Street Parking?

Photo courtesy of Flickr

I've been mulling over the idea of cities making street parking illegal. It think it would make people rethink driving everywhere they go and owning more vehicles than they need (since they would need to park on their own property at home. It would also add space for cars and bikes to use the roadways, adding at least a lane if not two to each road, without any cost to the city.

The actual act of traveling down these roads will also be safer and faster. Cyclists won't have to worry about parked cars opening their doors in front of them (a major cause of bicycle accidents). Drivers could count on not getting stuck behind a driver trying to parallel park and is blocking the entire right lane, or worry about the daredevil driver who thinks they can get out of their parking spot, up to speed and into traffic in the 4 car length space between them and the driver in front of them.

Sure, this plan will likely mean that more real estate in urban areas will be devoted to parking structures and many metropolitan areas are not designed to park the number of cars that would be required initially while people get used to not driving. (Although based on some mid-day trips through downtown San Diego I would say there are enough empty spots in pay lots to make a dent in the number of cars coming off the streets.

Turns out that a city is considering doing this, but only on selected streets. The Sentinel in Woodbridge, NJ reports that their township council is considering it and the mayor hopes to have it in place by July 1st. Of course, their concern is more about people parking in front of residences (I'm guessing the locale isn't very urban), but could still give evidence to whether this is a good idea.

I know where I stand as a biker and someone who dislikes vehicle traffic but I can't decide which side I come down on as a taxpayer and citizen. On one hand, I don't think that my tax dollars should be subsidizing storage of personal property, which, let's be honest, isn't really all that great for the city anyway. (Imagine a car-less city...heaven.) People should be required to keep their vehicles on their own property and if someone (person or business) wants them to visit by auto, they should find a place for them to put that car. (Supermarkets and malls already do this.)

On the other hand, I recognize that the government is a representation of the people. If people want to have cars and store cars on the road, the government should honor that desire.

Clearly it would take great foresight from a city council or mayor to get this even onto a ballot much less passed. I do believe, however, that while there would be complaining on the outset (quite a bit of complaining actually) that people would be quick to adapt and find other, better ways to travel in urban areas.

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Snarky Responses to News Stories

The Warwick Beacon, of Warwick, Rhode Island has a story (here) about how escalating gas prices aren't keeping high school kids from driving to school. My favorite bits:

Vets cheerleader Rachel Ferrara thinks she knows why. The junior said her mother
would be driving her around if she didn’t have a car and in the end no gasoline
would have been saved. So, in Ferrara’s case, mom has increased her gas
allowance.

Note to Rachel, it doesn't count as independence if it goes away without a car. That is just conditional dependance. Learn to get around on your own.

A random poll of Vets students at lunch Friday found them paying $25 to $60
a week for gasoline.
Vets junior Stephanie Gilman, who drives a 97 Volvo and works at Inskip
Motors, couldn’t imagine at what cost gasoline would have to climb before she
gives up driving. As it is now, her mother is helping with a weekly $40 gas
allowance.

Are you kidding me?!? Where are these kids driving? Even when I was driving full-time, my wife and I combined for less than $50 a week and we each were driving 30 miles a day to and from work with the occasional weekend trip to visit the folks (between 60 and 120 miles each way). I want to rail against the idea of a gas allowance, but looking back, it probably would have been better if my parents had me on one when I was growing up.

Mark Rossi, who lives within a mile of Vets and said he could easily walk or
ride his bicycle, still drives his 97 Toyota Camry. He believes he could rally a
few friends to help share the cost but prefers the independence and the latitude
to sleep just a bit later and still make it to class on time.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I present you with the current American mentality. Within a mile? Really? How much sleep is that really saving?

Fox11AZ.com has a story that has been on numerous other news websites about how the most dangerous part of the commute isn't the chance of an accident, but rather breathing the exhaust from the cars in front of you:

"The air coming into your car is the worst air in the whole city," said
Scott Fruin, Assistant Professor of Environmental Health at USC Keck School of
Medicine.

This is news?

So how can you make your commute safer? Drive with the windows up and set
the air on re-circulate. But the best way to survive your commute is to cut your
commute.

Or, not use a car. That way you not only lower the danger for yourself, but also for everyone else.

-Matt




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Macy's Green Washing

I've been meaning for two weeks now to post an irate response to a Macy's ad (above via Streetsblog). I was going to rail about how hard it is to actually lock up a bike at Macy's or how the the only thing remotely related to bikes that they sell are dress shoes (with "bicycle toe" what ever that means).

But I can't.

I just can't seem to get upset at this apparent corporate green washing. Maybe it will convince someone to commute by bike. Could the money from this ad campaign have been better used outfitting low-income families with proper protective equipment or creating an education program that tries not to let kids fall into the driving culture of their parents? Sure, but I'm just not able to get upset about it any more.

I think, my time is better spent hoping it doesn't rain on my on my way home.

Direct link to REI Cycling store

Pics from Earth Fair

Here are the pictures from Earth Fair today. Had a great time checking out the booths and what not.

