Forget About Biking To Work
What? A bicycle advocate suggesting you forget about biking to work? Yes. Well not you Jason & Bob, you guys keep riding to work. In fact, if you currently ride your bike to work keep doing what you are doing.
First let me say that I’ve commuted to work by bike before. For about a year I did a 28-mile round trip 3 days per week. My employer was supportive, the owner let me use her private shower. In December 1999 I rode my bike to the job interview for the job I would have through May 2004. Unfortunately due to the need to visit client’s homes all over the region I was unable to bike to work. Route planning from my house in South City to Kirkwood wasn’t as convenient for me as Union & Natural Bridge was. Very quickly I fell out of the habit of cycling.
As a REALTOR® my current daily commute is walking downstairs to my office. Hardly worth putting on spandex. Meeting clients takes me all over the area and often on very short notice. Again, my job is preventing me from cycling. I suppose if I lived downtown and focused solely on selling lofts I could bike to show properties. Accepting that for the most part I must drive to earn my living, I’m looking at other ways to bike. I need to forget about biking to work.
Have you thought about biking to work? If you are a non-cyclist or a casual cyclist I want you to forget about biking to work. Not forever, just for now.
Cyclists typically fall into a number of categories: the racer, the long distance rider, the casual rider, and the commuter. I fall into the last three, I’m no racer. But commuting is often defined by riding to work. Look at books, magazines or web sites on cycling and it is bike to work this and bike to work that. If you want to ride more but riding to work is either impractical or too intimidating then forget about it. Instead think of commuting by bike to the grocery store, the library, a coffee house, to lunch (or brunch) or just over to a friend’s house.
Bike commuting doesn’t have to be a big deal. It doesn’t have to be about getting rid of your car. Commuting to work is a great feeling (except when changing a flat tire in the rain near BJC hospital). But going from doing a casual ride around Forest Park to riding to work daily is a big leap. Sometimes the leap is literal in terms of distance, route or work (no shower, need car) but other times the leap is mostly psychological. I think we in the bicycle community sometimes fail to recognize what a leap it can be.
Look at any bike publication (print or virtual) and you will see the phrase ‘Bike to Work.’ For us hard core cyclists we are beyond the leap. Biking is second nature. The ‘Bike to Work’ phrase looks and sounds good. But how effective is it? I think we need a new phrase encouraging biking as transportation, not necessarily to work. Bike Everywhere But Work? No, that discourages biking to work. Maybe, ‘Just Bike.’ Thoughts?
The whole point of bike commuting is to reduce car trips. It saves money and is better for the environment. Advocates target commuting to work because this is typically where the biggest impact can be had. People generally drive more miles to get to and from work than for their other trips. But, if we don’t get people to do it then we haven’t made such a big impact after all. I think if we forget about biking to work for a while and focus on errands we can have a bigger impact. ‘Errands by Bike.’
I tried to find some good websites advising people on just running local errands but nearly everything I found is focused on biking to work. An exception was Bicycling Life’s Practical Side to Cycling:
Perhaps the easiest way to try practical cycling is by riding to the library, video store, or any other short trip not requiring a lot of cargo. I carry stuff in panniers – bags that hook on to my rack – but just the rack and a bungee cord will often suffice. Backpacks also work, but they can get hot and heavy.
A good read and a very nice site. Bike Traffic’s Tricks & Tips for Biking to Work offers some really good advice in a fun manner than can be applied to non-work related commuting.
Do I want people to bike to work? YES! I just think we need to look at encouraging “Bike Transportation” in all forms, not just biking to work. Feel free to use the comments section below to agree or disagree with me, to offer helpful errand tips or links to good sites.
[UPDATED 4/21 @ Noon: Check out Trailnet’s “Biker’s Wanted” program. From the “where” section:
Most people think of bike commuting as riding your bike to work but this can be intimidating for some. Try starting out with shorter, easier trips. You are still reducing congestion, pollution and your car dependence while learning how to commute more effectively. Of course, when you’re ready to start riding to work, you can find out how to do it on this web site.
This is an excellent resource!]
– Steve
Considering over half of all our vehicle trips are less than five miles, I agree that cycling for errands, shopping and play would make as much of a dramatic impact if not more than cycling to work. Indeed, at seven miles from downtown, I would only bike in conjunction with transit, but since I have walkable access to transit, I walk instead.
Still, there are problems with cycling for those far more numerous yet shorter trips, problems similar to commuting. Does the end-destination have adequate bike parking? And are there reliable on-street routes for diverse comfort levels?
