On Monday, the New York Times featured a story about bike-sharing in Europe.
I’ve got an in-depth story (guest article actually) about Portland’s bike-sharing status that will hit the Front Page in the next few days, but there were so many great quotes in this story that I thought it deserved a story (and so did many readers — thanks for sending the link!).
Here’s the opening paragraph of the story:
In increasingly green-conscious Europe, there are said to be only two kinds of mayors: those who have a bicycle-sharing program and those who want one.
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And they touch on why bike-sharing is lagging in the U.S.:
In North America, issues like insurance liability, a stronger car culture, longer commutes and a preference for wearing helmets have slowed adoption of bicycle-sharing programs.
The best quote comes in the final paragraph:
“The critical mass of bikes on the road has pacified traffic,” said Gilles Vesco, vice mayor in charge of the program in Lyon. “Now, the street belongs to everybody and needs to be better shared. It has become a more convivial public space.”
Read the full story at NYTimes.com.
By the way, the system profiled in the story, Barcelona’s “Bicing”, is managed by Clear Channel Outdoor, the same company that was in the running to do Portland’s system which was shelved back in June.
Stay tuned for Front Page coverage on the status of Portland’s bike-sharing potential.