Over the past few months during the COVID-19 pandemic, I have read numerous articles about the surge in sales of bicycles within the US. With headlines such as What do Bikes and Toilet Paper Have in Common... or Thinking of Buying a Bike, Get Ready for a Very Long Wait, among others. All of it got me to thinking, why has biking become so popular?  It is a strange phenomenon when you consider the situation. Cars are suddenly not illegal to use. In the few times I have driven during this pandemic traffic is easier to navigate.​

My theory is that the virus has precipitated a fundamental rethinking of what it means to get around. Let’s start with destinations that accompany most journeys. For me, commuting to/from work was a regular part of most of my days. Ironically, I did that mostly by bicycle. And as I am now working from home, I am actually riding less miles. There were also visits to the YMCA and meeting up with the running group on the weekends.  Add in worship services and volunteer meetings, etc. and almost every destination that was important to me in the past, has suddenly become off-limits.

• Yesterday, I actually met face to face (safe distancing of course) with a co-worker who I had not seen in months.  After exchanging pleasantries, she mentioned with relief, “it’s nice to have a destination.”  And it hit me: there is a SHIFT in our daily destinations – and a realization that we can get there on a bike, not a car.

This need to get out and get somewhere with purpose. What are the destinations we have right now? Grocery, pharmacy, take-out, maybe the hardware – practical things that are hopefully close to home and all of which are accessible by foot or by bicycle. In fact, the number of times I have driven over the past few months have been a fraction of the pre-COVID era.  Given this change in end points, my sense is that individuals are reevaluating what can they reach under their own power and questioning, “how do I actually get around?”

There is another dimension to the health issue. After being cooped-up for hours on virtual calls and online activities, I personally feel a need to get outside for some sort of exercise or at least motion. Riding a bicycle is an incredible sense of freedom and it appears many people are starting to discover or rediscover that joy. I hope that you are among them!

As some of you know, during the past two years, I have taken a break from writing articles on bicycle commuting and relevant trends. Instead, I have been working with a dedicated team on an innovative product based on my personal frustration with finding an easy and quiet way to carry a u-lock and other items on a bicycle. I'll share more about the back story in a future article. If you really cannot wait, please click the link in the nearby picture for more details.

​Safe riding!

If you like the article, please give it a share on Facebook or Twitter to help spread the word!  ​

Writer's Update: It's been two years since I first wrote this article reviewing the heated gloves. I ended up buying the set. They continue to work great. Not sure why I waited so long to take the plunge.
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For 13 years, I've bike commuted through Chicago's winters. While some years are more challenging than others, one thing that remains is the need to keep my hands warm while biking on the coldest days. Over the years, I have devised various measures for addressing this issue, but have never discovered a definitive solution. Rather, I just resigned myself to accept cold rides, cold hands.

So, you can imagine my excitement when my friend Hector recently loaned me a pair of his BlazeWear heated glove liners. At a retail price of $150, these liners are a luxury I've never given myself, although the allure of warm hands has tempted me more than once. I brimmed with excitement over the possibilities. Was this the solution I had been seeking? Was it a sign that the gloves made it into my hands (pun intended) freely? And most importantly, would they work?

Hello bike commuters,
I wanted to inform you that I am now living in Lilongwe, Malawi and continuing my work with the Peace Corps. It is an exciting position and an exciting place to be in the world. I intend to write a series of posts about Lilongwe in regards to bicycle community and bike culture. My first article is meant to give you a sense of Lilongwe's layout and the bicycle community that has developed around it. Through this series, I hope to promote bicycle awareness in Lilongwe as well as relate the bicycle experience here to you, wherever you are located.
-Paul

The picture above is of the largest city in Malawi, Lilongwe. Despite the deceptive corn field foreground, Lilongwe is a city of 1 million people and every year it grows. Lilongwe's design initially began in the 1970s. The new Life President, Hastings Kamuzu Banda decided to move the capital from Zomba, an old colony city, to Lilongwe. Before he did, Lilongwe was a town of around 20,000 people in 1966. It was the perfect clean slate to build Malawi's new great capital.​ Roads and infrastructure could be designed to fit the needs of the soon-to-be booming city. That is to say designed with the automobile in mind and the bicycle in the rear view mirror.

