Making biking in the 'Burgh better

It’s no secret that Europeans are way more bike-friendly and less obese than us here in the U.S. of A., but it seems to catch American tourists off-guard nonetheless. My friend Kelsey, who is studying abroad in Germany right now, said that when she first arrived she was surprised at how fit Germans are, given their propensities for sausage and beer and bakeries. “But then I realized that everyone rides a bike,” she said.“It’s like old ladies, women with babies (they put car-seat thingys on the back), girls in skirts, hot boys, all on bikes.”

Seems like those Germans are on to something, since bicycles are not just great for health: “[T]hey reduce travel costs, dramatically improve safety and public health, and reconnect citizens with their communities,” Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood said in his blog. Biking is also easy on the environment, since muscle-power means zero carbon emissions, and on your wallet, since you don’t need insurance, inspections, gas fill-ups, or expensive repairs. Plus, as any child of any generation will tell you, biking is just fun.

So why hasn’t America (or Pittsburgh) caught on? Well, as you can see by the above statement by Secretary LaHood—and by the crammed bike racks in front of any University building—maybe we are. In another post last Saturday, LaHood said “the Federal Highway Administration is looking at best practices in Europe to improve safety and mobility for walkers and cyclists.” USDOT also recently issued a policy statement encouraging states to incorporate bicycling into their transportation networks.

LaHood also gave a rousing speech from atop a table at the League of American Bicyclists 10th Annual National Bike Summit in D.C. last week, which five advocates from Pittsburgh attended. There they spoke with state representatives about different acts that would protect and promote biking. This year there were more than 7 times more attendees at the summit than when it first started, an indicator that biking is truly gaining popularity nationwide.

And Pittsburgh is certainly no exception, with some awesome trails and organizations that have opened up ‘Burghers to cycling, but you won’t find our name on any lists of “most bike-friendly cities.” However, this isn’t so much because of a lack of bike-friendly people, than a lack of bike-friendly streets, which is why advocates at BikePGH, several of whom attended the Bike Summit, are working to make the city more amenable to biking through legislation and community involvement.

Thanks in part to their efforts, city council voted last week to require “new and ‘change-in-use’ buildings” in the city to provide bicycle parking. Although many of the bigger ideals BikePGH works for, such as the Complete Streets initiative, have yet to take tangible form, it’s comforting to know that there are people out there making sure Pittsburgh keeps moving forward.

And if you have ever driven—or pedaled—down 5th Avenue, you might agree. There’s just no real safe place for bikers to go. In fact, yesterday afternoon I saw two cyclists in the bus lane frantically dodging cars in an effort to get out of the way of a stopped bus. This resulted in several angry honkers, and while it may be true that the bus lane is not the safest or smartest (or most legal) way to go, bikers’ other options aren’t much better.

Sidewalks are often too congested with pedestrians (and I’m pretty sure it’s also illegal to ride on them, although I may be wrong here,) and riding in car lanes inevitably invites a line of frustrated drivers wondering, “Do I just slow down? Do I get in the other lane? How can I pass this guy without scaring him into cardiac arrest?” All of these alternatives seem to negate one of the main purposes of biking—to have a more relaxing and pleasant traveling experience.

It’s a common fact that strength in numbers increases safety for bikers, but I think that these organizations show that it does something more—grabs the attention of the policymakers who can make the infrastructural changes that bikers can’t. Now we can just hope they actually put those changes into motion. Healthy, sustainable, and economical motion.