CITY RAMBLES: How-To Guide to Bike Advocacy

I've been a cyclist for a long long time. I started in high school, riding my brother's single-speed bike to school for a solid year. In college, I found biking the cheapest and most affordable way to get around. Environmental, too. I became an advocate because nobody was doing it, and it needed doing. More on that in a minute. With last week's meeting of an ABC Advocacy group (and the next meeting is July 13 – come join us!), it brought me back to a bunch of stuff I have learned about advocacy over the years.

In the 70's, the SBL had some bike advocacy meetings. Not much ever happened from these meetings. Almost no one took any actions.

One meeting I recall, probably on my porch, had a long discussion about how easy it would be to create a public access TV show on bike repair, just a half an hour each week, We talked on and on about the subjects they could cover, and how easy it would be. Well, I guess it wasn't that easy,because no one said they would take any steps to make it happen. But it was great to talk about.

Meanwhile, my county (Dekalb) widened some roads. Bike lanes would have been great on these roads – but we never asked for any. So we never got any. Even when biking projects were put into the Transportation plans, they were not funded – because no one asked for the projects to go ahead, and other projects took priority.

At one conference, I learned why. Imagine transportation funding as a card game, a bunch of folks playing at a table. In a few rounds, some win big, some win small, but everyone at the table will win something – but only the ones at the table. For too long, cyclists didn't have a seat in the game. We weren't players, and we could not win.

This is the heart of advocacy; having a seat at the table. We're at a disadvantage, because a lot of the folks at the table are full-time, paid to be there. But we have so many advantages, we can still win. Here's a few:

   - Cycling can move a more people in less space than car lanes

   - Cycling has no appreciable wear and tear effect on the roads. Not enough weight.

   - Cycling can be popular. A new bike path can bring out more voters than a new road.

   - Cycling promotes health, and fights obesity

   - Cycling lanes and transit can help people who can't afford cars.

But we will only win as long as we have a seat at the table.

Today's Journal-Constitution had an article about the new “bike boxes” and “sharrows” in Roswell. Although both of these are just paint on the road, both tell road users where to expect bicycle traffic. They are there because both the mayor of Roswell and the city's Director of Transportation are regular bicyclists. Do I have to say it? I will, anyway: in Roswell, the cyclists have a seat at the table.

It's almost impossible for a single person to move a community. It's very easy for civic leaders to dismiss him/her as out-of-touch, difficult, unreasonable, and so on. But a group of people can show up at different places and demonstrate “public” support. I recall hearing that, 25 people can change a city, if they each write two letters a year, speak at two public hearings a year, meet with two officials a year, and join some other civic group (such as a parks advisory board) where they can make sure cycling stuff is covered.

I also remember the city employee who said that city codes must be revised every 20 or so years, to update them.   He always volunteers to be on the update committee, and then he volunteers to take the notes. This way, every change that impacts cycling is captured – because he makes sure it's done. And so, again, thanks to his activism, cyclists have a seat at that table.

It's that easy --- and that difficult. The good news is, we aren't afraid of difficult –after all, many of us ride at 100 degrees and 20 degrees, pedal uplong climbs and through storms. So we can do this – but we have to start. And that's why ABC exists.

More on this topic later. Meanwhile, I welcome your comments.