By Lauren Spatafore

Lauren is a lifelong rider and guest contributor to ZappaWheels.

Bicycle commuting isn’t just for urban dwellers.  With an open mindset and a bit of pre-planning, anyone can do it! I started bike commuting to work in September almost two years ago. It's a quick, easy ride for me, less than 10 miles round-trip. Now, regardless of what the day will bring, I begin each day with the satisfaction of knowing I've already exercised.  

​It wasn’t always this way. Before 2015, I worked at a school across town, about a 25 minute commute by car. There was not a direct or safe route for me to travel by bicycle.  Often, I would take my bike with me so I could get in a ride after work, while it was still daylight and still before rush hour. However, I wasn’t getting in the miles that I wanted. So, when a position opened up at a school closer to home, I jumped at the opportunity for less travel time and the ability to ride to work.

Improving the safety of bicycle commuting is a key concern for the team at ZappaWheels. In this posting, we take a look at LED technologies which are increasing the visibility of riders. The article is courtesy of freelance writer Jenny Holt, who is based in the UK. 

Safety while riding a bicycle is one of the concerns preventing more people from cycling. According to the survey of the European Commission, there are only 4% of UK respondents who cycle daily. This is one of the lowest percentages in the EU 28 although bike ownership or access to it in the UK is high with 42% of people or around 25 million owning a bicycle. Other European countries have cycle rates of 43% in the Netherlands, 30% in Denmark and 20% in Finland.

The Divvy bike sharing system in Chicago has been a phenomenal success supporting over 10 million rides since its launch in 2013. For those of us that have used Divvy the impact to our streets has been nothing sort of amazing. What you may not know however is the positive impact that Divvy has on the underserved and underemployed in our society. ​​

Over the past four years, an experiment in changing transportation behavior within local neighborhoods has been playing out in Chicago. The purpose is to get people out of their cars and introduce them to new forms of transportation such as biking, walking and public transit. And ideally to make a small change in transportation behavior. 

Dubbed the "Go" Campaigns, the effort has impacted five local Chicago communities over the past four summers including Pilsen, Bronzeville, Albany Park, Edgewater, and most recently Garfield Park. ​The campaigns are a comprehensive effort at building awareness for local engagement with transportation options besides driving alone. Most impressively, they are getting results. 

Almost 500 people representing over 100 cities met in Chicago last week to discuss the future of shared transit at the Shared Use Mobility Summit (SUMC). The conference shed light on many changes occurring on our streets including implications of autonomous vehicles, rapid growth in ride  and bike sharing, and changing consumer preferences for automobiles, . 

Executive Director of SUMC, Sharon Feigon started the conference by pointing out that transportation is the #2 household expense in America, averaging 29% of household income. Much of this is driven by the cost of car ownership. She reiterated the mission of the Shared Mobility Use Center: making it possible to live well without owning a car through a multi-modal transit system available for all. ​Those shared modes include car sharing, bike sharing, and ride sharing. 

Last fall, I interviewed the founder of Pittsburgh Bike Share to gain a behind the scenes look at bike sharing. At the time, Pittsburgh Bike Share was only 5 months into operations. ​In this second article on the The Future of Bike Sharing, I checked-in to hear what they have learned after two busy seasons and one winter of operations. Erin Potts, Director of Marketing & Community Outreach shared her perspective on lessons learned as well as the future direction 

Bike sharing in the U.S. has grown dramatically within the last 8 years. According to Metrobike, over 71,000,000 trips on public bikes have occurred in the U.S.A. since 2008. And further innovations in the technology, operations and business models point to additional growth. They also point to different ways that people will interact with bike sharing in the future. 

In this multi-part series, I will look at the innovations and the different system models that are emerging, gain an on-the-ground view from a bike share operator, and solicit the perspective of industry experts. The goal is to gain a better understanding of the phenomenon and direction of bike sharing which is sweeping our streets.