We need you to light up the River Street Lighted Christmas Parade with us tomorrow at 5pm! The forecast looks cool and clear! Helmets, head and tail lights are required. If you don’t have one or all of these, we do have a limited number of FREE head/taillight combos and some bmx/skate style helmets in red or black for just $10 to keep your melon intact along the cobblestones and beyond. We also have some more powerful lights for sale (w/batteries, $7.50 ea or $15 for the head/tail pair — a great deal!)

As you know, the best holiday-theme costumed rider/bike combo will win a new cruiser, so get in the spirit! Contest will be judged before the parade by Police Chief Michael Berkow and USCG XO Lindsay Weaver, so be sure to be there before 5:15 if you want to win! Here’s a little mood music for you as you get ready.

Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite, Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairyas played on bicycle parts. Composer, johnnyrandom for this Specialized Bikes ad.
Glockenspiel & Clarinet melody = spokes.
Cello & Violin pizzicatos = plucked derailleur cables.
Triangle = disc brake hit.
Percussion = shifting, coasting, finger over turning spokes, chain pulls, braking, clipping into pedals, back-spinning, air out of tires.

Many thanks again to our sponsors, Georgia Bike Law/Attorney Joe Steffen, Big H little h design and illustration, Quality Bikes, and Blowin’ Smoke BBQ!

Just a reminder — the guided bike tour Wheelie at Fort Pulaski happens this Sunday, November 16 at 2pm. We will meet at the picnic pavilions at Fort Pulaski, and entrance is free for Wheelie riders courtesy of our friends at the fort. Islands Bikes and Boards will be there to make sure you’re ready to roll. Remember to bring a fat tire bike if you can, as the rail trail and dikes are pretty bumpy. There are shorter options for the little ones if you want to bring them in a carrier or let them ride on their own.

Stick around for a cookout and good times with the Campaign. BYOB for all so inclined, and bring a dish to share. We’ll cover the burgers and dogs.

Thanks again to sponsors sponsors Georgia Bike Law, Big H little h design and illustration and Fort Pulaski National Monument.

If you have been to Europe in the last few years, you may have noticed new fleets of bicycles in Paris, Barcelona or Lyon, available for short trip rentals.  The idea is called bike sharing and it’s taking off like wildfire in Europe (with a new program also in Washington, DC) as noted in this recent NYT article.  Early programs like this fulfilled the casual expectation that that bikes would be stolen and/or vandalized.  Most programs now, however, have technological components that limit theft (digital keycard with annual fee, first 30 minutes free and beyond that prices go way up — a strong incentive to get the bike securely parked at a station).

Furthermore, it’s a pretty cheap thing to do:

For mayors looking to ease congestion and prove their environmental bona fides, bike-sharing has provided a simple solution: for the price of a bus, they invest in a fleet of bicycles, avoiding years of construction and approvals required for a subway. For riders, joining means cut-rate transportation and a chance to contribute to the planet’s well-being.

The price of a bus!  Think of that for a moment, particularly in the context of CAT’s purchase of hybrid buses.  Not that this sort of system would eliminate the need for buses, but it sure would be an inexpensive way to reduce congestion and parking problems, especially downtown.  Most programs are also funded by advertising, further limiting cost.  As we have noted previously, if Savannah could manage something like this, it would add a definite wow factor — great for economic development and tourism.

A historical election this week, and bicyclists should be reminded that regardless of our political leanings, come January, there will be someone in the top office who has spoken in favor of general infrastructure improvement not only to bridges and highways, but also to transit, pedestrian and bicycle facilities:

If we are going to solve our energy problems we’ve got to think long term. It’s time for us to be serious about investing in alternative energy. It’s time for us to get serious about raising fuel efficiency standards on cars. It’s time that the entire country learned from what’s happening right here in Portland with mass transit and bicycle lanes and funding alternative means of transportation.

Time will tell whether economic realities and the vagaries of the process allow this to become reality.  I would offer this, though:  pumping billions of dollars into economic institutions operating on Gordon Gekko’s ideology may not provide any better chance of long term benefit than passing out $600 checks to every American did.

What will, then?  How about reinvestment in our infrastructure?  How  about moving forward with alternative transportation modes and providing real funding?  Surveys have suggested that Americans support spending on these projects, but the reality is that 79% of transportation dollars go to roads, 20% to transit and 1% to walking and bicycling.  Contrast with what Americans would like to see (see figure) and there is a vast disparity.

So stay tuned, as the next stimulus package may include some of this and if not, the renewal of the Transportation Bill is coming in 2009, and we will be watching closely to see whether the words translate into deeds.

Anyone interested in helping kids get more active should consider the meeting at the MPC tomorrow (Mon 10/27) at 10am. As covered in today’s SMN, and previously on our site, GDOT is hosting a meeting to discuss the process for the newly announced infrastructure grants for Safe Routes to School.

We hope that Chatham County will get on board and be able to ask GDOT for long overdue funds to improve sidewalks, crosswalks and bike paths within 2 miles of elementary and middle schools throughout the county. A major obstacle to kids walking and riding bikes to school is their parents’ belief, in many cases well founded, that doing so is too dangerous. The result is all too many arrive in their parents’ cars. With some changes about how we look at the problem, with a systematic approach in all of our public and private schools, we can make a difference, and thus decrease traffic congestion, needlessly used fuel, and childhood obesity all at the same time. The best thing about the program is that if a grant is funded, there is no local cost — the project is fully funded by federal dollars and built by GDOT contractors. Stay tuned for more details, and if you can help, please let us know.