Posted on Mon, May. 26, 2008

Two-wheeling a joy for many commuters

SAVES GAS AND THE ENVIRONMENT

By Jim Jordan

JJORDAN1@HERALD-LEADER.COM

Pablo Alcala

Dan Dickinson, a Lexmark electrical engineer, rode on Broadway Park on his morning commute to work. He rides rain or shine. Photo by Pablo Alcala | Staff

Bike commuting safety tips

Dan Dickinson lives a little over 3 miles from his job at Lexmark International.

Since last fall, the 28-year-old electrical engineer has been riding his bicycle to work in good weather and bad.

"I really got hooked," Dickinson said last week. "It's a ton of fun ... . It's great. You get to exercise and feel good."

He is also saving money on gasoline and helping the environment, but those are just bonuses to Dickinson.

"You look forward to your commute on a bike," he said. "It's great to be outside. You see so much more. You can say 'Hi' to people you pass. It's just a lot of fun."

Dickinson is not alone in his love of the two-wheeler. Others at Lexmark commute by bicycle and sometimes even gather to cycle to lunch as a group.

Employees of other local companies also are turning to pedal power.

"There are a lot of bike commuters in Lexington," said Kenzie Gleason, the city's bicycle and pedestrian coordinator.

"I think sometimes they are a little invisible to the driving public," she said, "but there's a lot of people out there who bike to work, especially in the downtown area."

Lexington's Urban County Government encourages cycling by creating bike lanes, and educating cyclists and motorists about safety.

The biggest payoff is less traffic congestion, Gleason said. Other programs that encourage walking and using buses also help reduce congestion.

"I think the more bike-able, walkable, transit-oriented a community is going to be, the less likely people are going to be to drive," she said.

Fewer motorists and less congestion makes cities "more economically viable," Gleason continued.

"If you look around the country at the greatest walkable, bike-able cities, they are also some of the most livable cities ... and they attract and retain young professionals and businesses."

Examples include Madison, Wis.; Indianapolis and Chattanooga. Those and other cities are "working to become more bike-able and walkable for those reasons and we need to make sure that we're staying competitive," she added.