We'd love to know your thoughts about Walk/Ride Days, using - or not!- "green transportation, and more!
Are you a senior who has discovered or re-discovered the joy of walking or biking around town?
Do you have small children and are wondering how you can get them where they need to be, but want to try to do it in a "green" way? Do you do so already, and want to share your experiences?
We want to hear from you!
Here, at Green Streets, we have many conversations about what is "wrong" in the world, but we also want to talk about what is right! If you, or someone you know, is doing something (big, small, or in between) to make a positive difference in your community, especially in terms of going green, let us know and we will feature you on our website.
Contact us at: Walk-Ride-Days@comcast.net
We love to get pictures of individuals and groups traveling Green. So on Walk/Ride Day grab your camera a get a pictures at work, at school or in your community.
Download and sign our release--(for kids please make sure to get parents signature) and enjoy seeing your photos on our website and/or in our e-newsletter
Download GS Photo Release form
Read on for some inspiring stories:
Bike to Car, and Back to Bike
Little by little... One woman's experience with Walk/Ride Days
Notes From a Combo Commute on 1/25/08
One Young Woman is Choosing to Go Car-less, Here's Why
Changing Habits: A Chat with Andrew Brown of the New Amsterdam Project
Thoughts on Going Car-less From Bicycle Commuters with Kids!
Environmentalism and Hardware? A Walk Through Tags with Mardi Moran
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Meet the Summer Intern: Leah
Green Streets welcomes an intern to the office this summer. Leah Berger
is currently completing a Master's degree at Boston University in
Energy and Environmental Analysis. We asked Leah to answer a few
questions about herself.
GS: Why do you want to work at Green Streets this summer?
LB: I'm very interested in how our culture supports/does not support an
environmentally conscious lifestyle. People do not ride their bikes
because we make it easy for people to drive cars and develop our
communities to support driving. I want to work on creating structures
that will support and encourage people to live an environmentally
conscious life, and I think that Green Streets is a great example of
how citizen led initiatives accomplish this.
GS: Tell us a little about how you get around.
LB: Well, I grew up in Southern Indiana where everyone drives. Growing
up I would walk, ride my bike, or roller blade to get around, but once
I got my driver's license I drove everywhere. There isn't a very strong
system of public transportation in the mid west. The bus routes are
constantly being reduced and many people that rely on the bus, where
I'm from, find it very difficult to get around.
Boston is great because riding my bike is the fastest way to get around
and I can take the T anywhere if some bad weather hits. I've lived in
Somerville for four years, but I'm still trying to acclimate to the
winters. I can't call myself a year round biker yet, but hopefully one
day soon. I just love the feeling of riding your bike on a nice sunny
day and I don't have much of a tolerance for the winter cold and wind
yet.
GS: What do you like to do when you aren't working at Green Streets?
LB: I'm lucky enough that both of my sisters live in the
Somerville/Cambridge area so I spend a lot of time with them taking our
dogs to Spy Pond or just hanging out. I have a dog and a cat and
watching them interact is pretty entertaining most of the time. I also
try to spend time with my friends. Sometimes it's easy to get so
wrapped up in work and other things that we forget to maintain those
relationships, but I think having good friends that you can count on is
important. I like to sew when I have enough time, and this summer I'm
trying to grow some vegetables in my garden.
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May 14, 2008
Bicycles are charming machines. They are pleasantly simple in construction but have the potential to be overwhelmingly powerful in conviction. I’ve always had an affinity toward bike riding. It started as a blissful pastime shared with my family around the neighborhood on sunshiny summer afternoons, cruising our hybrids around the north Texas suburbs where I grew up.
After my 16th birthday, my attention shifted to cars. I became dependent upon my vehicle almost immediately. Everything is bigger in Texas, including the distances between destinations, and the cars trucks and SUV's people use to move around them. My bike went to college with me, but so did my car and I relied on it a lot, making the 6 hour round trip drive home on weekends. In retrospect, I became increasingly disenchanted by highway transportation, controlled by the power of the right pedal to rush through the endless stretches of central Texas roadways.
The car and bike both moved to Boston with me in June 06. Driving was a completely different experience in the city. At first I felt afraid of the narrow, pot-holed streets, none of which had any lane lines painted. I used mass transit a lot, busing from my apartment in Arlington down to Porter Square then taking the T downtown. I learned that for me, mass transit is not the best choice for everyday transportation. I took back to behind the wheel and carpooled with a friend into work for several months. My commutes where always stressful and I usually started my workday annoyed. Unfortunately, my bike sat collecting dust with a flat rear tire from the first and only ride I had attempted since my move.
