Sunday, May 25, 2008
Bike commuting in New York City
Bike commuting has increased by 75 percent in New York City since 2000, in part due to the support from city government, which has created many new bike lanes and is encouraging more people to commute by bike. As reported by the Post in the article N.Y. Hopes to Ensure Smooth Pedaling for Bike Commuters, the city plans to have 400 miles of bike lanes by next summer, out of 6,000 miles of streets. By contrast, Fairfax County has around 4,000 miles of roads and about 20 miles of bike lanes."We've run out of room for driving in the city. We have to make it easier for people to get around by bikes." said Janette Sadik-Kahn, the city's transportation commissioner, who herself bikes to work.
With gasoline prices nearing $4 a gallon, obesity rates rising and gridlock tightening, New York is one of the many cities planning to promote the bicycle and move the perception of cyclists from Lycra-clad thrill-seekers to responsible citizens.
DC's SmartBike program is mentioned as are the efforts by Chicago, Portland, and event Flint, Michigan, to encourage more bicycling.
Comments:
I'm impressed by the ammount of bike paths and bike racks in Fairfax...you know how DC compares to those numbers? (Or where I could find out how many miles in DC?) Thanks! And by the way, great blog!
meanjean,
I don't know the answer to your question. I do know that DC has more bike lanes than Fairfax (about 30 miles in DC vs. 20 miles in Fairfax) and they probably have more bike racks, especially usable, inverted U racks. You could write to Jim Sebastian, the DC bike coordinator, Jim.Sebastian@dc.gov.
I don't know the answer to your question. I do know that DC has more bike lanes than Fairfax (about 30 miles in DC vs. 20 miles in Fairfax) and they probably have more bike racks, especially usable, inverted U racks. You could write to Jim Sebastian, the DC bike coordinator, Jim.Sebastian@dc.gov.
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