Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Reasons to go by bike
Supervisor Cook has received many emails from area cyclists concerned about his statement that "a bicycle is not a transportation device." Several of those emails were also sent to FABB. They all made a good case for why bicycling is a basic, important, low-cost form of transportation. We especially liked the letter from Phillip Troutman, Assistant Professor of Writing at George Washington University. In this extract from Phillip's letter he outlines many of the reasons why biking is one of the best forms of transportation available:
In light of recent comments you are reported to have made, wanted you to know that bicycles are a form of transport. I ride 15 miles each way to work three times a week, from Falls Church to Georgetown. This saves me roughly $7 in car/gas costs and saves the planet about 29 pounds (!) of carbon. It is also far more reliable in terms of time than driving. When I ride my bike, it takes me 45 minutes always, unless I have a flat, in which case it takes one hour. When I drive, it might take 45 minutes or maybe one hour, or maybe an hour and a half. When I take Metro and bus, it is a similar range of times.
I urge you to reconsider the importance of bike lanes and bike trail infrastructure—supported especially by Arlington and the District, and the NoVa Regional Parks (w/ the WO&D trail)—and help Fairfax continue incorporating bike infrastructure in its new projects (e.g., as it already is in Reston and in plans for Tysons). If you would like to know more about how easy it can be to ride to work, I would be glad to give you more information.
Phillip is putting his words into action by encouraging other people who commute to GWU to go by bike with his bike2gw blog and the bike2gw Facebook page to "provide maps, route details, trail/road condition updates, & local bike event information, & to promote bike-friendly policies at GW."I urge you to reconsider the importance of bike lanes and bike trail infrastructure—supported especially by Arlington and the District, and the NoVa Regional Parks (w/ the WO&D trail)—and help Fairfax continue incorporating bike infrastructure in its new projects (e.g., as it already is in Reston and in plans for Tysons). If you would like to know more about how easy it can be to ride to work, I would be glad to give you more information.
Phillip obtained the information about the impact of his bicycle commute on the REI Bike Your Drive webpage.
Labels: bicycle transportation, phillip troutman, supervisor cook
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