In February 07, I was rear-ended driving home from work. The impact forcefully pushed my vehicle into the car stopped in front of me. I was uninjured, although shaken, but my car was not so lucky. The insurance company totaled it in early April and I was not in a position to purchase a new car. A hiking buddy of mine offered to lend me a bike of his in order to get around for the summer.
I was hooked immediately, though it wasn’t always easy. I was introduced to other cyclists and slowly began learning the ins and outs of city bike riding, from how to safely negotiate traffic, properly lock my ride to reduce the chance of it being stolen, to how to go grocery shopping more often so that I could fit what I needed in my backpack. Now, two years later, I’m a year-round commuter, riding from my apartment in Somerville to my job in Woburn.
My bikes are more than just transportation though. They are the best way for me to connect to my world and make me feel conscious and alive. There are experiences I have while riding that I know I would completely miss if I were boxed into a car. I get to hear the birds chirping, smell the bread from the bakery up the street, feel the rain fall onto my face. I whistle while rolling past cars parked in traffic jams. Every day, every ride there is something to appreciate. It’s impacted my life in more ways than I could have imagined. I’m doing what I can to become more socially conscious and responsible. I became a vegetarian, learned how to grow my own tomatoes, eggplants and peppers, and bring canvas bags with me when I shop. I replaced using Styrofoam cups for a thermos for all those trips to the coffee shop. I’ve lost over 20lbs since I’ve started riding full time and feel great inside and out.
And the best part of bikes is sharing the passion. I’ve motivated my sister, my boss, and many friends to start riding and plan on continuing to spread the word. I’ll definitely be in green on last Fridays, enjoying the cycling camaraderie around our city streets.
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Little by little... One woman's experience with Walk/Ride Days March 5, 2008 Getting to Walking Walk Ride day has become an inspiration for my children and me. We are getting some much needed exercise
while doing something good for the environment and spending precious time
together. We started
driving/walking on the last Friday of every month when we first heard about the
green streets initiative. Since
then, we are not only walking longer and driving less, but we are getting to it
about three times a week. It has
added very special family time to our lives. My seven year old daughter and four year
old son and I have long discussions as we walk along, jump along, roll along and
run along to school. Daniel asks
questions like, “Does walking to school help to save the lions??” So he’s putting it together piece by
piece. My daughter understands the
terrible dangers posed by global warming. They are both growing a social and political conscience and this walking
time has certainly enhanced it. It
has also been wonderful for my son, who gets asthma and does not have a lot of
physical stamina. I can see his
strength growing each week as I slowly increase the distance they are
walking. My daughter’s stamina has
also improved greatly, and I feel better myself, getting the blood flowing first
thing in the morning. So overall,
it has truly been an enriching experience for us. We get very excited on those days when
we see other passers by in their green shirts. It makes us feel a part of something
bigger. For children, I think that
is so important, to realize they are a part of a community of people who believe
that together we can make some positive changes on this
planet! ****************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
Notes From A Combo Commute On 1/25/08
Car-bike Commute time 8:55am to 9:45am, Wayland to Cambridge. Distance by car: 16 mi., distance by bike: approx. 4 mi.
Car traffic was definitely light today, no unnecessary idling or traffic encountered on routes 20 east, 95/128 north, or 2 east. Recorded trip mpg on car computer: 22.7. Temperature on car computer: 23 degrees F.
Parked at lot on Lake St. in Arlington at minuteman bike path. Noticed 6 other cars, 2 had empty bike carriers on the rear. Frequently this lot is full (9 cars) and I will park in the front corner of the lot under a tree, or at friend's house nearby on Spy Pond.
I saw 4 inbound walkers on the bike path heading toward Alewife station. I saw one other biker. I also saw two other bikes in use on Cambridge streets on my way to work on Mass. ave. near Linnean St. One bike had a kid trailer and one was an older tandem, with two riders. I don't see tandems very often.
Green-colored items in use today: Army pants, t-shirt, sweater, day-glo green jacket, watch band, bike frame and VW Passat wagon.
The ride was cold but not unbearable. The exercise felt great. I'd also like to comment on the maintenance of the bike path this winter; it's been great! It seems to be regularly plowed and sanded, unlike in years past where it would only be plowed/sanded near Alewife station. I wonder if this is a result of Mayor Menino's decree to make Boston a more bike-friendly town?et!
