There are many perceived obstacles that keep people from riding their bikes for transportation. A few of the reasons I’ve heard include:
- Fear of cars
- Poor cycling infrastructure
- Inclement weather
- Excessive distance to essential services
- Excessive distance to work
- Lack of physical conditioning
- Fear of bike theft
- Lack of mechanical ability
And so on…
I hesitate to call these “excuses”, because they’re real feelings and fears, and until someone is psychologically ready to ride for reasons other than recreation, these mental roadblocks are plenty powerful enough to keep them off the bike. (Of course, sometimes there are real reasons a person can’t ride a bike for transportation, including physical limitations, remote location, etc.).
I think a big part of the problem is our natural tendency to throw the baby out with the bath water. I see many bloggers (this one included) talking about “making a commitment” to going car-lite, if not 100% car-free. This is all well-and-good, and if someone is ready to make a big change, that’s wonderful. The problem is that an all-or-nothing approach stops some people from taking any steps at all. The anxiety of committing to such major changes, when our lives are already complicated enough, is a show stopper for many people: “Going car-free is too much to think about right now, so I’ll just keep on driving the car.“
I’d like to encourage people to not worry so much about the “car-free” label, and just consider doing whatever they can while staying within their comfort zone. If a 20-mile commute is too big a step, how about a quick trip to the post office or pharmacy on the bike? Or maybe throw the bike in the trunk and ride it to pick up lunch at work one day a week. Every trip by bike, no matter how seemingly insignificant, is one less trip by car.
It’s not so much specifically what a person does, or that they make a “commitment” per se, but that they take whatever baby steps they can that fall within the realm of “doable”. By doing so, over time their confidence will increase, and as their confidence increases the benefits of utility cycling will outweigh their prior hesitations and lead to increased bike riding and reduced car use. And who knows, there’s always the possibility that one small step will eventually lead to a car-free lifestyle.