Short trips by bike can in fact be easier than those same trips by car. Bike parking? A parking meter will do, or just wheel the bike in with you! I’ve had employees at Schuck’s ask me to take my bike outside twice as i wheeled it throug the isles, and i explained both times that i was on my way home from work (where i keep my bike inside) and had not brought a lock. I then explained that i had a relatively expensive bike, and also spent a lot of money on food at their establishment. Both times i was allowed to keep my bike at my side. I’ve brought my bike in with me many more times than that.
On-street routes can be an issue, but anywhere you need to, you have the legal right to take the whole lane if it’s not safe to share a lane. In St. Louis, this is a must in certain areas. Anywhere that has two lanes going the same direction is nice, because you can safely take one lane while leavingone open for traffic.
My commute to work is now 15 miles one-way, but there are very wide shoulders the wholeway, so it’s a stress-free ride.
Remember, most excuses can be debunked.
Actually ‘my’ article in April’s Healthy Planet magazine speaks along the same lines. That you could bike to errands, for play etc. & not just to work. It mentions a book (available at your local library) called “Divorce Your Car!” and it also mentions, lest we all forget, that heck yeah, it is really unnerving to get out on the road with your bike in traffic – at first, and how about signing up for a Road 1 course?
[Thanks Carrie. My post tomorrow to finish bike week on Uban Review will discuss some of these issues. I willl check out your article in the Healthy Planet and perhaps quote from it. I will also talk about the benefits of taking a “Road 1” course from qualified instructor. – Steve]
This entry reminded me of something I read in Inga Muscio’s life-affirming book Cunt. She tries to encourage women to use eco-friendly products to soak up their menstrual flow (i.e. sewing your own reusable pads), instead of using the mainstream disposable white cotton stuff, which costs a lot of money and creates an incredible amount of garbage. I’ve read those same arguments many times before, but Inga included something extra when making her case–she wrote that using alternative menstrual products might seem scary or like it’d take a lot of work, but one doesn’t have to use them in exclusivity all the time. She points out that even using them when only you’re at home can still save ya money and prevent a lot of garbage from being made.
One of the ideas that many advocates of healthier lifestyles seem to miss is pointing out that small changes can be effective, too–you don’t necessarily have to throw out your car or your Tampax to make the world a healthier place. I think more arguments for altering one’s routine ought to be phrased as this post of yours has been. Small change is less intimidating and easier for many people. It can lead to bigger changes, or just be enough in and of itself.
[This is the very last analogy I would have thought of but it works. – Steve]
Steve,
Good article. I agree that commuting to work isn’t for everyone. Although I believe it can be done by a few who want to make a change in their lifestyle (I did). Switch exercise programs (running to cycling). I always tell people I will help them with their route selection, accompany them on their route on weekends, help them find a good bike etc. I have had enough interest lately that there may be a “Bikers Wanted” commuting seminar held soon at my work (US Bank in Olivette). I believe if you get people at least thinking about biking to work you may get some who will use their bikes for riding to the library, church, friends house etc… Just takes some time, patience, and hand holding. I spoke to a German cyclist at my work who lives in Florissant (further north than me and he didn’t want to commute to work) who told me he rides his bike on errands. It surprised me that he was already doing what we are talking about. I believe that the streets aren’t for everyone either. The trails that they hope to connect in the future (i.e.600mile River Ring – Greenway) will help increase the numbers of commuters….some no matter what you say or take classes will not ride in traffic. Attitudes can be changed but it takes time, education, and resources. We are the ones working on a solution to the problem (sustainable transportation).
Bike Wherever/Whenever you Can! (Streets, Trails etc…)
The more visible cyling is the better.
Thanks for sharing your article Steve
Keep Cycling,
Jeff
good comments.
Here is the car we should all get for the times we need to drive.
http://www.theaircar.com/index.html
It runs on compressed air. It’s exhaust is actually cleaner than the air it takes in.
This is purely an aesthetic comment:
Steve, you should make your comments in color or italicized or something so that I can tell them apart from the viewer’s comment. I was confused for a moment why Claire was saying that the menstruation analogy was the last one she would have thought of even though she was the first one that did. Then I woke up and saw your signature.
Perhaps there are other slow people out there that this would benefit.
And I ride the train into work so I am one of those lucky people out of every 20 who benefit from the Metro for my commute. Yay Delmar! Though I would enjoy riding my bike in on days like today.
[I will see what I can do to improve readability – Steve]