biking
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How do you design a bike that will make people give up cars?
Oregon Manifest is a challenge, sponsored in part by Levi's, to bike designers and constructors to build "The Ultimate Modern Utility Bike." The bike must have features like built-in anti-theft devices, fenders, lighting, load-carrying capability, and kickstand. Bikes entered into the contest will be tested on a 50 mile course that covers city and dirt roads, asphalt, gravel, hills, and stairs. The winner receives a $3,000 prize.
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In Baltimore, Zipcar users take fewer car trips
Baltimore is an old, industrial city with old, car-focused transportation infrastructure. But add a little Zipcar in, and Baltimore residents suddenly get a lot more gung ho about walking, biking, and taking the bus.
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Bikes — and rollerbladers — beat plane in Carmageddon race
What happens when L.A. is debilitated by repairs on a 10-mile stretch of freeway? Some people hop on a 35-mile plane ride to bypass it. And others get on their bikes and make it there in half the time.
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Six surprising U.S. cities for a car-free vacation
Where should you take your next car-free getaway? These six cities may not boast mass transit systems like New York's, but they do have what it takes to make discovering their best features an easy, fun, and affordable experience without a car.
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The world’s first ass-powered outdoor concert
Here's an idea for a better way to harness the power of stationary bike workout: use the resultant energy to fuel the electricity-sucking equipment for a banging outdoor concert. Pedal Power NYC recruited 250 volunteers to pedal 16 bikes, which, hooked up to generators, provided the electricity for June's NYC Celebrates Water Festival.
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Awesome idea: Bike repair vending machine
Did you get a flat, forget your snacks, or break a light while tooling down the Greenway in bike-friendly Minneapolis? No worries -- just stop by the Bike Fixtation, a one-stop bike-shopping outpost. You can buy a patch kit or some trail mix from the vending machine, pump up your tires with the air pump, and do minor repairs on the work stand.
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Bike lanes create jobs
The title of this post should really be "Bike lanes create jobs, duhhhhhhhhhh." A new study from the University of Massachusetts is only the latest evidence that bike infrastructure projects create more jobs than road infrastructure -- but the message hasn't gotten through to everyone, so with UMass' help we'll just keep beating that horse. Anyway, the latest study shows that bike and pedestrian projects generate 46 percent more employment than roads. So, you know, no big deal, just HALF AGAIN AS MANY JOBS.
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The U.S. is building an interstate highway system for bikes
One day you'll be able to head out on the highway WITHOUT getting your motor running first. Take that, Steppenwolf! Last week the Association of American State Highway and Transportation Officials breathed new life into a long-fallow plan to build an interstate bicycle system, approving new routes for the first time in more than 30 years.
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Cardboard bike helmets are safer than plastic
Yeah, it sounds a little Calvin & Hobbes, but riding around with corrugated cardboard on your head can actually be safer than the plastic and Styrofoam concoctions you get at the bike store. The Kranium cardboard bike helmet absorbs four times more impact energy than equivalent polystyrene. One helmet was smashed five times in a row and still had enough muscle to pass a standard safety test. And yeah, it's waterproof.