"There is no conservative or liberal way to provide good city services. If we find our people want to use bicycles to get from one place to another, it is up to us to build the infrastructure economically that allows people to do that."
He took a similar approach to roundabouts. Such a practical guy.
And now there are roundabouts everywhere in the greater Indianapolis area. We were shocked when we moved back after 11 years away and discovered how many roundabouts there were, and they've built even more in the four years we've been back in the city.
We see e-bikes at the state park campgrounds all the time now. I admit, the fitness "purist" in me balks at the suggestion, but then I see older people riding around and I'm like, yeah, e-bikes are great for those who struggle with mobility.
Carmel is leading the way here in central Indiana. Roundabouts are now all over the Indianapolis area. Our town (which is now essentially suburbia) in our red county, adjacent to Indy, is slowly building more sidewalks and bike paths to connect to more shopping and neighborhoods. We live on the edge of town, essentially still in the country, so I don't know when we'll finally be able to safely ride into town, but I hope more and more people make use of those paths. E-bikes may be the way to get people to ride more and drive less.
This really is a great piece. I'm sharing it with my bike-loving father.
I love our F150 truck and my little cross-over SUV, and I love my e-bike.
I’m constantly telling all my active friends how fun my 5-mile ride to town is. They all nod, and then tell me to be safe out there, because they think cycling on our OC streets is just to dangerous.
And they have a point! Even with 50 years of biking experience I do worry when I ride and spend much mental energy monitoring traffic via my bike mirrors and strategizing whether to ride on sidewalks illegally or take a mile detour to less busy streets or risk the narrow non-protected bike lane because few cars are out a 5:45 am.
How nice it would be to actually have fully bike suitable spaces!
And around here it would be easy: hardly anyone walks along major roads so just convert an existing super wide sidewalk into a bike or multi-use path. I suggested that to public works and our county supervisors but nothing is happening
Love the last section - definitely do _not_ make it political. Don't frame it as a climate choice, don't invoke SUV shaming, don't bring the f**k cars attitude. Lean into the fact that it's actually a pretty pleasant and fun change once you're initiated! "Here's a new technology that makes getting around on two wheels much more pleasant. We're not forcing you to change anything, we're simply giving you the option - and we're working to make things more pleasant for folks who do want to get around on a bike."
I also think cities need to be more intentional about providing resources for the newly e-biked to spur interest and counter the usual opposition to new bike lanes going in. e.g. if a city puts new bike lanes in, every public event that year should have a complementary "bike valet" with covered parking and test drives and tune-ups from local shops.
Overall I agree but there is an unaddressed issue here. E-bikes go faster and weigh significantly more than regular bikes, which makes them a danger to pedestrians and “acoustic “ cyclists, particularly children who are likely on a protected bike path specifically to avoid collisions with fast heavy vehicles.
"There is no conservative or liberal way to provide good city services. If we find our people want to use bicycles to get from one place to another, it is up to us to build the infrastructure economically that allows people to do that."
He took a similar approach to roundabouts. Such a practical guy.
And now there are roundabouts everywhere in the greater Indianapolis area. We were shocked when we moved back after 11 years away and discovered how many roundabouts there were, and they've built even more in the four years we've been back in the city.
We see e-bikes at the state park campgrounds all the time now. I admit, the fitness "purist" in me balks at the suggestion, but then I see older people riding around and I'm like, yeah, e-bikes are great for those who struggle with mobility.
Carmel is leading the way here in central Indiana. Roundabouts are now all over the Indianapolis area. Our town (which is now essentially suburbia) in our red county, adjacent to Indy, is slowly building more sidewalks and bike paths to connect to more shopping and neighborhoods. We live on the edge of town, essentially still in the country, so I don't know when we'll finally be able to safely ride into town, but I hope more and more people make use of those paths. E-bikes may be the way to get people to ride more and drive less.
This really is a great piece. I'm sharing it with my bike-loving father.
Love this and 109% agree.
I love our F150 truck and my little cross-over SUV, and I love my e-bike.
I’m constantly telling all my active friends how fun my 5-mile ride to town is. They all nod, and then tell me to be safe out there, because they think cycling on our OC streets is just to dangerous.
And they have a point! Even with 50 years of biking experience I do worry when I ride and spend much mental energy monitoring traffic via my bike mirrors and strategizing whether to ride on sidewalks illegally or take a mile detour to less busy streets or risk the narrow non-protected bike lane because few cars are out a 5:45 am.
How nice it would be to actually have fully bike suitable spaces!
And around here it would be easy: hardly anyone walks along major roads so just convert an existing super wide sidewalk into a bike or multi-use path. I suggested that to public works and our county supervisors but nothing is happening
Love the last section - definitely do _not_ make it political. Don't frame it as a climate choice, don't invoke SUV shaming, don't bring the f**k cars attitude. Lean into the fact that it's actually a pretty pleasant and fun change once you're initiated! "Here's a new technology that makes getting around on two wheels much more pleasant. We're not forcing you to change anything, we're simply giving you the option - and we're working to make things more pleasant for folks who do want to get around on a bike."
I also think cities need to be more intentional about providing resources for the newly e-biked to spur interest and counter the usual opposition to new bike lanes going in. e.g. if a city puts new bike lanes in, every public event that year should have a complementary "bike valet" with covered parking and test drives and tune-ups from local shops.
Overall I agree but there is an unaddressed issue here. E-bikes go faster and weigh significantly more than regular bikes, which makes them a danger to pedestrians and “acoustic “ cyclists, particularly children who are likely on a protected bike path specifically to avoid collisions with fast heavy vehicles.