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Bogota crowdsources a green transport future to cut emissions

Anastasia Moloney

May 26, 2021 |

Thomson Reuters Foundation |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Colombia, Bogotá

Citizen participation in meetings, door-to-door surveys, and via an open-source online platform where residents could edit and add to draft plans resulted in 7,000 citizen proposals to redesign one of Bogota’s major, car-choked, 23-km thoroughfares. Residents as young as 10 years old contributed to design plans that will cut climate-changing emissions and pollution by adding more bike lanes, pedestrian paths, and electric buses and cable cars. City officials spent substantial time listening to residents’ ideas and concerns, including talking with populations that are often ignored by those in power.

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‘Bicycles kind of saved my life.' Najari Smith spins a community forward.

Erika Page

May 10, 2021 |

The Christian Science Monitor |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Richmond, California

A bicycle shop owned cooperatively by its worker-owners is also a nonprofit that serves its community in a number of ways. Rich City Rides plans wellness events and programs in California in addition to social bike rides and food distribution.

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Can ‘Open Streets' Outlast the Pandemic?

John Surico

April 29, 2021 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

Many cities created "open streets" during the pandemic, limiting traffic on certain streets to give people a safe outdoor place to relax and play. Which programs outlive the pandemic depends on a host of factors, most especially how community-led the programs are. In Queens' Jackson Heights neighborhood, a densely populated community with many immigrants, closing a major street didn't work when police were at the barricades. But, under the leadership of the community, the daily closure turned into a street party and community-building event that is causing the city to rethink basic urban-planning concepts.

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Pedal power: How bicycles can change lives

Richard Kenny

April 20, 2021 |

BBC |

Podcast |

Over 15 Minutes

Response Location: Zambia

Onyx Connect sprang from the imagination of one entrepreneur who saw how poor roads and poverty made bicycles the only practical alternative to walking great distances in southern Zambia. Onyx sells sturdy bikes with a monthly payment plan that makes them affordable but also gives bike owners a personal stake in maintaining their own investment, instead of just having it donated to them. Bikes have given girls greater access to education and farmers more income because they can deliver fresh milk or other goods more often, more quickly, at greater distances than before.

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The Power of Bike Education to Transform Lives and Communities

Marianne Dhenin

March 22, 2021 |

Yes! Magazine |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Germany, Berlin

Bicycle education programs around the world are helping those who want to become cyclists overcome that fear while also addressing problems in their communities—from pollution to racial injustice. #BIKEYGEES in Berlin helps women learn how to ride, or learn how to teach someone how to ride bicycles without need for registration. In the U.S. In Los Angeles, Sustainable Streets is helping adult learners while also turning the tide on the prevalent car-minded culture in the city.

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How New York and Paris Got Women Into the Bike Saddle

Phineas Rueckert

February 12, 2021 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

Citi Bike started the NYC Critical Workers program, which offered free bike-share memberships to essential workers in New York City because of the coronavirus pandemic. The free membership started for one month but was extended to a year. Nearly 30,000 people signed up. Since a large proportion of healthcare workers are women, almost 60% of the new members were women, which increased the company’s female annual members from 32.8 percent to 38.9 percent. Several other cities also saw progress in the gender-balance of bike riders during the pandemic.

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Oonee Wants to Fix New York Bike Parking with Free, Secure Storage Pods

Ira Boudway

February 11, 2021 |

Bloomberg |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

An early-stage startup with big plans to change bicycling culture and commuting habits has notched one victory already, with its first secure-parking pods in New York City: Out of 60,000 times they've been used, the pods have only suffered one theft, at a time of rampant bike theft. Startup Oonee provides an alternative to locking up bikes and scooters on the street during work hours. Parking in an enclosed shelter is advertising-supported, so it's free to users. Ultimately, Oonee hopes to surround parking with a suite of services useful to two-wheeled commuters.

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In South Bend, Pete Buttigieg challenged a decades-old assumption that streets are for cars above all else

Ian Duncan

January 16, 2021 |

The Washington Post |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, South Bend, Indiana

Reconfiguring streets to slow automobile traffic through its downtown business district and encourage pedestrians and bicycling enlivened South Bend's street life and proved a boon to its restaurants and other businesses. Then-Mayor Pete Buttigieg pushed for the $25 million plan to make the streets safer and encourage people to spend more time and money in the area. Drivers complained about increased travel time, as they have about other cities’ “complete streets” programs. But Buttigieg and his supporters hope to push the concept when he runs the federal Transportation Department.

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Why some bike shares work and others don't

Hope Ngo

January 12, 2021 |

BBC |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: China

A boom in Chinese bike-share companies sought a technology-driven transport solution for people traveling short distances. While investors were drawn to green transportation solutions, a lack of any regulatory framework to introduce the bikes and integrate them with existing public transportation led to millions of bikes inundating urban areas. The more than 40 dockless bike share companies operating around the country led to an oversupply, bikes were vandalized, and many were found in rivers and other natural settings. Massive bike graveyards popped up as the bike parts were not easily recycled.

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Slow Streets Were a Success. Should Cities Keep Them?

Skip Descant

October 29, 2020 |

Governing |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Seattle, Washington

A pilot project in several American cities has provided a large amount of data on how residents use streets where vehicular traffic is restricted. The initiative tested out ways to calm traffic, provide space for families to convene and exercise, and provide safer bike lanes. A transportation analysis firm was able to provide detailed analysis for how each city responded to the changes, opening up ways for governments to "implement the best project for that specific need and measure against those goals."

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