Notes on Bicycle Advocacy

For some weeks now, I've wanted to make a post with some general observations about the differences between bicycle advocacy where I come from and the the places that I'm traveling through.

Be warned, though: this is not a thoroughly researched, well documented article about the history of bicycle advocacy in America or Europe. Rather, these are a few limited observations made during more than two months spent studying bicycle cultures in Europe.

1. Staying Positive:

Most of the advocacy I have seen in Denmark and the Netherlands has been oriented at *increasing* the positive benefits across the social spectrum which are accrued from more bicycling. One simple example is a statistic from Denmark which the Danish Cycling Federation put together: for every kilometer bicycled in Denmark, the government actually earns one Danish Crown. This is a particularly poignant political argument for fiscal conservatives as it demonstrates the returns on bicycle investment. Sure it costs money to create bicycle infrastructure; in today's world, it costs money to do almost anything! But the returns on bicycle investments are quite good.

2. Name the Goal, not the Step.

I actually read this in a zine I picked up while haunting a local squat here in Amsterdam. It was a zine about computer technology, of all things, but I think it is a good way of positing a solution to a common problem with bicycle advocates. Installing new bike parking is not the goal, it is the step. An increase in bicycle lanes is not the goal, it is the step. A healthier society is the goal. A city that can move its people with increased efficiency and care, that is the goal. The goal, I think, can compel and inspire people to get out on a bike, which is more powerful than arguments for increased spending on blue stripes in the roadway. For effective advocates, the work before us goes beyond the bicycle, and it should be clearly stated that bike advocates are about more than increasing the number of people on bicycles.

I think this point chafes the sensibilities of bicycle enthusiasts because for so many of us, the bicycle in itself is a powerful tool for social and personal liberation. But the time for preaching to the choir has come and gone. Reaching more people requires broadening the message.

3. Eco-guilt and Slim Bodies Won't Cut it

What is the number one reason people bicycle in Denmark? Ease and convenience. In the Netherlands? 7.2 of 10 people say they are satisfied with the network of bicycle tracks throughout the city. This is a pretty good satisfaction rate for bicycle infrastructure.

A well developed, easy to use system of designated paths is critical to making cycling attractive. Public health, eco friendliness and sustainability, I would argue, are the by-products of bicycle cultures built around convenience. This is a point that should not be lost, because providing convenient and efficient transportation to a municipality's citizenry is in many ways as important as providing fire and ambulance services. Vehicular mobility often determines social mobility, and cities with limited vehicular mobility are often cities with limited social mobility as well. Bicycle paths, then, can be seen as a noble service provided to citizens.

4. America Lacks not for Best Practices; We Lack Political Will

The culture wars, I would argue, are one of the reasons bicycling has enjoyed little progress in America. I think advocates and cyclists alike often fail to use the bicycle as a political tool to bridge the divide between social conservatism and social liberalism. I've observed many of the most passionate bicycle lovers are bent on destroying the car culture in the U.S.; or bent on shoveling out the old guard of traffic engineers in favor of newer, hipper, more enlightened engineers.

Let's get real. The car culture will change in coming years, for sure, but the goal of bicycle advocates should not be to promote its demise. The same is true with the field of traffic engineering.

To focus on the ways in which the bicycle is a unifying force, the ways in which it acts as an egalitarian tool to increase the opportunity for all peoples is, to me, a much more politically sensible approach to effective advocacy. As long as an "us (bikes) vs. them (cars and the engineers/politicians/companies that promote them!)" mentality pervades bicycle advocacy, our single speed wheels will continue to spin and want for political traction.

Me? I'm hoping to encourage the car companies--perhaps in an effort to win some nice publicity for a change--to start a small grants program aimed at increasing effective bicycle advocacy. Refreshing but impossible, you say? Keep an open mind. You'd be amazed at what is possible.

So let's discuss. What, in your estimation, has led to the bicycle's trivial role in American society. This list is not exhaustive, and it certainly needs some improvement.

Weigh in!

Transitions

The City of Copenhagen has been quite thorough in its effort to accommodate bicycles across the city. Just a small bit of asphalt can go a long way.
This photo is from Israel Plads, the square just beside the Danish Cycling Federation.
While the picture shows us just a small slathering of concrete that looks hastily poured and less than perfect, the asphalt aids bicycles as they transition from the square to the roadway.

This transition is found just before the bridge across the lakes on Nørrebrogade, the street featured in the video below. This transition is smoothed over to provide access in both directions across the intersection and onto the sidewalk.

The asphalt is a small price to pay for increasing the efficiency of cyclists throughout the city.

The number one reason people bicycle in Copenhagen--more than 50% responded this way in the most recent bicycle account--is because bicycling through the city is easy and efficient.

The asphalt transitions demonstrate that being bicycle friendly often does not require tons of money or sophisticated engineering. Just a little bit of asphalt, carefully placed, and thoughtfully installed.

Starting Early (with a Note on Land Use)

Here in Copenhagen, the individuals who are working to grow the bicycle culture understand that a 37% mode share can be lost in a single generation.

The Danish Cyclists' Federation (DCF), a 105 year old bicycle advocacy group still at work here in Copenhagen, has begun a program to ensure that the next generation of Danes continues to ride bicycles.
This bicycle is similar to the first bike created in Germany in the 19th century, the velocipede (The handsome man holding this bicycle is Kristian, a former bicycle messenger/bicycle mechanic who now works full time at the DCF). The bike has no pedals and is instead powered by pushing. Its for the very little ones among us. The very, very little ones.

While kids in America can begin riding the bicycle with training wheels at 4 or 5, this little device enables kids to get moving on two wheels a bit earlier. Perhaps most importantly, the young people learn balance at an early age, which means they can often safely forgo training wheels and begin riding a real bike at a young age.

I tried to snap a shot of this mother/daughter duo as they rode past, but managed only to catch them in the background. They were riding quite fast!

Still, I think this picture tells a story about the bicycle culture here. The young girl riding beside her mom appeared to be 5 or 6 years old. They are riding in a bicycle track near the busy city center on a roadway used frequently by motor vehicles.

In Copenhagen, they ride with a clearly discernible sense of security: in part because the effort to teach safe bicycle riding starts early and in part because the City of Copenhagen has created safe places for little people and old people, fast people and slow people, to use their bicycles.
Maybe they parked here a bit later. This parking lot is typical for Copenhagen, and one can be found on most city blocks in within the city. There are perhaps 25 or 30 bicycles parked here. Using this same space, you park two cars.