Bicycle Commuting // Current

Bicyclists Show Off Their Two-Wheeling Tattoos

ink show. -click link for more images-

meligrosa
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Official U.S. Bicycle Route System Approved

Missoula, Montana —The United States is on a path to creating what could become the largest official bicycle route network... more

meligrosa
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Local cyclist saves money and gets in shape

Michael Vare, a local cyclist (commutes from Marin to San Francisco) saves about $5K a year and lost 40puonds while at it. - ... more

meligrosa
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Bike the Bronx - Bronx president promoting bicycle use

What great news! Tour de Bronx sounds like it was a lot of fun Go NY!!!! - Borough President Adolfo Carrión... more

meligrosa
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How to Ride All Winter - Portland Maine Bicycle Commuting (Portland, ME) - Meetup.com

In a joint meeting with Portland Green Streets, we will present ideas for overcoming the challenges of winter commuting, by... more

CarolynGillis
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Pay by the mile car insurance? Only if you live in Texas

This is currently available in Texas only. Very progressive and it makes sense. Sounds pretty good to me. Ride on lone star!! - ... more

meligrosa
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Follow the Adventures of Team Wonderbike on its Wonderblog

New Belgium Brewing, the creator of that beloved Amber Ale Fat Tire has launched a blog devoted to supporting and promoting the... more

ESKCSG
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Bailout Bill has hidden tax break for cyclists

So the jargon is quite confusing and of the legal variety, but the skinny is: Tax breaks for cyclists and their employers! ... more

nickwe3d
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Bicycle recyclers empower riders

Programs in New York and elsewhere train young mechanics and provide ‘beater’ bikes.

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[Excerpt] A year ago, Natalie Feliciano couldn’t tell the difference between a derailleur and a bottom bracket. A bike was a thing, made up of other shiny things, all of which churned together in some strange, magical concert. Sometimes she’d walk the streets of her East Village neighborhood and see rusty frames jammed into trash cans. “I’d think, you know, what a waste,” she grimaces. “All that garbage for someone else to clean up. But I never knew how much went into a bike.”

These days, her outlook is considerably more refined. On a warm fall afternoon here, standing in the cluttered back room of Recycle-a-Bicycle’s Manhattan store, Ms. Feliciano absentmindedly runs a greasy chain through her fingers and holds forth expertly on all things two-wheeled. She talks about the sudden passion in New York for fixed-gear bikes – once popular only among reckless, bombastic couriers – and her own stable of rides, which includes a bicycle she repaired on her own time. “I like knowing I can help my friends with their bikes. I like to know that I can be there,” she says. “And I like knowing how they work. How everything fits together.”

The nuts-and-bolts approach is something Recycle-a-Bicycle has always done particularly well. The organization was founded in 1999 with a straightforward mandate: Repair abused, remaindered, broken, or worn bikes and funnel them back to consumers. At the time, New Yorkers were wary, says Lisa Stein, the executive director. Used bicycles were something for the junk pile, and most experienced riders preferred the security of a brand-new aluminum frame.

But over the past decade, Recycle-a-Bike has gained an enormous amount of local ballast. A crew of employees and volunteers now runs a pair of New York stores, one here in Manhattan and the other in the DUMBO area of Brooklyn. (DUMBO means “down under the Manhattan Bridge overpass.”) The organization’s youth programs are a big draw for students like Feliciano, who enrolled last year at her public high school. She is now an expert wrench-slinger and a paid Recycle-a-Bicycle associate. Under the tutelage of an experienced mechanic, Feliciano and fellow associate Gina Estevens labored recently to tune up a long line of bikes.Programs in New York and elsewhere train young mechanics and provide ‘beater’ bikes. - - - click link for full... more

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1 month ago

72-year-old Craig resident moving to Texas — on his bike

No excuse ya'll. How inspiring!!! - Riding a bike alone through Colorado is difficult enough. Try adding a tent, 20 to 30... more

meligrosa
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5 responses

1 month ago

Caltrain will look at removing seats for bikes

--full article/click link-- Caltrain officials will consider removing some seats to accommodate the growing throng of bicyclists... more

meligrosa
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2 responses

1 month ago

SAVE THE DATE - BIKEMIAMI - November 9th | Transit Miami

What do New York City, San Francisco, Portland and Miami have in common? Ah…not much you would say. The first three are revered as some of our country’s most progressive, sustainable and livable cities. But Miami? Well, the times they are ‘a changin’.

Enter BikeMiami.

Last December I wrote an op-ed to the Miami Herald urging city officials to make a Miami more bicycle-friendly. I wrote because the pure lack of attention being paid to bicyclists represented a larger issue. Miami was choosing not to compete as a 21st century city. Although bicycle-friendliness does not encompass all things livable in a city, those cities who have pursued such a noble goal are those that are also progressive in many other ways. As a result, they are capable of outperforming others in the pursuit of new talent, investment and sustainability — a buzzword if I have ever heard one.

