WHEN I WAS YOUNGER, I BELIEVED, PERHAPS NAÏVELY, that bicycles would save the world. But as I dove into racing, I moved further and further away from riding bikes as transportation and became heavily invested in cycling as a sport, exercise, and social activity. I bought my first car because I wanted to travel to races and events. With a car, I spent a decade road-tripping to events on the East Coast and in the Midwest to chase podiums and prize money. And I loved it. I don't regret those years of living the bike racer's dream. But the truth is, while cycling often gets viewed as an environmentally friendly pursuit, racing bikes or driving to trailheads is not all that green.
If bicycles are to have a substantial environmental impact, riding needs to replace car trips. Commuting to work by bike instead of in a car is what many folks will think of first. But what about everything else we need to do? Groceries, errands, or kid pickups and drop-offs? Last year, more than 52 percent of all car trips in the United States were less than three miles. These are the constant neighborhood car trips that can most easily be influenced by cycling-not as a sport or recreation but as transportation.
While the Netherlands, Denmark, and other European nations embraced cargo bikes decades ago, in the United States, these bikes often were reserved for city-based courier companies or were enjoyed primarily by the cyclists most passionate about utility cycling. The rise of the e-bike in the last decade, and the electrification of the cargo bike in particular, has opened up a practical and appealing way for more people to go car-lite.
This story is from the Spring 2023 edition of Bicycling US.
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This story is from the Spring 2023 edition of Bicycling US.
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