5 minute read
Interactions
INTERACTIONS
If the preferred mode of active transportation is walking, a 15-minute circle one mile from Old Capitol would include Kinnick Stadium, Carver Arena, Hancher, City Park, Iowa River Crossing Park and housing past College Green Park on the east. Our downtown area is only about a mile in diameter.
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The League of American Bicyclists created the Bike Friendly Community (BFC) program about 20 years ago. For free, the League evaluates communities on five criteria as well as biking modal share and accident rates. The five evaluation areas include engineering, encouragement, equity, education and self-evaluation. Over 485 communities have received a designation from bronze-level to platinum, but fewer than 40 have attained the gold or platinum designation. It’s important to note that a bike-friendly community accommodates walkers too. Public transportation generally is enhanced by the BFC program.
Jordan Sellergren / Little Village
Iowa City first applied to be a BFC in 2007. Even though there were lots of bike commuters and few accidents, we didn’t receive recognition, primarily because there was no master bike plan. Two years later, with the master plan completed and bike education rodeos being offered at local schools, Iowa City received a bronze-level recognition. More progress was made, and in the 2013 evaluation, the recognition was bumped up to silver-level. Fewer than one-third of the BFCs have done that well, but in the 2017 evaluation, the progress was insufficient to merit gold-level.
Over the past few years, Iowa City has gone a long way to accommodate active transportation. For example, a new master plan was rolled out in 2019, and many new miles of bike lanes, trails and side-paths made available about 115 miles in Iowa City and an equal number of miles in the remainder of the metro area. All the schools are doing bike rodeos and a range of biking opportunities are being offered to disadvantaged members of the community. Our bike modal share remains high and accident rates low—key factors in the evaluation.
Will it be enough? We’ll see. We still do not have a bike/pedestrian coordinator in our community or an active transportation advisory committee. All the gold-level communities do. Their purpose is to evaluate progress and devise ways to motivate education and participation. While the bike rodeos offer bike education for kids who show up, there is no system-wide mandatory curriculum that includes a component for secondary schools, another important characteristic at the gold-level.
Why sweat being bike friendly? There are at least two good reasons. First, increasing active transport will reduce air pollution. More than a quarter of air pollution is attributed to auto exhaust, the single highest source. Iowa City has made a commitment to reduce its carbon footprint by half over the next 30 years. This will only occur with a commitment to active transportation.
Bike friendliness adds to the quality of life and enhances economic development. A 2016 study by the American Institute for Economic Research identified the 40 hottest job markets during the early years of the last decade. They were stratified into four levels by size, i.e., very large to small. Thirty-two (80%) were BFCs, and the gold- and platinum-level BFCs were overrepresented. In other words, business development was enhanced by active transportation.
With the summer of the bike upon us, dust off your bike, join some of the events and use active transportation a couple times a week to run errands.
Bob Oppliger, Education & Advocacy Coordinator, Bicyclists of Iowa City, Board Member, League of American Bicyclists
Linn Street closed from Market to Bloomington, as outdoor dining on the street returns (April 12)
I wasn’t a fan of this idea when they first didit, but it turned out to work well. Glad it willhappen again. —Melanie M.
I hope the folks who live in apartments alongthere are getting a break on their rent. —Julie V.
Board of Regents decides not to require COVID vaccinations for UI, ISU and UNI; Grinnell announces it will (April 15)
Great, more online classes with professors whoreally don’t thrive in that format. —Samantha C.
Here’s a question to which I have not yet seen an answer: What’s the ostensible rationale for not requiring? I don’t agree with the policy anyway, but I’d like to hear what the grounds are, especially in light of (as pointed out in the article) other vaccines are required. A deeply held belief in the right to make others ill? —Jim P.
Just playing to the conservative culture war. Kim will be holding things like this up for her re-election run next year. —Beau F.
Somehow (well, we know how) a pandemic got politicized and somehow being “against vaccines” made you part of your in group. I’d rather colleges/universities/schools required vaccines, because I’d like to see this end. —Sharon F.
Why are so many people fans of the pandemic? You’d think there’d be an interest in ending it what with the half a million dead Americans and all. Just kind of a ‘save the viruses’ thing, or what? —Randy K.
Won’t somebody PLEASE think of theviruses!!! —Edward K.
Cedar Rapids man paralyzed in 2016 police shooting to receive $8 million settlement from city (April 19)
Des Moines is doing this very same thing.WHO asked for this?? And how does rafting“revitalize” the river? By offering more avenuesfor it to be further polluted with plastic duringevents???? This is just a scheme to get moretourists in the city. Maybe CR should actuallyhelp its citizens who are still recovering fromthe derecho and still suffering because of thepandemic instead of this weird tourist junk thatmost locals won’t even have the opportunity touse. —RT B.
Cedar Rapids could plant a 20-acre prairie fullof prairie flowers in the floodplain . . . oh wait,it already did that and the council has justapproved the destruction of the prairie in favorof an industrial rail yard. —Rob H.
State loosens restrictions around dogs on restaurant patios (April 28)
UGH I have no interest in eating with other people’s pets. —Melanie M.
I love this! Finally Iowa is becoming more dogfriendly. —Monica B.
Employees cant pet the dogs whyyyy weobviously must wash our hands after regardless. —Rezin R.N.
Little Village asked: You’re about to make your drag debut. What song do you lip sync to?
Any of SOPHIE’s hit songs would be perfect,my favorite two being “It’s Okay To Cry” and“Ponyboy.” —Paul P.
“BAD SELECTION” by The Armed. —Mark Z.W.
“Too Sexy” by Right Said Fred. —Jamie T.
Probably “Happiness Pie” by the Kids in the Hall. —Jason A.
“Everybody Knows” by Leonard Cohen. Did I do it right? —Mark H.M.
“WAP.” —Laura J.
“Hot Stuff” by Donna Summers. —Matthieu B.
“Baby One More Time”...duh. —Erin M.
Stress Fractures
John Martinek