-Stan
age 43
Cambridge combo-commuter since 1995
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One Young Woman is Choosing to Go Car-less. Here's Why:
Meghan Perrier doesn’t own a car and doesn’t want to, either. When she moved to Somerville last December, she was surprised by how easy it was to live without one.
“I had so many different options for travel,” she says. "People think it’s really difficult but I think it’s easier.”
Since moving to Somerville, Meghan has been working as a teacher and camp counselor. It was a big decision to give up her car but she has no regrets.
“The other day a woman was late to pick up her kids because her car had been stolen. I think if I had a car I’d be worrying about it constantly. I’m glad I don’t have one.”
"So what?" you say, "Anyone could survive in Somerville without a car"? But Meghan doesn’t just stick to the city. She likes to visit new places on weekends. Maine, Vermont, and Cape Cod are some of the places she has traveled, no car necessary.
“It’s funny,” she remarks, “You’d think being from Vermont that I wouldn’t have a car for environmental reasons. That is a nice benefit for me, but really it’s just so much easier and less expensive to live without a car.” She laughs. “I guess that’s the way it is for people a lot of times. We’re very selfish.”
Besides not worrying about her car being stolen or damaged Meghan is also happy she doesn’t have to pay for car insurance, gas, and especially parking.
“I have friends who are always waking up thinking, is it the third Tuesday of the month? Where’s my car? And rushing out to move it before they get a ticket. I just pay my 60 dollars a month for a T pass.” Meghan’s primary modes of transportation are the bus, the train, and her own two feet.
“There’ll be times when cars speed past me while I’m walking,” she confides with a smile, “but most of the time there’s traffic and I’ll pass them and think, I’m going to get their faster than you.”
By Paige Doughty
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December 2007
from Paige Doughty:
As a newcomer to the Cambridge area I was struck by how difficult it was to meet people in the city. In fact, these days, it can even be difficult to meet people in smaller communities. We are so disconnected from each other physically, even while we are more and more connected to one another electronically, it's hard to grasp what community means anymore.
Part of the difficulty I had meeting people in the city was due to the large number of people in the area. But partly the difficulty I had meeting people was a result of the lack of place for casual conversation to occur.
Most of Cambridge's main thoroughfares and sidewalks are not welcoming to conversation; rather, they are flanked by roads, idling engines, and insistent honking. Sidewalk space is limited, bikes are secondary to cars on the road, and bike lanes have been added almost as an afterthought. The opportunity to stop for a chat is few and far between. Instead I found myself trying to get out of these noisy public places as quickly as possible.
As we make our ways hurriedly through our lives, our eyes fixed on where we are going, rather than where we are, community fades. The explosion of individual vehicle owners and the infrastructure that followed, has enabled community breakdown and increased isolation. But there are some really simple solutions, and transportation is one of them!
Catherine O'Brien, author of Planning for Sustainable Happiness, researched and compared children's views of transportation with adults. She found that children walking, or biking to school, saw transportation as a time of "wonder, discovery, joy, and happiness," while commuting adults thought of transition times as "stressful or dispiriting."
In cars, we don't have the opportunities to meet eyes with a stranger, say hello, or exchange a smile. In building a community that relies less and less on driving, and more and more on alternative and active transportation, we are not only nourishing our bodies and keeping the air clean, we are building a community infrastructure that allows for connections, conversations, and friendships. The Green Streets Initiative is a good start.
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Changing Habits: A Chat with Andrew Brown of the New Amsterdam Project
In Porter Square, outside of the building that houses Healthworks Gym and CVS Pharmacy, there is a thin row of shrubs surrounded by concrete. On one side there is a parking lot, and the other a sidewalk. To get from the bike rack, or parking lot, to the entrance of the building one must pass these small shrubs. If you aren’t paying attention you might miss them.
Last fall I parked my back in the rack almost everyday and walked to the entrance of the gym. At first I diligently passed around the shrubbery, but slowly I became a creature of convenience and hopped over the shrubs instead. Soon I noticed footprints between the plants; wear and erosion followed. Shortly thereafter the plants weren’t doing well; the slight missteps here and there and the compaction of their soil began to take a toll.
In order to go around the shrubbery, rather than through it, one would have to add a total of no more than about five to ten extra steps to an already short walk. Nonetheless, with frost and cold nipping at my toes, I found myself forgetting my vow not to walk over the shrubs anymore. Sometimes I remember them as an afterthought and whispered apologies behind my quickly moving legs.
