Spine and Open

I know Earth Day has passed, but really we should be thinking Earth Day themes every day.  One aspect of non-motorized tranpsort that is interesting to almost everyone - saving money.  There is a great calculator that attempts to take into account the actual cost of owning a car.  According to their site,

•“Drivers also pay to buy and maintain a car, including tune-ups, oil and tires, as well as for insurance, registration, and parking. Indirect costs of driving, such as road construction and maintenance, add to drivers’ financial burden through taxes and fees. In addition, there are quality of life costs that drivers and non-drivers alike pay to support automobile transportation. Though challenging to quantify, these added impacts include air pollution, traffic congestion, and health care. ”

While you may not agree with their exact calculations, it is certainly something to consider.  I put in the numbers for driving 2.5 miles to or from work each day.  2.5 miles can be biked in about 25 minutes and walked in 45 minutes.

2.5 miles each way

That is alot of money to spend on something you could easily do by your own power.  I know alot of people drive much farther than this.  I have a question for you, “why do you live so far from your job?”  I understand that some folks have to drive, but most people do not.  You chose where you live.  I chose to live 7 miles from work - I bike it almost every day, and it doesn’t cost more than $5000 per year.

People spend anywhere from about $180 to $600 a year on bike commuting, these costs include the cost of your bike (divided by 10 years), maintenance, bike safety accessories, and clothing.  IF you wanted to walk, your will probably spend about $180 a year on good shoes, and another $100 on clothing and safety accessories.  So by choosing non-motorized transport you will save thousands of dollars per year.

Another benefit of changing your commuting habits to waking or cycling is that you get to take your world in using more senses.  You can smell more of what is going on, you can hear more of what is going on, and since alot of the time you are going slower than a car you can see in detail what is going on.  I notice what the tide is like, what flowers are about to break bud, which mushrooms are coming up, how cold it is, how warm it is - I feel very in tune with my environment.  Feeling in tune with my environment is very comforting, especially in winter - when you pick up those first hints of spring like the tiniest daffodil leaf poking up through the dead leaves.

Another benefit of taking your world in slowly is conversing with your neighbors.  Just being outside more, you see your neighbors and get to talk with them.

Also since you save a lot of money by not driving (the theme of pt 5) you can take that cash and spend it in your community.  For example you can walk to your neighborhood restaurant and enjoy a meal with all the money you’ve not spent on gas.

Not only does cycling and / or walking benefit your physical health, it also benefits your mental health.  From the Mayo Clinic:

“Aerobic exercise can ease the gloominess of depression, reduce the tension associated with anxiety and promote relaxation. Aerobic exercise keeps your muscles strong, which can help you maintain mobility as you get older. Aerobic exercise also keeps your mind sharp. At least 30 minutes of aerobic exercise three days a week seems to reduce cognitive decline in older adults.”

You will experience moments of road anger while riding or walking, but they really are nothing compared to what happens to drivers.  For one, most of the time you can easily ride or walk your way out of a traffic jam, not so in a car.  Plus something about the way exercise makes you feel, (I know this is not a direct comparison at all…) makes commuting not so bad, most of the time.

The most cited reason that I hear from folks for not riding their bike to work is that it is too dangerous.  I do agree that riding your bike, especially in America, is dangerous, but is it more dangerous than driving?  Unfortunately, there isn’t a current fact based answer to this question (data is too old, or inaccurate).  There is some information here, and a TON of information here.  This site has a great article.  It brings up a point that I feel is quite true, there are bad drivers and there are bad cyclists.  No matter your mode of transport, if we could just separate the bad ones from the good ones, we would all be safer. A great deal of car / bicycle accidents are caused by stupidity from either party or both.

This site has step by step instructions for note getting hit by cars.  Essentially, follow the rules of the road and pay attention!  There is a good scientific study that took place in Copenhagen, Denmark over 14.5 years. It found that cycling to work (an average of 3 hours cycling per week) decreased risk of mortality by about 39% compared to a sedentary control group. This study involved 30,000 people. The study took into account age, health status, and socio-economic factors such as education. It also found that older people gained even more from physical activity than younger people.(Source: Anderson, Lars Bo “All-Cause Mortality Associated With Physical Activity During Leisure Time, Work, Sports and Cycling to Work” Archives of Internal Medicine Vol 160 No. 11 June 12, 2000.)

