Bikes in Colombia + Better Bike Lanes

The other night I went on one of the most spectacular group rides I've ever been on!

It was my second bike ride StC (Since the Crash) and I rode 12+ miles around Medellín with hundreds of people, organized by Colectivo SiCLas who rented a delightful red step through bicycle for me and a helmet for this brain!

I wrote this blog post before the ride, about bikes, the gd crash, what I lost, what I gained, and several of the organizers read it and were so incredibly kind and helpful (and fun).

Bike Lanes for Bikes, Not Sharing the Road with Tank-sized Vehicles

I'm not quite ready to ride alone, but the large network of physically separated bike lanes here in Medellín make it much safer — and feel safer — than "sharing the road" in the States.

And being and feeling safe are both important in getting more people to ride bikes.

The vehicles in the US are just too large (and becoming ever larger) and filled with too many distractions and bike lanes made with only a splash of paint are essentially useless in keeping vehicles from parking in, driving in, or veering into them. And that’s part of the reason why almost 5,000,000 (five million) people are injured by cars in the US every year.

It would be wonderful if cities in the States would immediately begin developing infrastructure for bikes like they have here, which make it possible for people of all ages to ride, avoiding riding in the streets in many places.

Separated Bike Lanes in Medellín

Check out a sample of the bike lanes in Medellín, separated and protected and many shaded from the sun:

Build Better Bike Lanes Now

Building better bike lanes would do wonders for people's health, could dramatically reduce traffic, improve air quality when fewer people need to drive because there are other attractive and safe options, and also transform our impact on the climate — since 27% of US emissions are from transportation.

It would be fabulous if cities would just start building safe and reasonable bike lanes right now instead of leaving the safety and lives of people up to debate in endless community meetings.

Inspiration from Colombia, Not Just Europe

People love to point at Amsterdam and other places in Europe as shining examples that we need to copy in order to create bike-friendly cities and towns but we can — and should — also look to many of our neighbors in the South for inspiration.

It was the Ciclovía in Bogotá that first inspired me to try to create a Car-free Day in Washington, DC, 16 years ago and it is so thrilling that I’m finally visiting Colombia to explore their transportation innovations — public transit and bikes — that give people options to get around without cars.

And it’s also exciting that it’s here in Medellín, Colombia, where I was able to finally get back on my favorite form of transportation, the bicycle, after years of being afraid — and angry — after I was hit by a car while riding a bike in Pittsburgh.

Explosion of Gratitude

Really would like to send a huge amount of gratitude to the organizers of SiCLas, to the hundreds of other people riding the other night, to Adrian and Jose, my two charming and helpful guides from Green Bike Tours last week who were there for my first post-crash ride, and to everyone who has listened to me and not given up on me the past couple of years of despair — I know it’s been hard.

I’ve been awful to be around (and be!)… I’m finally ready to be back.

Thank you thank you thank you.

Love,

Lolly