by | September 7, 2013 · 9:00 am

The Challenge Of Luring Young Car Buyers Spreads To Europe

By Micheline Maynard

We’ve all heard a lot about the difficulties that American auto companies are having in attracting buyers under age 35. It seems the problem is just as acute in Europe.

The electric BMW i3.

According to the New York Times, carmakers there are hoping that technological innovations will be the key to getting younger buyers into automobiles. But it’s an even tougher sell, given Europe’s wide transit network, the popularity of bicycling, the availability of bike sharing and governments’ green policies.

Auto sales in Europe are down 20 percent this year, and have fallen even more in the most troubled economies. Without young buyers, economists are concerned that European carmakers may never achieve their sales peaks again.

“There are products that are hipper for young people than cars,” Ferdinand Dudenhöffer, a professor at the University of Duisburg-Essen in northern Germany and an industry analyst, told the Times. “The car companies are still using the old marketing pitch — more horsepower. That doesn’t speak to young people any more.” Continue reading →

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by | September 6, 2013 · 9:00 am

How Can You Get Around Without A Credit Card?

Divvy Bikes in Chicago.

Divvy Bikes in Chicago.

By Micheline Maynard

Unless they were lucky enough to get a gift certificate, pretty much everybody who has joined Citi Bike, ZipCar or Uber has something in common: a credit card.

But what if you want to get around, and you don’t have a credit card?

That’s a topic of active discussion in Chicago, where one in nine residents don’t have bank accounts, according to research reported this week by Streetsblog Chicago.

According to researcher Michael Carney at the University of Illinois at Chicago’s College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs, that translates to at least 135,000 people and perhaps more than twice as many people. In some parts of Chicago, one-third of area residents do not have bank accounts, but get by relying on cash or debit-style cards that aren’t linked to bank accounts.

One of the biggest reasons bike share and other transportation programs ask for credit cards is to offset the risk of damage to bikes or vehicles, or even the theft of the equipment. A rider, driver or consumer without a credit card can’t be billed if the information isn’t available.

The Chicago Department of Transportation, which runs Divvy Bikes, the city’s bike sharing system, is determined to get “unbanked” Chicagoans on bikes. It’s been looking at ways that it can make Divvy accessible to more people. Continue reading →

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by | September 5, 2013 · 9:00 am

Watch San Francisco’s New Bridge Come To Life

By Micheline Maynard

When I was in California last fall, I headed for the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge to continue my journey to Palo Alto. Traffic never moves very quickly, so I got lots of time to study the construction project next to me.

Now, that construction project has become a reality. The new eastern span of the Bay Bridge opened this week. It’s supposed to be earthquake proof, and it cost a bundle: $6.4 billion over nearly 12 years.

The wonderful video, from EarthCam, shows the bridge’s progress during the past five years. Thanks to our friends at Jalopnik for this cool discovery.

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by | September 4, 2013 · 9:00 am

Bike Share Review: Getting Around The Mile High City

By Micheline Maynard

Denver is known for its Nuggets, the Broncos and its mountains. But many of us don’t automatically think of it as a bike sharing city.

Denver B-Cycle riders.

However, the system known as Denver B-Cycle has a regular rider in Tim Baldwin, an associate with the transportation consulting firm of Steer Davies Gleave.

Here is Tim’s B-Cycle review.

“Our firm recently moved to a new office in the Lower Downtown area of Denver.  While it is a beautiful office in a wonderful location, it is about four blocks away from Denver’s 16th Street Mall and its free shuttle bus, which we use to get to and from meetings around downtown (primarily at RTD-Denver and the City and County of Denver).

Luckily, we have a B-Cycle bike sharing station right outside our office, so we use it at every opportunity to go to and from our meetings. Continue reading →

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by | September 3, 2013 · 9:00 am

Ask The Rabbi: Can I Use Bike Share During The High Holy Days?

By Micheline Maynard

Our Jewish friends are getting ready to celebrate the High Holy Days, which kick off Wednesday with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and continue next week with Yom Kippur.

Bay Area Bike Share bikes at the Ferry Building in San Francisco.

Bay Area Bike Share bikes at the Ferry Building in San Francisco.

This year’s festivities mark the start of 5774 on the Jewish calendar. Last year, when 5773 kicked off, neither New York, Chicago or San Francisco had bike share systems. This year, Citi Bike, Divvy Bikes and most recently, Bay Area Bike Share have become new transportation choices.

But some Jews, especially those who follow the Orthodox tradition, observe restrictions on travel during the High Holy Days. We wondered if that includes bike sharing.

For an answer, we contacted Rabbi Allen Schwartz, at Congregation Ohab Zedek in New York. He was kind enough to provide his guidance about the Orthodox approach to technology during holidays (which include every Sabbath (sundown Friday to nightfall Saturday), Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret, Simchat Torah, Pesach and Shavuot).