One of the items that I mentioned in said op-ed was Bogota’s Ciclovia, an event that closes 70km of city streets and hands them over to what makes a city work, it’s people. The shear success of Ciclovia — with thousands of bicyclists, pedestrians, joggers etc. participating every Sunday — has had a catalytic effect on how North American cities are starting to view their streets. In many respects, Bogota has become what Jane Jacobs calls a ‘pattern city.’ That is, a city that inspires other cities to emulate its success.

Well, mark your calendar Miamians, because the City of Miami is closing several downtown streets for what is now being dubbed BIKEMIAMI. Sources close to Transit Miami confirm this landmark event will take place on Sunday, November 9th. The exact times have not been scheduled, but know that it will likely run from mid-morning to mid-afternoon. Bicyclists, skaters, pedestrians, joggers, roller bladers, yoga fanatics and everyone else and there mother will be invited to come downtown and enjoy their city — without cars.

All the details are still being worked out, but TM will be there every step of the way to report on updates and concurrent events as they become available.

A big thank you has to be bestowed upon the Bicycle Action Committee and those within the Mayor’s office who have made this little seed I planted grow into a reality. Also, please know the cooperation across City departments and with groups like the Miami DDA and the folks who run the ING Miami Marathon has been instrumental.

More to come…

In the meantime, check out StreetFilms‘ work documenting Ciclovia type events in the aforementioned cities. I think you will like what you see.

Spread the word.

Maybe we’ll put some magic back in this city yet.What do New York City, San Francisco, Portland and Miami have in common? Ah…not much you would say. The first three are... more

TheRealEdwin
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1 month ago

Scrap Your Car for a Bike at the Tour de Fat

Forget about trading in your SUV for a Prius, how about scrapping it altogether in place of a bike? Gas, as we know, is... more

Greenpointer
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1 month ago

Hot hipsters distress Hasids

Proposed bike lanes in Williamsburg, Brooklyn are being criticized by the local Hasidic Jewish community. They are concerned that... more

joshuaheller
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32 responses

2 months ago

More cyclists on the road mean fewer accidents

It may seem counterintuitive, but according to a recent report more cyclists on the road mean fewer accidents involving cyclists... more

chestergoat
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21 responses

2 months ago

Why Not in America?

The recent surge in gas prices and growing concern over carbon emissions have goosed efforts to increase bicycle ridership in... more

khsing
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6 responses

2 months ago

Bike Commuting Incentives

It's no surprise that many estimates show more people around the country using their bicycles to get around, and now some... more

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24 responses

2 months ago

Bicycle makers get a welcome push from polls

Good article on the variants of the industry, politcs, economy and international affairs all surrounding the power of the two wheels. Pedal Power indeed, go India!
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Progress is happens one step at a time.

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(image) Pedal power: A file photo of activists at a BJP rally. Political parties have begun to distribute bicycles for free to pull in votes.

Commuting concerns
A significant proportion of the working population even in cities—postmen, newspaper deliverers, snack sellers, construction workers and so on— cycle to work every day.
Their cause hasn’t been helped by roads that have no clearly marked lanes for bicycles, making their daily commute a hazardous affair.
In recent terrorist attacks in Bangalore and Jaipur, bombs were found planted in bicycles. That could crimp demand if more cities and states ask buyers of new bicycles for proof of identity as New Delhi already does.
“This will create a problem because a majority of the people who need a cycle, say in a village, do not have any such proof,” says Ishwar Chugh, director, Atlas Cycles, which produced 250,000 cycles last year.
Still, those who have to, and those who want to, use bicycles, even in cities.
Postman Brahmanand Maji in New Delhi prefers to commute on a cycle. “It’s easier to distribute mail on a cycle.”

The children’s bicycles segment of the market is growing by around 18% a year. Several foreign companies such as Sri Lanka’s Lumala and the US’ Firefox Bikes Pvt. Ltd and Trek Bicycle Corp. are present in this market. At around Rs1.9 lakh, Trek’s high-end bicycle costs as much as the least expensive car currently available in the market, the Maruti 800.
“We are saved by the children, and now the government programme,” says Omkar Pahwa, managing director of the Rs325 crore Avon Cycles Ltd, which produces 1.5 million bicycles a month. The company saw its export m argins drop by 3% last year, but domestic sales grew three times “because of government buying”.

Still, India doesn’t have a cycling culture, says Ludhiana-based Avtar Bhogal, who exports axle hubs to Europe. “In Europe, you can expect a chief executive of a company to ride to office. In India, a politician rides for publicity for one day and the media is all over about it. Then, everyone forgets.”
In June, Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party pledged to ride a cycle to work once a week to protest a hike in fuel prices announced by the Union government.
He stopped his pedal-pushing protest last week.
Good article on the variants of the industry, politcs, economy and international affairs all surrounding the power of the two... more