Some Portland, Oregon residents are starting to show a preference for “bikeable” homes, according to a article written by Eric Mortenson in last Thursday’s Oregonian.

I have long wondered if I would live to see the day when such factors actually made it on to people’s short lists of factors in considering which home to buy (or rent). It is really hard to predict, as I certainly did not foresee the ongoing paradigm shift in American’s commuting habits (OK, we are just talking about Portland here). BUT, here we are and people are considering the length of their bicycle commute to work as they choose their home in Portland. Maybe this idea will catch on, or maybe gas prices will go back down and I will be left all alone again on the bike path… you just never know, do you?

You said it, Jim!

You can purchase this comic at The Cincinnati Enquirer website.

Do you really need one more reason to start commuting to work on your bicycle? If so, read on.

On May 21st, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Renewable Energy and Job Creation Bill of 2008 (H.R. 6049), which, among other things, extends a tax benefit to people who regularly commute by bicycle.

Basically, the tax benefit means that you can shave $20 per month that you commuted by bike off of your gross income when calculating taxes. In other words, it’s not very much in the big picture, BUT it is IN the picture!

Not that we are looking for handouts or anything. I mean, hey, I wish all of these special tax breaks would just go disappear off the face of the earth. But since that is not likely, I’ll take it!

I can only assume that this passed as a result of Portland, Oregon’s Representative Earl Blumenauer (D). It’s good when you have the right people in the right places…

Now get out there and earn your tax break!

Source: CCH.

Want to look sexy velocommuting? Check out Copenhagen Cycle Chic for some cool bike-purchasing ideas. Zakkaliciousness (thanks for the correction, JC) really knows what’s up when it comes to bicycle styles in Copenhagen AND there are lots of sexy velocommuters there that he has captured on film. (What a life!)

The blog is worth a quick glance just to get an idea of what it’s like to live in a place that really has biking at its core. Urban transport is really much more enjoyable (and quicker, apparently!) by bicycle. It is really a wonder that it’s just catching on in the States.

Here has an interesting perspective on how many gears are needed:

This is one issue that gets discussed quite often. Most bikes in Copenhagen have 3 gears. The most irritating sound I know is someone accelerating off the light in one gear and then clickclickclickclickclick, they hop past 78 gears to get to the one they want. Why not just buy a bike with the gears you need?

We often hear that three gears don’t fly in hilly cities. Then get five gears. The vast majority of cities in the world can be cycled daily in 3-5 gears. Whenever anybody says, “Yeah, but my city is REALLY hilly”, we just politely refer to European cities like Berne, Switzerland, where 25% of the population ride each day through a Alpen landscape. Or hilly Aarhus, Denmark’s second city, or Gothenburg, or Trondheim, Norway. 3-5 gears and off you go.

You said it!

Photo Credit: (Copenhagen Cycle Chic)

The Rochester, Minnesota-based Mayo Clinic has launched a bike sharing program. The program even has a great acronym! Gear up and Ride, or GEAR, is the brainchild of Dave Jasperson (pictured), Mayo’s coordinator for surgery and radiology in their Livewell Program.

The program is only in pilot phase at this time and there is no information about GEAR on Mayo’s website, the Rochester Post-Bulletin reports that numerous employees are supportive of the program.

Photo credit: Ken Klotzbach, Rochester Post-Bulletin

Yes, folks, it’s that time of year again. Time to dust off the commuter bicycle and ride to work. Riding a bicycle is an easy choice this Bike-to-Work Month, given the astronomical gasoline prices. I say, save your $5-10 gas money for a day’s commute and ride a bicycle. That way, you can really splurge at lunch time, when you need to fuel up for the way home. Hey, it’s no way to save money, but you could always let your Y membership lapse for the summer.

Remember, if you haven’t ridden a bicycle in traffic in a while, to take the lane if there is no bike path. Don’t ride too close to parked cars or the curb. By taking the whole lane, you avoid the mentality that drivers think there is room for a bicycle and a car in the lane, which is usually not true. If you feel bad making cars behind you go so slowly, pull over, stop, and let them pass.

