Cyclists v. Motorists

Brief Views: Bicycles v. Cars for Transport

                In recent years, a very large debate has simmered among larger cities and even suburban towns over a life-altering possibility, getting out of the car and on a bicycle for commuting. As lawmakers, civil engineers, and construction crews quite literally pave the way for cyclists to have more of a presence on the road, a rather strange debate has arisen over how the paving is being conducted. Motorists and cyclists, instead of harmoniously sharing the road as lawmakers have aimed in areas such as San Francisco, Portland, southern California and even many areas in Colorado, a great battle has begun in a variety of locations over who deserves to have the road. Cyclists in multiple locations display socially aggressive behaviors and, in spite of better judgment, choose to disobey the laws of the road. While granted, these behaviors are unacceptable, these are not treated as isolated incidents, but as something upon which prejudice is produced towards anybody that uses two wheels instead of four to get around. Copious amounts of variables have, in one way or another, downplayed the idea of using roads for anything beyond driving a motorized vehicle, in spite of the benefits bicycling has for those that do it responsibly. In today’s society, a few cities have decided to change such as San Francisco and Portland, causing a variety of changes, among said changes is a new drive and passion for alternative power sources, namely human-produced power sources for transportation.

                When arguing for the position of using the bicycle as a method for commuting, there is no denying that there is a health benefit involved. The problem is, that while it is indeed healthier for the rider, it is also healthier for their community, both economically and atmospherically. In the US government’s declarations of goals for a cleaner country, and the goal of ‘carbon zero’ as some chemists have called it, there are some communities that have considered performing a far more active approach to the overhauls required for such change as opportunities arise. According to The Infrastructurist, Seoul, Portland, and San Francisco have, in place of repairing highway systems, demolished them and in place of them, gave them a new image (Infrastructurist.com). “Imagine getting a $3,000 to $12,000 tax rebate every year… that’s [about] how much you’d save by ditching your car (Elly Blue, Grist.org).” This economic benefit combined with others, namely the saved money on biking roads in place of automobile-based roads, and the physical benefit of bike parking (more bikes to a space), more and more are catching on that for local business, the best method of improving is by introducing bicycles to the roads.

                Some of the physical benefits of biking are a no-brainer, such as “riding a bicycle can make you really fit… You can avoid the rush hour traffic… It’s cheaper… better for the environment (Lam Bong, ezinearticles.com)” However, other benefits include the amount of space a bike requires, both on and parking off of the road, the weight of a bike, the lack of accidents caused by biking (and their long-term effects compared to automobiles),  and even how portable the vehicle is. A little math also provides some extreme reasoning for a bicycle being used in place of the automobile for commutes, “Bike lanes cost anywhere from $5,000 to $60,000 per mile… Freeway construction in Michigan’s countryside clocks in at $8 million per mile (Elly Blue, Grist.com).”  One way streets in many cities have been turned into two-lane bikeways; a single parking space can store 10 bikes (Elly Blue, Grist.com). Your average vehicle is roughly 7’ long x 4’ wide with 1000-2300 lbs of driving force. That’s without considering the driver. Your bike, on the other hand, is on average, one-tenth of that weight, with rider in tow. When dealing with force, which is equal to mass times velocity, the car has a lot more force behind it than a bike. In both cases the bike is incapable of overcoming the car unless on a downhill run on a mountain. Should an accident happen, your typical pedestrian has only a chance of being injured by being run over by a bike, if they get hit by a car, they are definitely injured if not dead.

The argument that has arisen is that cyclists have not obeyed the laws of the road, that they don’t obey the laws of the road. “San Francisco’s Cyclists Facing Backlash for Flouting Rules of the Road (Scott James, nytimes.com).” Articles such as this, depicting anti-social, non-defensive driving by cyclists has resulted in a battle between motorists and cyclists. In some cases, bike lanes are considered a mistake, “’Wilbur is the wrong street for this kind of improvement,’ said Smith, his sarcasm clear. His district office is on Wilbur, at the bike lane's southern terminus (Sandy Banks, latimes.com)”, causing heavier traffic flow due to people’s lack of planning or something along those lines. Yet, the issues consist of either individual cases or poor planning on the behalf of a Civil Engineer or lawmaker, the lack of foresight has resulted in a slowed movement for cyclists’ numbers to improve. There is no reason to admonish all for the mistakes of few, but various legal problems have caused just that.

In the end, what anyone does is a product yielded by their various choices as an individual. Using a bike on your commute to work may in fact aid the traffic problems you experience in your area. One less car on the road, the rules do not change, the only thing that changes is your health and the speeds at which you travel. Exposure to the elements is, of course, among one of the elements hindering someone from using a bicycle, and while it is undeniable that winter’s cold winds are not meant to be braved, that does not mean someone cannot go out during those sunny and warm days of summer. The only factor stopping anyone from ditching their car for a bike is their own personal choice. Your choice, as an individual, is one for you to make.

Works Cited

Aligue, William. "William Aligue | Battling over Bike Lanes - Los Angeles Times." Featured Articles From The Los Angeles Times. 09 Oct. 2010. Web. 20 May 2011. <http://articles.latimes.com/2010/oct/09/local/la-me-banks-20101009>.

"BBC NEWS | UK | England | Bristol/Somerset | Bristol Named First Cycling City." BBC News - Home. Web. 20 May 2011. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/bristol/somerset/7462791.stm>.

Blue, Elly. "Bikenomics | A Grist Special Series | Grist." Grist | Environmental News, Commentary, Advice. Web. 20 May 2011. <http://www.grist.org/article/series/bikenomics>.

"Huh?! 4 Cases Of How Tearing Down A Highway Can Relieve Traffic Jams (And Save Your City) » INFRASTRUCTURIST." INFRASTRUCTURIST. Web. 20 May 2011. <http://www.infrastructurist.com/2009/07/06/huh-4-cases-of-how-tearing-down-a-highway-can-relieve-traffic-jams-and-help-save-a-city/>.

James, Scott. "Barbary Coast - San Francisco’s Cyclists Facing Backlash for Flouting Rules of the Road - NYTimes.com." The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. 20 May 2011. Web. 20 May 2011. <http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/06/us/06sfmetro.html>.