This fall a protective railing appeared around the shrubs. It is simple, black, unobtrusive, and incredibly effective. The plants are thriving. People walk around them all day. All is, comparatively, well for this urban vegetation. We just needed a little guidance to get out of our bad habits and let life bloom.
Like the guide-rail in Porter Square, Andrew Brown, founder and CEO of the New Amsterdam Project (or NAP as it is fondly called), is hoping to guide the habits of the future, but he is thinking beyond shrubbery.
A bicyclist since the age of four, Andrew has always dreamed of a city built around a cycling infrastructure. Having lived in the original “New Amsterdam,” or New York City, for much of his life Andrew proclaims an innate dislike for cars.
“I have never understood why anyone would want to drive a car in a city. It is just a complete mystery to me. I’ve never enjoyed cars.” He said, while seated on the plush couch of his new showroom on Oxford and Sacramento streets in Cambridge. “Automobiles are killing us emotionally and physically.”
Andrew knows what he is talking about. As a physician and an active community member he has seen, first hand, the problems that a “car culture” has helped to create. Andrew cites obesity, stress, and anger, as just a few of the symptoms that driving cars induces.
Enter the New Amsterdam Project: a business that aims to “replace internal-combustion vehicles in North America with human-powered vehicles to build stronger, more resilient, and self-reliant communities.” Through the showroom in Cambridge, as well as through outreach to businesses in the community, the New Amsterdam Project wants to provide people with alternatives.
“One of the projects we are working on, that I am really excited about, is removing small trucks from the road. And with the $100 barrel of oil just around the corner this is sounding more and more possible. We want to take many of the delivery jobs that are out there and make them healthier – we can transform the work experience.”
Andrew explained that the current focus of their “small truck project” is on deliveries that happen within the city: dry cleaning, food, carpenters, and products that are on their “last mile.” So, if food were delivered to the Boston area from say, Lincoln Massachusetts, and needed to be distributed to five different grocery stores, then the Tri-Cycle Trucks in the NAP showroom could take the place of those five different delivery trucks around the city.
The “Tri-Cycle Trucks--” a bicycle contraption with trailer attached to the back-- can carry up to 600 pounds, and they are, according to Andrew, easy to ride. In case you are wondering how one would get 600 pounds up a large incline, they come equipped with what Andrew calls a “power assist.” It is a rechargeable battery that plugs in over night. Then, on those delivery days when the hills are just a little too large, you get a little help, but you never stop pedaling—they are first and foremost a human powered bicycle.
“Our truck model makes a driver healthier, happier, and from a business perspective it’s infinitely less expensive than all the costs of owning a mini-van.” Andrew proclaimed proudly as he lifted up the trailer to display the spacious inside.
Speaking of mini-vans, one of the other models on display in the showroom is something that Andrew termed the “SUV” of bicycles. On the NAP website it is listed as a “Bicycle Mini-Van,” and it is what Andrew uses to transport his own children, 4 and 10 years old, around town.
“In the U.S. there is particularly strong anxiety about safety, so I am adding improved seatbelts to this model.” Andrew explained.
Even as a parent Andrew said he doesn’t need a car. He has found bicycles to be the best way to transport his children throughout the city and to school.
“I don’t own a car.” Andrew says “And I believe the only reason people don’t bike more is a matter of habits.”
According to Andrew habits are what got us into this driving mess in the first place, and they are definitely what got Andrew into this line of work.
His first trip to Amsterdam, in February 2006, was a pivotal moment in his life. There, he struck up, what became a four hour conversation, with a stranger. It was this Dutch man’s critical but gentle words on American car culture, which lead to an epiphany,
“You Americans have very bad habits.”
From here, as Andrew tells the story, it was short leap to realizing that what was standing between his dream and the reality of that dream was the small matter of habits. If Andrew could provide people with reasonable ways to change those habits his dream, of an entire city based around a cycling infrastructure, could be realized.
“The New Amsterdam Project is about getting from point A to point B in the quickest, healthiest, and most sensible way possible.” Andrew said. “Nothing more complicated than habit explains the difference in behaviors-- with regard to getting from point A to point B-- between Amsterdamers and Bostonians.”
“Imagine,” Andrew said at the end of the interview, “if when you were a little girl, instead of loading all of your things into the family station wagon, your family packed up their bikes with all that you needed, and headed out onto the bike highway. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”
Indeed Andrew, I think it would be.
If you want to learn more about the New Amsterdam Project, see their delivery and commuter vehicles, and meet their highly motivated crew, you can visit them at their showroom: 35 Sacramento at Oxford Street in Cambridge, MA.