Said Rabbi Schwartz,

“On all these days, observant Jews refrain from practically all forms of technology. These days are set aside for contemplation of what we are as human beings and is becoming more and more challenging in a vastly changing world. Continue reading →

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by | September 2, 2013 · 9:00 am

Bike Share Review: A Lunchtime Ride In Chicago

Listen to Roger Talk About Divvy Bikes

By Micheline Maynard

Last month, I visited Chicago to check out Divvy Bikes and see what cyclists think of the new bike sharing program. As I was driving through West Town at lunch time, I saw Roger Guerrero cycling by, and asked him if he’d talk to me about his Divvy experience. Click the link above to hear our interview.

Here’s Roger on his ride.

Roger On A Divvy

Would you like to send us your Bike Share Review? Send an email to curbingcars@gmail.com.

(*Slight correction in the audio: Bay Area Bike Share stretches from San Francisco to San Jose, but Oakland isn’t part of the system just yet.)

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by | August 31, 2013 · 9:00 am

Bike Share Review: Riding In The Nation’s Capitol

By Micheline Maynard

Capital Bikeshare

Curbing Cars backer Michael Leland is an avid cyclist who spends lots of time on the road in Wisconsin, where he is the news director for Wisconsin Public Radio.

In our inaugural Bike Share Review, Michael writes about his experience testing out Capital Bikeshare in Washington, D.C.

“A few years ago, I was staying in Crystal City, (Arlington), Virginia for a conference, and there was a Capital Bikeshare station in front of the hotel.  I bike a lot at home in Wisconsin and try to exercise when I’m on the road, so I thought it would be nice to use on of the bikes for early-morning rides along the Potomac.

The station instructions were straightforward and I was easily able to adjust the bike so that I fit on it comfortably.  Several mornings that week, I rode a 6-10 mile loop along the river, and crossed into D.C. to ride past the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials. Continue reading →

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by | August 30, 2013 · 9:15 am

Have You Tried Out Bike Sharing? Send Us Your Bike Share Review

Bay Area Bike Share kicked off this week.

Bay Area Bike Share kicked off this week.

By Micheline Maynard

It’s been the summer of bike sharing! This week, Bay Area Bike Share (or as we’re thinking of it, BABS) kicked off in the San Francisco area. Meanwhile, Chicago is getting to know Divvy Bikes, and New York has thrown its arms around Citi Bike.

They’re just part of the bike sharing movement that has literally swept the world, from Paris to Shanghai, Montreal to Chattanooga. College campuses have bike sharing, and so do many cities around North America.

Have you tried out one of these systems, either in your home town or as a visitor? If so, we’d like you to send us your Bike Share Review.

As we’re doing with My Transportation Diary, we’ll be running these regularly at Curbing Cars. Our first one is ready to go this weekend.

Here’s what we’d like to know: Continue reading →

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by | August 29, 2013 · 11:03 am

Driving Is Dropping In Almost Every State: Is It Down In Yours?

By Micheline Maynard

The U.S. Public Interest Research Group has been among those tracking the change in American driving habits. On Thursday, the group issued a new study showing that driving has dropped in almost every state.

What’s more, driving hasn’t rebounded along with the economy. The federal government recently released statistics for the first half of 2013 showing that people are spending less time on the road, even though unemployment is dropping and things are picking up.

According to the USPIRG study, driving is down in 46 states plus the District of Columbia since the driving peaks of 2004 and 2005.

Ten states showed double digit declines in driving: Alaska, Delaware, Oregon, Georgia, Florida, Wyoming, Pennsylvania, D.C., Indiana and South Carolina.

Driving is up in just four states — Nevada, Louisiana, North Dakota and Alabama, according to USPIRG. One of the reason for the increase is that those states have experienced a flurry of economic activity, although in the case of Nevada and Louisiana, some of it was because of bad news. Continue reading →

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by | August 28, 2013 · 10:07 am

My Transportation Diary: A Convert From Cars

By Micheline Maynard

Rob Meyer is from Ann Arbor, Mich., where he didn’t think public transportation was extensive enough to be a full replacement for a car. (Editor’s note: some people might disagree.) And when he headed west after college, the first thing he did was buy one. But then he moved to the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle, and a car became less important.

Here’s his Transportation Diary, in prose and data.

“I grew up in Michigan (Ann Arbor) where there was a big car culture and where public transit wasn’t extensive enough to be a full replacement for a car. When I moved to Bellevue, WA after college, it seemed like a no-brainer to get myself a car. The east side [of Lake Washington] is much more suburban and spread-out than Seattle proper, so having my own car was quite convenient, but not as necessary as it had been back in Michigan.

I later moved into Capitol Hill, Seattle, and fell in love its higher density of bars, restaurants, and entertainment options. Not only did Capitol Hill have more available within walking distance than Bellevue had in 20-minute driving distance, but plentiful bus routes made venturing to more distant parts of Seattle easy. Plus, you never have to worry about a parking or a designated driver when you’re walking/busing everywhere.

And if that weren’t enough, the 545 Metro bus would get me most of the way to work while Microsoft (my employer) also has a private bus system to help get employees to and from work.

It didn’t take long before I realized that my car wasn’t providing enough value to warrant the cost of the lease, insurance, gas, maintenance. I added up all my car-related expenses and realized that if I simply allocated some of that pile of money to cabs & rental cars, I would come out far ahead in the long term. Continue reading →

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