I think it is important to note however, that cycling is inherently safer in Denmark than it is in America.   “U.S. cyclists are two times more likely to be killed than German cyclists and three times more than Dutch cyclists, whether compared per-trip or per-distance traveled. American pedestrians are roughly 3 times more likely to get killed than German pedestrians and over 6 times more likely than Dutch pedestrians.”  (”Promoting Safe Walking and Cycling to Improve Public Health: Lessons From The Netherlands and Germany” September 2003, Vol 93, No. 9 | American Journal of Public Health)  So, we can not exactly transfer the figures from the Dutch study, but the 39% margin does not decrease to zero, or any number close to zero.

One source of danger that I have feared is breathing in all the emissions from cars.  There is a very scientific study (that has been misrepresented on some sites) that compares pollutant exposure to cyclists vs. pollutant exposure to motorists.  The study found, quite convincingly, that motorists are subject to higher pollution levels.  The part that bicycle promoting sites leave out is that, “calibrated for the higher ventilation of cyclists, their uptake of CO, benzene, toluene and xylene sometimes approached that of car drivers…”  In addition,  “The uptake of NO2 of cyclists was clearly higher than that of car drivers.” (Source: J. van Wijnen, A. Verhoeff, H. Jans, M. van Bruggen, 1995, “The exposure of cyclists, car drivers and pedestrians to traffic-related air pollutants”, International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, 67(3), pp.187-193.)  An important point to note is the phrase, “sometimes approaches.”  So - except for NO2, cyclists are NOT in-taking more pollution than drivers, though if you are operating at a highly aerobic rate, you could be coming close.

I wish that I could say that cycling in American is X % more or less dangerous than driving, but I can’t.  I can say that a world in which driving (significantly contributing to negative environmental change)  is the only option, is not a world I want to live in.  I’m willing to take the chance of getting in an accident - and I’ve been taking that chance most days for 10 years.

Hey folks,

Recently I started on my 11th year of bike commuting; this makes me the resident bike commuting expert at my job.  They asked me to put together some slides for an earth day presentation.  I uncovered quite a bit of info, and actually read the source material that other folks cite - and discovered some misinterpretations out there.  In a series of 6 posts I should cover all the material.  This first post will discuss the physical fitness aspects of using non motorized transport.

Simply put - if you ride or walk to work you are burning more calories than driving your car, and therefore, improving your physical fitness.

calories burned

I used this site to calculate the calories.  Note, that walking 4 mph is quite a fast clip.  How about these pieces of info:

• Percent of noninstitutionalized adults age 20 years and over who are overweight or obese: 66%. (Source = CDC)

Guess what?  There are other benefits to 30 minutes of aerobic exercise (Source):

• Increase your stamina. Aerobic exercise may make you tired in the short term. But over the long term, you’ll enjoy increased stamina and reduced fatigue.
• Ward off viral illnesses. Aerobic exercise activates your immune system. This leaves you less susceptible to minor viral illnesses, such as colds and flu.
• Reduce health risks. Aerobic exercise reduces the risk of many conditions, including obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, stroke and certain types of cancer.
• Manage chronic conditions. Aerobic exercise helps lower high blood pressure and control blood sugar. If you’ve had a heart attack, aerobic exercise helps prevent subsequent attacks.
• Strengthen your heart. A stronger heart doesn’t need to beat as fast. A stronger heart also pumps blood more efficiently, which improves blood flow to all parts of your body.
• Keep your arteries clear. Aerobic exercise boosts your high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or “good,” cholesterol and lowers your low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or “bad,” cholesterol.
• Stay active and independent as you get older. Aerobic exercise keeps your muscles strong, which can help you maintain mobility as you get older.

Are you part of the 66% of Americans that are overweight?  Don’t have time to go to the gym?  How about changing your commute habits?

The next post will address some of the concerns folks have regarding their physical safety and walking or cycling.