For more details visit their website: http://www.newamsterdamproject.com/openhouse.html
By Paige Doughty, Green Streets Program Coordinator
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Environmentalism and Hardware?
A Walk Through TAGS with Mardi Moran
Where do local business, social change, customer satisfaction, and creating a healthier environment meet? Mardi Moran, of TAGS hardware in Porter Square, Cambridge, thinks she has some answers.
Between helping customers, talking about volatile organic compound[1] levels, and conversing with employees, Mardi gave me a tour of some of the environmental initiatives that TAGS, a local hardware store, is implementing, of their own accord.
Highlights included: re-usable shopping sacks, biodegradable trash bags, complimentary compact fluorescent light bulb recycling, non-lethal rodent traps, and reusable cloths for cleaning. But Mardi feels that her efforts to help the earth go beyond the products they are offering in the store. She and her husband, Simon Shapiro, who have owned and operated TAGS Hardware, an ACE Co-operative store, together for over 20 years (the business has been in the Shapiro family for fifty) are trying to start an environmental conversation with their customers, suppliers, and staff.
“Last year we went to ACE, and said, okay we have a problem here. What are you doing to be more environmentally responsible? And they said, ‘I don’t know, what should we be doing?’ We couldn’t believe it.” According to Mardi, it is partly because of her business’ efforts, that ACE is now asking more environmentally conscious questions of their suppliers.
“I don’t know where our heads have been for the last six, maybe even twenty, years. We have all the facts about what is happening to the environment and we just don’t change. It’s insane!” She went on to explain some of the struggles she faces as a business owner attempting to bring ecologically conscious products to her customer base.
“The problem is,” she said, “the suppliers I talk to think the public aren’t ready. Take for example these plastic products.” She gestured to a rack full of white hooks and garbage cans. “They could make these in recycled plastic, but you couldn’t get the products in these colors. They wouldn’t be so bright. Our suppliers think that the customer is more interested in aesthetics than in the environment, and I have to agree.”
According to Mardi, bright colors: white, purple, light green, and many of the more translucent plastics that TAGS offers for purchase, wouldn’t be possible in recycled plastic. Instead the colors would have to be muddier or opaque.
Down on the second floor of the store, Mardi walks down an aisle full of trash bags. Above her head fluorescent lights illuminate the next hurdle Mardi says may stand between her vision of a more “environmentally friendly world” and that world actually happening: price.
“Everyone wants all these products from China and I see why. It all comes down to how much people are willing to pay. But if we shop with our pocket books in the short term, and it’s working against us in the long term, what’s the result going to be?” To illustrate Mardi holds up one of the new “ecological products” that TAGS is offering. It’s a biodegradable trash bag called “Bag to Nature.” The bags are made of corn starch and are fully compostable. The problem: they haven’t been selling.
“I don’t know what it is! If it’s the price, or that people don’t know about them? They just aren’t selling and they’re so great!”
A quick comparison shows that: to buy 15 jumbo kitchen Bag to Nature Bags, it costs $10.99, but to buy 10 plastic jumbo kitchen bags, it costs $3.99. That’s a pretty big price difference. But when you consider that, according to the EPA, around 11 million barrels of oil are used each year to create the 100 million plastic bags that the Unites States consumes in that same time, maybe it’s a price worth paying.
Still, Mardi is hopeful for the bags. She said that her husband, Simon, is thinking about talking to the City of Cambridge to see if they would be willing to use biodegradable bags in their trash cans.
While the suppliers don’t always seem to be ready for change, when it comes to her customers, Mardi feels there is a shift happening that she wants to encourage. TAGS has barely been able to keep the compact fluorescent bulbs on the shelves, and some of their most popular purchases are the “ecologically conscious” body and home care products.
“The way I think of it is we start here,” she points inward to her chest, “and then when we are ready we start to ask more questions and change our habits outwardly. And we learn from one another so it becomes a cultural thing. We go into each other’s homes and see what is happening there, and it just grows wider and wider. Just as we have gotten the word out to other ACE dealers, we have seen that they all want to do these things, they just need the information.”
Finally, Mardi said, one of the most important elements of bringing new products into the store, is customer feedback.
“Oh, it’s so important.” She nodded for emphasis. “We absolutely want to hear from our customers. If there are things they want that we aren’t offering we’ll get them. I know people around here are savvy about the environment. And we want to help make up for all those years we weren’t paying attention.”
