I'm something of a cyclist. It happened when I moved to a town not far outside of Boulder and I saw that bikes were pretty much standard-issue in that area. It was great: cyclists were everywhere! In the city of Boulder they seemed to be well-respected by drivers and well-taken care of by the bike lane and bike rack gods and it wasn't unusual to see Burley trailers being towed along which contained a kid or two next to the groceries. And it spoke to me about a very different way of life from the isolating car-centric society we seem to have built. Since then, I've had to move again to eastern Pennsylvania, where things aren't nearly so bike-friendly.
This article in Wired about bike-friendly cities around the world got me to thinking about how being bike-friendly also means, by extension, that a city is family-friendly:
- Cities with a lot of bikes tend to have less pollution. Unless they are Beijing. Or Bankok.
- People who ride bikes as transportation (sweeping generalization here) tend to be more eco-friendly in other ways too.
- Cities that are friendly to bikes tend to be more people-centric in general, which is good for families.
- Cities with thriving neighborhoods that are bikeable or commute-friendly attract families.
- Biking is wonderful exercise and can be part of an overall healthy family lifestyle.
If you live in a bike-friendly city, I am envious. Can I move in with you? (You don't mind a few extra kids, do you?) Seriously, I think a wonderful way to raise kids is in a smaller city that's bikeable and walkable.