Some highlights:

• Free Clif bars (seriously, I ate like 5)
  
• Talked to a ranger from Cuyamaca State Park. She said they are almost done rebuilding the bathrooms at my favorite campsite (Paso Picacho Group Camps) after the Cedar Fire in 2004. They still have some trees they need to cut down (they are a danger to fall on people) before they open up. Depending on funding the camps could be open at the end of this summer, but almost certainly by next spring
  
• The fantastic bike valet job done by the San Diego County Bike Coalition. They make it so easy to go and not worry about locking up your bike.
  
• Got some info about the California Native Plant Society and the Food Not Lawns group. Both groups are things I've been looking into myself.
• A-16 had a list of local weekend backpacking treks with elevation and difficulty. Pretty stocked about that one. (Especially since the wife gets sad every time she sees her backpack that she has never used even though she bought it a year ago.)
• Did I mention free Clif bars? Cause I brought 2 home with me.

The lowlights:

• The 5(!!!) different anti-abortion booths. The ones with the giant pictures of aborted fetuses. While I disagree with them, I agree with their right to freedom of speech, however, have some candor. This was a family event and it was event for Earth Day, not a pro-choice rally. Bad form.
  

Always good to see the US park service (I believe) out in force. The kids really got a kick out of the stuffed cats (most of which had been seized by US Customs from people trying to bring them back in from other countries).
This is the Bamboo Van down in the Eco-autos part of the fair. This van is a little disingenious however, it is simply a Chevy van covered with pieces of bamboo. It does extoll the virtues of bamboo for many uses however, so that is redeeming. I was just looking forward to seeing how the van could be made completely from bamboo.
Lots and lots of dogs there today. Seriously, tons of them. These were the biggest.
I was stunned at the number of people attending. I'm sure the website from the last post will have a total count or estimate at some point, but the place was packed and between in the incredible number of bikes at the bike valet (courtesy of the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition) and the crazy amount of traffic on the roads around the park I'd say there were quite a few people present.
Go ahead, ask the puppet. Not sure what this was for, but the whole crew got a good laugh out of it.
The sign there reads (and I couldn't make this up) Gothic Volunteer Alliance of San Diego. So for all the goths out there that read this blog. You should join up and allow your, ummm, sadness and pain to help you make San Diego a better place.

Cycling

Are electric bicycles good?

I’ve been mulling over the idea of pedelec bikes for the last few days. For those of you that don’t recall, pedelec bikes are bicycles with electric assist motors. You still have to pedal, just not as hard or as much. I posted this in a news roundup and there is another story now on engadget.com.

My initial reaction was: “NO! Nononononono. No. No. That is not the point of cycle commuting!” Being electric means they are still using electricity. And seeing as most electricity still comes from coal or oil that means that the pedelecs still pollute, indirectly. Futhermore, the second best part of cycle commuting is the health benefits, which you lose most of on a pedelec. Really though, the last thing I need is to have to deal with pedelecs trying to run me off the road as well as autos.

After awhile though, I started to like the idea. All I needed to do was realize that this product wasn’t for me. I don’t need to go get an electric bike, I can still ride my analog one. What this will do is get more people out on bikes. Will it use electricity? Sure, but these users would be in cars anyway and the bike, even if electric is far better for the environment (and traffic).

The pedelecs offer health benefits too. Just getting people out into the fresh air will be good for them. Even pedaling a little is better than pushing a gas pedal. Most importantly it will help build community. One of the best things about cycle commuting is talking to other people on bikes (something that rarely happens in cars). Studies have shown that people are happier and healthier if they are part of a community.

All in all, I think electric bikes are going to be a good thing. It will get more people out on bikes. Which is what we all want, isn’t it?




Cycling

That is exactly how I feel!

I was reading one of my favorite blogs, How the World Works at Salon.com and the fabulous Andrew Leonard who writes the blog finished up a post about peak oil with the following paragraph:

The high price of oil is a serious economic downer with regressive implications
for the poor and working class, all the world over, but it's also the best
incentive we've got for forcing conservation, improvements in energy efficiency,
and investment in alternate energy technologies. And that's how you prepare for
the age of peak oil, not to mention attempt avoiding the disruptions threatened
by climate change.

It struck me as exactly how I feel about oil, driving and innovations. I know it is gonna hurt, but I cannot see making it hurt more in the future by making it hurt less now. It makes much more sense to tackle the root of the problem so that at some point in the future there won't be any pain at all.






Cycling

Wednesday is “Pick up Some Trash Day”

Starting today and continuing on all following Wednesdays I will be observing “Pick up Some Trash Day.”

“Sounds great, but how do you celebrate?” you say. Well, start by getting a bag of some sort (preferably not a brand new store bought one). Then go around your neighborhood or on your way to or from somewhere, pick up the trash that you see. Trash in the gutter, trash in the planters, trash on the sidewalks and paths. Fill up your bag and then give yourself a pat on the back. Just be sure to wash your hands first.

Tomorrow Morning’s Weather believes that part of commuting by bicycle and public transportation is developing a sense of community that has been lost from the American psyche over the last few decades. That is why I promote things like “Pick up Some Trash Day,” guerilla gardening (info coming) and building relationships with your neighbors.

So do some good in your neighborhood or on your commute and pick up some of that trash.