TAGS Home and Hardware is a Walk/Ride Day Sponsor visit them this Friday October 26th!
Further Resources:
About Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC’s) http://www.epa.gov/iaq/voc.html
About paper, plastic, and re-usable bags: http://www.enviroliteracy.org/article.php/1268.htm
[1] Volatile organic compounds, are, generally chemical, ingredients that cause all sorts of sickness, including cancer in some animals. They are found in paints and thousands of other household products that we breath all day long check out a link (above) for more info.
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Here is her story:
Hi Janey,
I am Edith McCrea, and my husband is Larry McCrea. Our two kids are David (8) and Judith (5), who attend Peabody Elementary in Cambridge. You asked me this morning to e-mail you about not having a car. I will try to give you a brief overview of our experiences.
When I was in high school, I did not enjoy Driver's Ed, and let two learner's permits lapse without getting a license. My husband was also later in getting his license than most people; he was 20 when I met him and still did not have one.
In college (Cornell University), we walked all over the Ithaca, NY area, or rode the bus (especially when carrying heavy groceries). Ithaca is a town of steep hills, and we were in really good shape. It is also a beautiful place to walk -- as is Cambridge.
Larry moved to Chicago after he graduated from Cornell, and I joined him a year later when I graduated. We lived there together for 12 years, with one year away in Madras, India. We have never owned a car, and although Larry has his license, he almost never drives. Our motives for remaining carless include our distaste for driving and a desire to save money and avoid the other hassles associated with car-ownership. Preserving the environment and getting a lot of exercise are added bonuses. (We generally do not feel any particular need for other forms of exercise, and prefer actually going somewhere to, for example, using a treadmill.)
Chicago is a good city for public transportation. You can get pretty much anywhere on the bus and "L" combined with walking, although you sometimes have to be patient, as the buses tend to run behind schedule. It is also easy to find your way around, as it is mapped out on a grid (unlike the Boston area)!
I walked home from the hospital (which was in our neighborhood) after giving birth to both of our children, carrying my son in a Snuggli and my daughter in a cloth sling.
Our kids are used to walking everywhere. We used baby bjorns, backpack-carriers and strollers, in combination with public transit. We decided to put our son's stroller away before our second child was born rather than opt for one of those big double-strollers. Taking a small child on foot requires a lot of patience; allow yourself a LOT of extra time to "stop and smell the roses," and rest!
In Cambridge, when we felt both kids were too big for a stroller, we sometimes traveled the mile from our apartment to our kids' preschool using a "little red wagon." We have become somewhat famous in the neighborhood for our use of this wagon (to which I hitched myself with a luggage strap, horse-and-wagon-style, to save wear and tear on my arms) and for walking everywhere. People often stop us, as you did this morning, to say that they have seen us walking with our kids everywhere, and that they think it's great.
When we first moved here in 2003, there was a huge snow-storm in November, and we pulled our kids from our building on Walden St. to the Kaya restaurant on Mass Ave. in a sled. Most people were house-bound that night because the streets and driveways were totally covered with snow. It was a fun adventure.
I hope this gives your readers some idea of what it is like to exist without a car. Our kids have never had one and are used to walking or taking public transit everywhere. We will be moving back to Ithaca, NY in the summer, and are hoping that our family will still be able to manage without a car.
-- Edith McCrea
Another Story From a Bicycle (combo)-Commuter My name is Stan Wohlfarth and I have been using a bicycle to commute to various jobs since I was 13 or so. Along the way I've had a few bikes stolen, but fortunately I've never had any accidents with other vehicles or pedestrians. I've never even been "doored" although I've had a few close calls. I always wear a helmet with a rear view mirror attached.
I currently live in Wayland, MA with my wife and three kids. My usual commute involves driving to Arlington via Route 2 and getting off at the last exit before Alewife station. I park my VW station wagon near Spy Pond and pick up the bike trail from Lake Road and bike to my office at 1734 Mass. Ave. I do this year-round and only occasionally drive into Cambridge when the weather is especially bad. I've been doing this combo-commute for 11+ years now.
I've also been instrumental in converting numerous co-workers to becoming regular bicycle commuters. Once they figured out how quick, easy and healthy commuting by bicycle is, very few of them went back to driving or taking mass transportation to work. We even have indoor parking in the basement of our office for bicycles!
Please add my name to the list of Green streets supporters. I'll try to remember to wear something Green on the last Friday of the month as I'm riding through Cambridge.
Thanks
Stan Wohlfarth
