Commuters get on the bike to avoid fuel costs

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About 36,000 Bay Area residents bike to work on a typical work day, but organizers expect up to 100,000 people to participate on Thursday, given the widespread frustration over gas prices that have surged past $3.50 per gallon here and elsewhere.

“The biggest challenge is that people think the car is more convenient,” said Cole Portocarrero, who heads the Bay Area Bicycle Coalition, a sponsor of the event. Once they try biking to work, “they realize it’s convenient, fun and enjoyable.”

Unlike most countries, the vast majority of bikes sold in the United States are used for recreation rather than transportation. About 550,000 Americans — less than 1 percent of U.S. workers — bike to work regularly, according to Blumenthal.

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Advocates are trying to boost those numbers. But while cities like San Francisco, New York, Chicago, Seattle and Minneapolis have bike-friendly streets and high numbers of two-wheel commuters, other cities were built for cars and lack bike lanes and paths.

“You don’t feel the love in a lot of places when you’re riding your bike,” Blumental said. “For a lot of people, it’s intimidating and you don’t feel safe. It’s a lack of shared respect between cyclists and motorists.”

But advocates are optimistic that America will become more bike-friendly as cities, states and the federal government boost spending on bike paths, lockup racks and bike stations where cyclists can park and shower.

The $286 billion federal transportation bill signed last year will double the amount of money available for bike and pedestrian facilities to about $4 billion.

Federal legislation introduced in the Senate last month would offer employers a tax incentive to help cover the cost of riding to work.

“This is a fair and modest proposal that will reward employees who ride their bikes to and from their jobs,” said Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., one of the bill’s sponsors. “They are saving energy and overcoming their dependence on oil and gas.”

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