The Oil Drum: Local

This was different.

Here are a couple of long weekend links, looking at the increase of interest in cycling as fuel prices rise - both via Energy Bulletin.

First, Geraldine Doogue and Scott Wales at the ABC on "The Bike Boom?".

Unlike the Europeans, and many parts of Asia, cycling in Australia has largely been a leisure activity rather than a mainstream form of transport for commuting to work or university. Could that be about to change?

In a somewhat ironic twist one of Australia's largest retailers of automotive accessories has announced that it will roll out 50 specialist bike stores nationwide. The Super Cheap Auto group is behind the deal, one which involves the purchase of a Victorian chain of bike stores called Goldcross. Peter Birtles says there's an untapped market somewhere between specialist bike stores and the bikes you might buy at K Mart or Big W.

Next, Alan A. Parker from Beyond Oil South Australia submitted this paper on "Electric bicycles reduce oil dependence, pollution and are potential economic users of solar electricity" (pdf) to the SA Select Committee on the Impact of Peak Oil on South Australia.

The SMH has a report on a new cycleway proposed for Sydney's lower north shore called the "Harbourlink".

As someone who cycles through this area fairly regularly, I've got to say this is a great idea - there are some great cycle paths (multilane paths with an additional lane for pedestrians, completely separated from the road system) leading in towards North Sydney, but North Sydney itself is a traffic clogged obstacle for cyclists who want to head across the bridge into the CBD.

One place that many of the alternative transportation advocates around the world look to is Bogota, Colombia where a revolution in transportation has occurred over the last ten years. In the face of major complaints of traffic congestion Former Mayor of Bogota, Enrique Penalosa made a critical decision to not widen roads, build more highways or otherwise facilitate automobiles. Instead, the local government implemented a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system and opened a number of bicycle routes. They also started a system of Car-Free Sundays and Holidays to allow local residents to take back their streets and publis spaces from automobiles to enjoy for recreation.

The Streetfilms above shows how Ciclovia works and what the locals think about it and how it adds to their life.

TOD:NYC has had a pretty good run over the last two years and while there is still lots going around in NYC with local environmental groups and the city"s Plan 2030, it's always good to look around at sustainable design from around the country and world. Over the next few months, I'd like to highlight best practices in making different areas of the world more sustainable communities. AND WE WANT YOUR HELP!!!

The video above from Paris about their new bike sharing program was sent to me by one of the local bike advocates here in NYC that wanted to highlight something he thought would revolutionize biking in NYC. In just a few weeks, the Paris bike sharing program has tallied over a million bike trips around town. It's hard to imagine even some of the best mass transit programs getting that much use over the first few weeks, especially at such a low cost. A friend who was on vacation in Paris at the time wrote to be that he rode for 7 miles on a tour around town and it felt great.

So I'd like all TOD readers from all over the world to contribute your own examples of environmental best practices from your community. We would like to post these examples on this page, which we are considering renaming TOD:LOCAL. And "Local" is wherever you happen to be. Please send your posts and videos to me in html if possible. Below, please find a wonderful 30 minute video created by the one and only Clarence Eckerson Jr. celebrating the changes that Portland, OR is making to become more sustainable.

Today, Peakguy, Super G and I attended a rally-slash-PR event intended to call attention to the need for a bike lane on Houston St. Houston St. is currently being redeveloped, but there are no plans to make the street safer and more accessible for cyclists. While Greenwich Village and Community Board 2 had a significant amount of input regarding the redesign, their initial focus was on pedestrian safety, and cycling issues fell by the wayside. Since the original plan for the redesign was approved, however, three cyclists have died on Houston Street, providing the impetus for the community to ask the DOT to reconsider the plan and add a bike lane. This measure is supported by just about all Manhattan luminaries short of the mayor himself: Borough President Scott Stringer, Assemblyperson Deborah Glick, Councilman Alan Gerson, Senator Tom Duane, even Speaker Christine Quinn.

As a cyclist, this seems like a no-brainer to me. But the issue of bike lanes is actually a contentious one. Drivers, of course, think they're the only thing that matters, and often feel like cyclists are nothing more than a nuisance. The DOT doesn't want the hassle of putting a lane in, because it may take precious space away from cars.

But are bike lanes even useful? Are they safe for cyclists? Well, there are pros and cons to the issue.

Wiley Norvell, of Transportation Alternatives wrote an essay of the same title as this post (PDF) in which he attacks some of the misconceptions of how we can reduce our carbon footprint (err..SUV tire tracks) in a real dramatic way, in contrast to the many small "success stories that are touted in the media as progress." More under the fold.

But now with the launch of The UPPER GREEN SIDE website, I will have separate homes for these two efforts. Many thanks to TOD reader Damek for all his hard work on setting this up.