If you do not have a mirror on your bike, remember that turning around to look at traffic behind you can be disorienting. Use caution looking behind when in traffic.

There is plenty more inspiration and information on velocommuter and elsewhere online. However, if you want a quick little reference book, try Rory McMullan’s “Biking to Work.”

~ms

So GM is NOT buying Specialized Bicycles after all. It is an excellent idea for an April Fool’s joke, however.

Now, just focusing on the core competencies of the two companies, one can see that such a match-up would be utter silliness, but that is why it was such a great April Fool’s joke (we admit that we fell for it hook, line, and sinker!). GM desperately needs to green its bottom line with something!

The fact is, there are a hundred reasons why GM and Specialized would make a terrible team, but how exactly are we going to get out of this mess anyhow? Try thinking outside the car!

Here’s an idea: leave your GM in the driveway and get a great workout while you ride your Specialized (or any of a number of different brand) bicycle to your job or school!

Portland, Oregon is often considered this country’s bicycle commuter Mecca. As we reported here, the City of Roses has seen it’s number of bicycle commuters quadruple in recent years. However, this has not come with a number of speedbumps as well.

As reported in the Oregonian, this week begins a pilot program to test the effectiveness of bike boxes in Portland. Bike boxes are areas of specially-marked paint at traffic signals so that bicyclists can queue up in their own special place at the front of the right-hand lane of traffic. Automobiles must stop for the signal before the bike box. Also, automobile right-hand turns are not allowed at these intersections during a red light.

A Portland Police Officer prepares to issue a warning to a driver for not stopping before a newly-installed bike box (Source: The Oregonian).

There has been much discussion (here, here, and elsewhere) around the city about the effectiveness of bike boxes. However, as the city hopes to continue down this trajectory of being a great biking city, they are becoming more open to ideas such as these. The ground underneath bike boxes is expensive real estate to be sure, but they may get the city back on track to creating a biker’s paradise.

Today, Representative Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) announced a plan to offer bicycle rentals around the U.S. House of Representatives office buildings. The bicycle rental program will be similar to ones that have been recently implemented in Paris, Barcelona, and other European cities.

Blumenauer started the Congressional Bike Caucus last year. The Caucus currently has 164 Members, including 118 Democrats, 45 Republicans (Sue Kelly (R-NY) is the Co-Chair), and 1 Independent. Members of the caucus represent 43 States and the District of Columbia.

To start, Blumenauer is launching a pilot program for bike sharing on Capitol Hill. Today, as part of the National Bike Summit in Washington, D.C., Blumenauer announced Wheels4Wellness, a program to provide up to 30 bicycles around the Capitol Hill complex for U.S. House employees to check out.

Blumenauer worked out the details of the system with Dan Beard, the chief administrative officer of the U.S. House. The House will select a vendor to provide bikes on self-service racks throughout the House campus. Employees who register for the program can check out the bikes for short trips.

Representative Blumenauer on his commuter bicycle (Photo Credit: The Washington Post)

Bike-sharing programs take advantage of new technology — using smart cards or cell phone codes for riders to check out bikes from bike shelters. They’re funded by advertising, user fees or government subsidies. Some rental bikes even feature GPS units for navigating city streets.

Read more about it from our Source: The Oregonian

~ms

(photo courtesy of 1world2wheels.org)

Trek has launched a sustainability website called 1 World 2 Wheels. This is their attempt to show people how to commute to and from work by bicycle. They have lots of useful information and great instructional videos.

We have been impressed by the selection of bikes that Trek has added to its lineup recently. However, while they have the basics covered, the number of options is limited. We need bikes that have the basics covered and that look good when we hop on and ride. For example, why not nice-looking fenders on the Lime? Still not offered for 2008? Hmmm…

~ms