Building For Bikes
Luckily for Sightline's resident Master Bicyclist, Seattle just released an extensive new $32 million Bicycle Master Plan. It's awesome.
My favorite element -- out of sheer selfishness -- is this: a proposal for a dedicated bicycle bridge spanning the ship canal alongside my 'hood's bike-unfriendly Ballard Bridge. Sweet.
The Emerald City has a bit of catching up to do, in order to make bicycling as popular as it is in, say, Portland. But the city's new plan is a giant step in the right direction.
I Want to Ride My Bicycle
Deric Gruen, intern extraordinaire, is the newest addition to Sightline's research team. He's already hard at work on Cascadia Scorecard 2007.
Bicycling is my primary way to get around town, and that’s how I like it. It liberates me from the stress of traffic congestion, saves me a ton of money, and feels great... about 90 percent of the time.
I’m not saying I haven’t had my share of flat tires or moments of misery and exhaustion. But if I’m healthy and I don’t have a major mechanical problem, I’ll probably get there on my bike.
As the days grow darker and wetter people seem to have difficulty understanding why I’m on two wheels. And lately, I’ve been getting more offers for rides.They come from well-intentioned friends, who make sincere but seductive suggestions to get me off my pedals and into their smooth leather-seated, climate-controlled automobiles.
Sometimes, I’ll bike across the city to meet a friend. But when we say adieu and they find out that I’m on a bicycle, there's a moment of awe, followed by a wave of concern spreading across their face.
“Wow, you biked here?” they'll ask, as if I'd just swum the Straight of Juan de Fuca.
Yeah.
Then they make the proposition: “So, do you want a ride?”
No, I’m fine thanks
“Are you sure?”
I'm sure. And honestly, it’s really not a big deal. Roughly 2 percent of all trips in this city are made on bikes and they're made by people just like you and me. While I appreciate my friends' offers, I genuinely prefer to ride my bike.
