had mentioned that a car cost $11-$22 per day
3. Improved environment,
4. Decreased congestion,
5. Improved community, with people being more neighborly and social,
6. and Decreased dependence on foreign oil.

And all of these benefits take place at the same time making such investments a wise use of resources, provided that the money allocated for such is spent wisely.

Trend: Generation Y Driving Less

Reuters is reporting that generation Y (people aged 16-34) is driving less than previous generations. There was a 23% drop in vehicle-miles travelled in the last decade, (10,300 down to 7,900 vehicle-miles) with people flocking to mass transit and bicycles. More than a quarter (26%) of them lack a driver's license, up 5% from that a decade ago.

David Jacobs of The Tombras Group here in Knoxville points out several possible reasons for the trend. Factors include the high cost of cars, the lack of the "cool" factor, environmental concerns, as well as improvements in electronic communication with cell phones and the like. This shift away from an auto-centric system by the young would have drastic implications on the design and maintenance of our roads in the coming decades.

Arrested for Riding Bike to School

Could you be arrested for allowing your 5'th grade child to ride her bike one mile to school?  That certainly seems crazy as we try to encourage active life styles for our kids.  That certainly seems crazy as we try to promote safe routes to school programs.  That certainly seems crazy as we talk of an obesity epidemic amongst our children.  But that is what police in Elizabethton Tennessee are threatening.

Walking infrastructure - Transportation for America

A report by Transportation for America points to how there were 47,700 pedestrian fatalities during the decade 2000-2009. Such translates to around 13 deaths a day, 91 a week, or about 390 a month. As they put it, we would certainly not tolerate a jumbo jet crashing with no survivors each and every month of the year.

While it's true that many local streets are built with local money, the busier streets usually have a federal funding component, and they are the streets that tend to be busiest and most dangerous, as well as most often traveled. Currently, pedestrian funding composes a mere 1.5% of the federal transportation budget. But such is being targeted for elimination nevertheless. Eliminating that funding would only make matters worse for pedestrians, which would increase car dependency and disproportionately impact the most vulnerable. It would de facto make streets only for cars, rather than complete ones that are for all users.

Earth Day at Vanderbilt

This was by far the most receptive group with which I have dealt.  Sharing a ride with Tom assured we got there and set up 30 min before the official start. Even so, I didn't have a chance to survey the other exhibits before people began approaching  us.  The message was easy, statewide group advocating for better infrastructure, laws and culture to advance walking and cycling as legitimate forms of transportation and if you like that, join us. We have had enough recent issues to make specific pitches to each person's interests.  Bike Walk Tennessee is an easier sell than the 3-feet license plate. About the only people expressing any interest for the license plate had already ordered.

One message repeatedly came back to us.  Cyclists are behaving badly in downtown Nashville. Even among folks who considered themselves regular cyclists, there is a concern for how we are a bunch of scofflaws.  Some were knowledgeable enough to give us a pass on the homeless, etc. but will hold our feet to the fire when it's the guys in full kit blowing though red lights and swerving in and out of lines of stalled traffic.   I'll admit to doing all that before becoming a role model.  We must spread the word that we are all role models.  As Tom has mentioned in an email, this is  perfect example of education for the 501(c)3.

Even if none of the folks sign up, it was a good experience. I encourage all the directors to take advantage of similar opportunities.  Group bike rides seem a good place to sell Bike Walk Tennessee but it is much better to meet people in venues such as the Vanderbilt Clean Air Fair.
Bruce

Economics of Bike/Walk infrastructure followup: Portland's example

From a previous post, the $60 million figure that Portland, OR spent on cycling infrastructure over the years was mentioned, and that the cost was around the cost of a single mile of 4-lane urban freeway.

Question: strictly from an economic point-of-view, was the money well spent, especially when we consider the fact that even in Portland, cycling mode share is around 5% of all trips. The answer is a resounding yes. Here's why.

Musings on parking requirements

The recent requirements for certain levels of bicycle parking at retail establishments in Farragut, Alcoa, and other cities and towns brought out the question of the effects of parking requirements on urban and suburban development. Traditionally, outside of downtowns, retail developments were required to have a certain number of parking spaces in order to accommodate their expected customer base, and then some. The rationale was that if parking wasn't readily available, then people would park their cars at adjacent establishments; this spillover then unfairly hurts the establishments next door.

But "free" parking really isn't free. One big effect of the parking requirements is that stores became much more widely spread. The resultant lower density made bus service less and less practical. In addition, walking and cycling as transportation options became less practical as well due to increased travel distances and increased high-speed traffic levels. In recent years, municipalities have started to reduce but not eliminate their parking requirements in a bid to reverse these unintended effects.

Classes of bicycle facilities

Yesterday's blog post described the changes in Congress as well as how Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA-52) mentioned in an interview about how he felt cycling is more of a recreational rather than a transportation thing. (As a side note, this Rep. Hunter is the successor of long-term and probably better known Rep. Duncan Hunter.)

Yes, it is true that a good deal of cycling is done for recreational purposes. But a good deal of cycling is also done for transportation, due to its convenience and low price, in addition to the built-in exercise. One who rides for transportation gets a workout just by going where one was going anyway. A variety of facilities exist, and facilities can be classified into three classes.

