Driving to Work Alone
15 July, 2008
My sister, who works in Salt Lake Valley, shared a surprising number with me the other day. UTA conducted a survey of her and her co-workers. The survey pointed out that 82% of the people working for her employer drive to work in their cars alone.
I had always noticed that the number of people driving solo on I-15 seemed high. The 82% number confirms what I had expected. Without knowing how far each of these people has to drive, it’s perhaps impossible to recommend that more of them start riding a bike to work tomorrow. So what should we do?
Even if we can’t avoid driving to work for now, here are some ideas on how to start small and increase our amount of cycling bit by bit.
- Take a little ride on the Provo River Trail once or twice a week
- Ride your bike to church
- Use your bike, rather than your car, to make a quick stop at your neighbor’s
- Rent mountain bikes at Sundance or Deer Valley and ride the trails for a day
- Buy a bike for your child(ren) and go on rides together
These are just a few of the ways we can gradually start cycling more often. In a previous post, Brad discussed the choice of where to live and how this affects our cost of living.
Tales from the Commute
15 July, 2008
On my way home this afternoon, I heard one of the most depressing sounds a cyclist can hear. The sound of a new tire going from 120 psi to 0 psi in about a second. Only this time, the result was a little worse. As you can see, my tire was almost cut in half by something I ran over at the intersection of Geneva Rd. and Center St. in Provo.
The rubbery carnage. And I already know what you're thinking...yes, I moonlight as a professional hand model.
I made it through the intersection safely, then inspected the damage. It’s always a bummer to know that you have to patch a tube on the side of the road. It is a bigger bummer to know you have to replace a tire.
Yet, in almost two years, this is the biggest repair/maintenance cost I have had to pay. Two years. The cost? About $45 for a new tube and tire.
