Gas-Free Fridays; Trade your car in for one trip a week
he SFBG talks about a new initiative by the SFBC, and we bring it to you here at the SFBB:
I’ve become a happier person since I sold my Jetta and started traveling almost exclusively by bicycle. Every time I’ve driven a car in San Francisco the experience has left me frustrated, annoyed, and feeling like I didn’t get where I was going any faster than I would have on my bicycle. I’m not alone — car sales statewide are down, the big three automakers are crying poverty and just got a $25 billion loan from President George W. Bush, and according to a recent national survey by Bikes Belong, of 150 bike stores polled, 73 percent said they’re selling more bikes this year.
So, it’s fantastic to see this new initiative designed to get people out of their cars at least once a week. Launched by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, they make the case for picking the bike over the car by pointing out that 50 percent of the city’s emissions come from transportation and half of all car trips within the city are less than two miles — an easy pedal on a bicycle. Furthermore, cars emit the most pollution during the first few minutes they’re running, which means that short car trips are the worst for the environment.
This conversion of drivers to bicyclists is something I’ve been interested in for a long time — and I have no good ideas about how to make it happen. It’s very frustrating.
But this campaign seems to be a better idea than anything I’ve ever thought of, so hopefully we can win over some converts.
I do remember hearing on more than one occasion, a bicyclist who would say something like, ‘Yeah - I used to bike when I was a kid, but then I kinda stopped, and then Bike to Work Day came around - I tried it out - and then I just never stopped - I was hooked.’ So, this kind of thing can definitely work.
The Executive Director of the SFBC, Leah Shahum, takes things one step further in their press release (pdf), and suggests that it doesn’t have to be a Friday thing, it can be any trip that you might otherwise make with your car:
“We want people to think about substituting one trip a week that they normally take by car, and try it on a bike,” says Shahum. “I encourage you to try a short trip to the video store or to a restaurant and see how easy biking can be.”
RideFridays.org was posting about this same idea through the summer. It kinda makes sense, since each Friday is usually corporate dress-down day.
I still do wonder, though - is there that one great idea that we just haven’t found yet? Maybe Gas-Free Fridays is the one. I’m pretty fond of the New Belgium/Tour de Fat Car Swap (Check out that bike!), too.
Hey - today is Friday - let’s ride!
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