Reply to Question for the anti-bike / anti-bus people

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I'm all in favor of public transportation and biking for those who are able; but you have to acknowledge that the vast majority of people cannot and will not use a bike as their primary mode of transportation for day to day activities. It just doesn't work.[/quote]

What exactly is stopping the “vast majority of people”? Could it perhaps be the perceived lack of safety due to the lack of protected bike lanes?[/quote]

Why I don't bike besides safety:

(1) Don't want to get to work and be sweaty or ruin my clothes.
(2) Drive my kids to school  (they are too big to put in one of those Amsterdam style bikes) - we live too far away to walk and bus service doesn't come often enough in the AM.  (They do take the bus home.)
(3) My street is too steep on the way back. I'd have to walk the bike up hills which would take too long. (I work full time.)
(4) I only have time to grocery shop once a week, so it's too much to fit in a bike.
(5) For short trips on mostly flat surfaces, I'd consider it, but worried about the bike getting stolen.[/quote]

For (1), lobby your employer to put in a locker room and showers. It’s much cheaper and more socially responsible than building a parking garage or subsidizing private parking. But in reality, there is only a couple of months a year where you are going to get sweaty after a ride. As long as you can access a bathroom, you can change clothes.

For (2), protected  bike lanes will help your children bike safely to school.

(3) makes me wonder where you live. San Francisco, is it? There are few if any streets in DC that cannot be ascended by a reasonably fit person on a geared bike. See also e-bikes.

On (4), are bike trailers for that, but fine. Before I owned a car, I’d rent a car for a few hours to do a monthly grocery run.

(5) is strange. I’ve ridden a bike all over DC for 5 years. Never had it stolen or anything stolen off it. My bike isn’t worth a lot. If it did get stolen, I’m still ahead by thousands of dollars versus what it would have cost to do the equivalent distance by self-drive or rideshare.

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