Quote:
Originally Posted by bigguy1231
Actually when I was a kid back in the 70's, there were alot more bikes on the roads than I see now. We rode everywhere in the city. Nowadays, kids just don't seem to ride bikes as much. But then again back when I was a kid parents wouldn't drive kids all over the place.
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The pervasiveness of car culture that you just referenced is due to the effects of autocentric planning on two consecutive generations. Given that a whole generation will pass before the cycling plan is completed, we are making this decision for our children and grandchildren more so than ourselves. They will grow up with parents who are more conscious of the environmental and health hazards of driving, which are already far more mainstream than even 10 years ago. If they also grow up with infrastructure that provides a high level of safety both real and percieved, they will ride earlier, more often, and further into their adolescence. Maybe the car will be less of a rite of passage for the next generation. I got my license as soon as I woke up on my 16th birthday and sold many of my belongings (including bikes) to buy my first car. Maybe our kids will be saving their money for faster bikes.
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