MSNBC: Pedal Power
On “Today at the Pump” MSNBC reported from the Pinellas Trail about the upsurge in bike commuters nationwide. Houston (which must track these things) has seen a 33% increase in bike commuters! They show full bike racks in West Palm. I was there last weekend and not only were the racks full, there were bikes parked inside buildings.
Highlights:
J&B Importers pays employees $4 per round trip to use mass transit, bike or bike to work.
Pangea Organics in Boulder is building a locker room and shower facility of its bike commuters.
All the focus on cycling is exciting. It’s nice to see so many people giving it a try.
Whether they stick with it or not, I suspect that high fuel prices will change the traffic culture in other ways that will be beneficial to bicyclists. More small cars, scooters and motorcycles will actually increase our space on the roadway without having to add more pavement. Public transportation might even make a comeback.
Heck, maybe cyclists will even have a little peace and quiet on the roads on weekend mornings again.
I’m fortunate to work for a company that not only provides showers, but also allows bike commuters to store bikes in our offices. So far, there are only two of us riding our bikes to work. But at least three other employees have expressed an interest. It’s only a matter of time.
Today, a few company bigwigs stopped by my office….or should I say locker room. My office is large enough to store my bike and hang clothes over a chair to dry (a box fan speeds the drying process). The bigwigs know I cycle. They just weren’t expecting to see a commuter bike in my office when arrived for a meeting. They checked out the Trek FX 76 carefully on their way to the conference table.
They seemed intrigued by the Niterider, back rack and panniers. I showed them how I store my laptop and other business gear for the 30- to 50-mile commute, and explained how I turned to commuting to not only save money but to train for events. (I leave for Sierra to the Sea next Friday….6 days, 475 glorious miles in California).
It’s clear they can’t fathom why anyone would commute 30-50 miles to work. That’s OK. They’re suitably impressed and probably won’t ask me to store my bike outside anytime soon.