A little less than a day ago I tweeted asking a simple question : “How to get every day people to use a bike?. It seems basic, but it isn’t. It is something I deal with daily running a bike shop and trying to encourage people to ride their bikes for basic uses.. The society that surrounds cycling in Charlotte, NC and the suburbs is a hobby and sport, not for everyday use.
Some steps I would like to see going forward include:
Commuter Buddy Systems, we have one in Charlotte but it isn’t used often. A system that you could team up with a well experienced commuter, map out your ride and ride with someone on those daunting streets.
Incentive from the Government. get us out of our cars and into public transportation, our feet or bikes.. Instead of investing more and more money into the never ending circle that is public roads for cars, help us become less reliant on the toxic car use.
Higher Gas Prices : I’m going to get stoned for saying it. when we saw gas prices rising last fall we also saw people trying to learn how to use their bikes for the better.. Running to get milk. to their tennis practice and the gym.. Once gas prices went back down their old habits came back. If you compare our gas prices to Europe, you can see a direct transfer of bike use to gas prices.
Help me figure out this basic question, and we will be well ahead of where we are now.