Top 40 Walking Cities in the US - walkscore.com

Previously, there was a post on September 25 on the list of the top 20 walking cities in the US, none of which was located within the state. A list of the top 40 cities is available now at walkscore.com, based on a walk score. Also listed are neighborhoods in each of the cities listed, since the walkability of a city can vary greatly from neighborhood to neighborhood. The cities in the state that made the list are

Chuck Anderton - Bike/Walk Commuter

There was an article in the August 2, 2010 edition of the Bearden West Side Shopper-News (online edition not available) about Chuck Anderton, who is an electrical engineer at KUB (Knoxville Utilities Board) in downtown Knoxville. He has "walked, run, or biked" to work for the past 42 years, and his last sick day was in 1981. His commute ranged from 1 to 7 miles each way, depending on where he lived. He bikes from April to September, where there is light both ways. The other days he tends to walk, even though it does take a while. Needless to say, he's a very healthy individual.

One of the big draws of urban living is being close to most of the things going on, and of having an easy, short commute. Interestingly, truly urban areas have bikes and cars move at roughly equal speeds which means that facilities such as bike lanes are unneeded in such areas. For instance, Gay St in downtown Knoxville is considered one of the finest places to ride.

Reasons to support biking and walking for almost all political philosophies

With the recent article claiming that (paraphrasing) cyclists are part of a communist plot to turn the country into a third world country, I thought I would list the reasons why it makes sense from a variety of political sides to support cycling and walking. Sure, that article was extreme, but more moderate variants of such are not unheard of.

How a Bus Ride Makes You Fit - Realage article

This article describes how taking buses helps make people fit, since people usually end up walking to the bus stop. Walking to the bus stop can go a long way toward the recommended 30 min of exercise 5 days a week. Just as with cycling to and from work, walking to/from a bus stop to commute may appear to take somewhat longer. But one can kill the proverbial multiple birds with one stone. Of course, one can ride a bike to a bus stop if the transit system is set up to handle the transport of bicycles too.
1. Getting to/from work
2. Saving money on cars/gas/maintenance/insurance
3. Getting the needed exercise, avoiding spending time and money to go to a gym
4. Doing good to the environment

And all that takes place all at once! As Rep. Blumenauer (D-OR-3) asked rhetorically, how many people right now are driving a car to a gym in order to ride a stationary bicycle?

Correlations between obesity and driving, and others

GOOD Magazine recently published a table ranking all 50 states and Washington DC in terms of actual levels of driving, walking, cycling, mass transit usage, and levels of obesity. From their table, I plotted all 10 possible correlations of the variables with each other. Note that the driving rank and obesity rank is opposite that of the other things; i.e. a driving rank of 1 means little driving, while a walking rank of 1 means lots of walking. An obesity rank of 1 means low levels of obesity (in this data, Colorado). Our state is indicated with the extra large marker in these plots.

The strongest correlation is between walking and driving, and is depicted here. The more people drive, the less people walk.

The Path Less Pedaled

Dear folks at Bike/Walk Tennessee,
. .We are two artists who have sold all our belongings to explore the US by bicycle.  We are currently in Nashville and are doing a presentation at Nashville Bicycle Lounge on the 26th.  We're hoping you can help promote it.
. . Russ was an active bicycle advocate in Long Beach, CA.  Along our journeys we've been visiting different bicycle communities to see what other parts of the country are doing.  We've been to cities with vibrant communities like Austin, Portland and Eugene to cities that are just developing like Fort Worth, Denton, Shreveport and Jackson, MS.  It has offered us an interesting perspective in what it takes for cities to be bike friendly.
. . Anyway, we hope you can attend and if not, please spread the word!

Here's the link to the Facebook Event page

Best, Russ and Laura
www.pathlesspedaled.com

Let's Go For A Ride

More Than 200,000 a Day Now Cycling, Data Suggests
Build it and they will ride. That’s the message conveyed in the latest annual estimate of the number of bicyclists in New York City by Transportation Alternatives, which found roughly 236,000 New Yorkers riding each day in 2009, up 28 percent from 185,000 daily riders the year before. ( read more . . .)

Book Reviews

I have recently purchased a couple of books on cycling and advocacy. My goal is in my spare time (ha!) to read both books and summarize them chapter by chapter here. Hopefully this will get some good dialogue going as well.

The first book I'll take a crack at is The Cyclist's Manifesto - The Case for Riding on Two Wheels Instead of Four - by Robert Hurst.

Mr. Hurst is a bicyle messager with over 20,000 hours of cycling in heavy traffic with over 200,000 miles logged on his bicycle. He lives in Denver, Colorado.

Chapter 1 entitled Interesting Times covers the rise and fall of oil/gas prices during 2008/2009. He talks about how Americans are addicted to the automobile and the idea of the independance an automobile gives one.

Mr. Hurst also admits that the bicycle will not solve the worlds energy problems. But on an individual level - the bicycle can transform lives.

Perhaps in Chapter 2 we will get a better understanding of what he means by that.

stay tuned.