In Utrecht, the network of bike paths was incredible, comprehensive, seemingly unending and…pretty. By pretty, I don’t just mean scenic. I mean that the paving material used was aesthetically pleasing. It was brick and/or some sort of cobblestone, something that adds personality to a city while making the riding/walking experience enjoyable and interesting. Function AND… [Read more…]
October 19, 2010 by shilohballard
A few months ago, I blogged about electric vehicles. I wrote that they promise to help move us in a more sustainable direction but that ultimately, biking is where it’s at. Little did I know that just a few months later I would be riding an electric bike around Rotterdam as a part of a… [Read more…]
October 10, 2010 by shilohballard
In the US, garages are akin to storage units, providing a safe haven for holiday decorations, photo albums, camping gear and that bike you manage to ride very infrequently. In Amsterdam, garages are used to park cars. How does this happen? In Amsterdam the Dutch do not allow people to buy a parking… [Read more…]
Who knew that taking over parking spaces with trees, grass, plants and people could be so much fun!? Last Friday was PARK(ing) Day, an international, grassroots event for artists, advocates and citizens to temporarily transform on-street parking spaces into urban parks. This annual event got its start in 2005 by Rebar, a San Francisco art… [Read more…]
NewIPO cycling correspondent Michele Beasley delivers part two in her series on becoming an avid cyclist. Recipes to follow… Last night, when I came home from work just past 9:30pm, I was feeling pretty jazzed. So far I have made good on my commitment to do my bike/ Caltrain commute once a week. We had… [Read more…]
September 5, 2010 by shilohballard
New IPO foreign correspondent Shiloh Ballard gives us an update to her cycling mission in the Netherlands. On the way to Utrecht from Amsterdam, the first thing I noticed about bikes was the bike parking. I saw a double decker parking structure and was shocked. That was just the beginning. There were full blown parking… [Read more…]
by Michele Beasley The metallic scraping sound beneath my car was the signal to finally get my brakes fixed. My mechanic asked if I needed a ride home and if I wanted my car back that day. I said No to both- a forced ‘carlessness’ was welcome. I took Caltrain up to San Francisco for… [Read more…]
Los Altos has set a goal of reducing greenhouse gasses to 80% below 1990 levels by 2050. Like every great project manager, assistant city manager Jim Logan says his town has intermediate goals of reducing greenhouse gasses by 20% and increasing conservation by 20% in 2020 . The biggest offender is employees commuting to work… [Read more…]
A timely gift to Silicon Valley residents this year. The Valley Transit Authority received a grant to get the Bay Areas first bike share program going at 3 major Caltrain stations. Beginning in March you can hop off the train at San José’s Diridon, downtown Palo Alto or Mountain View stations and pick up a… [Read more…]
If you don’t believe in global climate change, don’t bother reading on… Change happens and the affects of global climate change can be seen with the odd weather patterns, polar bears drowning and increased ocean temperatures. Entering into 2010 you might want to cut back on your carbon footprint. Right, you say, but…. First, you’ll… [Read more…]
November 28, 2010 by shilohballard
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