A three-part documentary series exploring bike- and car-based transportation systems in London and Dublin.

Part 1:

The Pedal Project – Three Cycling Cities (low resolution version) from DCTV on Vimeo.

Part 2:

Two Wheeled City – Pedal Project from DCTV on Vimeo.

Part 3:

One Less Car – Pedal Project from DCTV on Vimeo.

Thanks to Ecological Urban Living for the link.

…is fun! I know this isn’t news to all my NYC cycling pals, but today was my first real ride that wasn’t just on the river path. The Dahon Speed D7 performed like a champ. I rode it from my house in Albany to the bus departure point across the river, folded it for storage on the bus, then unfolded it in NYC and zipped over to my folks’ place. Fantabulous!

With my mom at my parents' apartment in NYC

San Juan, Puerto Rico, is not exactly the sort of place you’d imagine to be in dire need of a facelift and urban renewal. Images of a gorgeous coastline and old colonial architecture come to mind, but guess what? The old part of the city, “the Isleta,” is rife with poor urban planning scars, such as inaccessible beaches due to ports and an excessive reliance on cars. The government has decided to infuse the city with $1.5 billion dollars to re-develop San Juan and, most of all, make it a walking city, with no cars allowed.

More here.

When I went car-free last month, I knew I would need one more bicycle to make my business travel and personal travel car-free — a folding bicycle. RocBike contributor Jack Spula has always seemed very happy with his Dahon, and as far as I know, they’re one of the big names in folding bikes.

So today I went to CK Cycles in Albany, NY, and picked up a Dahon Speed D7. Here are photos of the bike folded up (on my Xtracycle) and unfolded:

From My new Dahon Speed D7

From My new Dahon Speed D7

From My new Dahon Speed D7

One question: My Xtracycle is named The Packet Boat. What should I call this bike, The Dinghy?

From The Packet Boat (my Xtracycle)

Three weeks and one day ago, I went truck-free. So far it’s been fantastic. Often very, very hot, but a lot of fun. Given my job with the New York Bicycling Coalition, I enjoy being the only person who shows up at meetings on a bike. (To be fair, there are occasionally others, but not often.) Here, in no particular order, are a few things I’ve observed since ditching the truck:

• People offer me rides quite frequently. Always with the best intentions, of course. I say “no” almost every time, the one exception coming last night when a friend took me to Saratoga Springs for a poetry reading. It’s not particularly easy to get there any other way. It’s about 40 miles, and the reading doesn’t usually finish until after 9 p.m. There’s a train that will get me there, but not one that will get me back.
• Many people think I don’t have a car because I’m poor. I find myself explaining fairly often that yes, I’m poor, but that donating my car to the local classical station was an intentional and happy decision.
• It’s contagious. A friend contacted me this week to say that he’s spending some car-free time while the rest of his family and the car are away on vacation. He said he’d been reading about my experience and wanted to give it a shot, so he’s using his bike and mass transit. Cool, right?

From 100724 Around Albany & Poets In The Park

• I don’t have to add nearly as much travel time as I might have expected. I tend to be someone who gets everywhere early, no matter how I’m traveling. I’ve been biking for several years now, so I don’t know why I thought everything would take so much longer. Sure, I need extra time on some trips, but more than once I’ve left one location by bike and arrived before friends who were making the same trip by car. And trust me, I don’t ride fast.
• I’ve become smarter about planning trips. My friend and fellow cyclist Bob Anderson mentioned that as one of the benefits he noticed when he gave up the car, and it’s certainly proven true for me. I make lists of what I need based on where it is and then try to do a bunch of things in one trip. That’s certainly made easier by The Packet Boat (my Xtracycle) because it allows me to carry so much.

From The Packet Boat (my Xtracycle)

• I spend less money on crap. I’m not out in my car, swinging through drive-through windows and ordering bad food. It’s funny how much easier it is to find time to eat well when I don’t drive.
• I walk more. Yup, one thing about ditching the car is that I often choose to just walk places, which is also a lovely way to get around a city.

The verdict? I’m so happy I made the leap. Give it a try yourself — even if you start small, which is fine — and let me know how it goes.

When I ride my bicycle, it’s often so quiet that I can hear the traffic signals change. The boxes make an audible metallic click as the lights change from yellow to red or from red to green.

Click for a larger version

Xtracycle just introduced its 2010 Freeloader bags. In addition to looking better than the original bags that I had on The Packet Boat, they also have a waterproof inner pocket, which the old Freeloaders lacked. Now that I’m car free and using my bike to get the mail for myself and my employer every day, having some waterproof storage on my bike is important.

Here’s a slideshow of the new bags. The first few photos were taken last night in my apartment after I installed the bags. Then there are photos from today in Albany of the bike empty and loaded.

Sadly, the fully-loaded shots are from a big-box store (Target) because it’s apparently much easier to buy pot than to buy a sauce pot inside the city limits. So I waited until I had a long list of housewares to buy then trucked out Central Avenue, easily the worst street to bike on in Albany. All it’s lacking are snipers on the rooftops shooting at the cyclists. Or maybe neck-high blades that whip across the street at random intervals.

I also stopped to get furikake at the Asian Supermarket at 1245 Central Ave. Wow. I could live there. Highly recommended.

Anyway, here are the pics:

Steel Wheel Duo Spokesongs Tour from Joel Landis on Vimeo.

Last night I was riding to Kickball. (We play every Monday night in Hoffman Park. 6:30. Free.) I’m stopped at the red light on Whitehall, crossing Delaware. There are cars in front of my and behind me. When the light turns green I start moving. Someone behind me starts yelling, “C’mon Pee Wee Herman!”

As usual, I don’t understand these sort of exclamations. I am moving, and I don’t look anything like Pee Wee Herman. Whatever are you screaming about?

Through the intersection we go, him screaming at me the whole way. I do my best to remain calm. He passes me, roaring the engine of his big white SUV. As they go by he calls out “Let’s go Pee Wee Herman!” And the young boy in the back seat is also heckling me. I am saddened that young boys are no longer riding bikes, but mistreating people who riding bikes. It’s like an important part of childhood has been slain by the Great White SUV.

But I let them go. Because I do. But if you’re familiar with Second St over there, you know the red lights can back up traffic. So a block or two later, the offensive SUV is stopped. I do something I normally don’t do. I pass them on the right. I ring my bell as I zip by, and I pass everyone in front of them. I don’t see them again.

What weird things have people called out to you?

Xtracycle … because you never know when you might leave home empty-handed and come back with a ladder.