In September 2008, Five Rivers Metroparks opened the region’s premiere mountain biking trail area and the first of several future outdoor recreation facilities they have planned. Check out this awesome video from Andy Snow that highlights the trail and gives you a good idea of what you can expect. So get out and live!
Active Living
Drive Less, Bike More
Portland, Boulder, Madison, San Francisco, Seattle, Austin, Chicago – these are cities known to be magnets to young college graduates and the “creative class” that so many cities including Dayton are trying to retain and attract. But what else do these cities have in common? They are all known as some of the most bicycle-friendly cities in the country according to a city ranking by the League of American Bicyclists – the standard for cities looking to capitalize on the growing popularity of the bicycle culture. While Dayton must continue to work hard at attracting businesses that provide good jobs, we must at the same time be doing everything we can to make our city attractive for living – and bicycles can play a major role in that.
Columbus is the only Ohio city that ranks on the Bicycle Friendly Community list (bronze level), but Dayton has the potential to join and even surpass Columbus as a bicycle-friendly community. Our region already enjoys one of the best recreational trail networks in the country, with main trails converging at Riverscape in Downtown Dayton where the region’s first bike hub is now being built. We also have the new MetroParks Mountain Biking Area that is growing in popularity. Imagine if we capitalized on these unique recreational assets by integrating them with a city and region-wide transportation network that encourages more people to use bicycles for short trips and even commutes to work.
There are few things as versatile and that transcend race, gender, socio-economics, age or even physical fitness level more than a bicycle – whether being used recreationally or for basic transportation. By transforming our streets to be more pedestrian and bicycle-friendly, we can:
- Provide low-cost transportation options to those unable to afford automobiles as well as those that simply want to drive less
- Decrease traffic congestion and pollution
- Lower obesity levels by increasing physical activity
- Add vibrancy and safety to our downtown streets
- Allow people to spend less on gas and perhaps spend more in our local economy
The City of Dayton is taking initial steps by implementing the region’s first dedicated bike lanes and sharrows (shared lanes that are marked) when it completes the downtown two-way street conversions over the next several months. It is a nice nod to the Wright Brothers that St. Clair Street will have one of these dedicated bike lanes, since it shares its name with a line of bicycles that the Wrights built and sold. Added to groups like Courteous Mass (a grassroots urban bicycle awareness movement) and the Drive Less Live More campaign, we are moving in the right direction toward a comprehensive plan that aims to put Dayton on the map for bicycle-friendly communities. This includes efforts as simple as expanding driver/bicycle education and awareness, and as complex as implementing bike share programs and “Complete Streets” plans that truly transform our streets from being designed predominantly for the automobile to being equally accessible to autos, bicycles and pedestrians alike.
We all know about the Wright Brothers and how their invention of flight has helped shape Dayton over the past several decades, though few would suggest that it is their prior work with bicycles that may represent the future for Dayton. However, in this age of rising transportation costs, traffic congestion, growing obesity, climate change and culture shifts, cities across the country are discovering that the bicycle can play a pivotal role in the quest for economic prosperity. It is time for Dayton to join this trend.
Join the first Miami Valley Cycling Summit this Friday at UD, where government officials, experts, community leaders and bicycle advocates from across the region AND the country will be presenting plans already implemented in other cities and ideas for us here in Dayton. As of the time of this post there are over 275 registrants.
Photo Credit: kworth30 – Flickr.com
Attracting Business to Dayton – Start with Quality of Life
As I read the latest DDN article about city, regional and state officials meeting behind closed doors to figure out how to “drawing NCR-like companies to Dayton”, I simply shook my head. I’ll actually give officials the benefit of the doubt since I saw nobody actually quoted as saying “NCR-like companies”; I’ll assume that was a DDN attempt to attract views by using the buzz-word de’jour – NCR. Still, I can’t help but wonder what ideas were shared between all of these powers-that-be. Specifically – how many times was the phrase “tax incentive” tossed around?
It actually wasn’t what was said that I’m that concerned about, but more importantly – what wasn’t said. Did anybody talk about improving Dayton’s services and quality of life that would help attract young talent and ultimately the businesses that follow that talent? While I agree that we must be looking at ways to directly attract businesses to our city and region, I would argue that it is every bit as important to improve our city’s environment and transform it in a way that attracts people. Without doing the latter, it is a waste of time to bother trying to attract any businesses, let alone Fortune 500 corporations.
The following is a 30 minute video that I strongly recommend you view when you have the time. It is a piece about Portland, OR – and it could very well be used as a call to action for Dayton. Note – Portland continues to attract residents from across the country DESPITE having an unemployment rate of 11.8%. The idea: transform our entire downtown area (and beyond) into an uber-pedestrian and bicycle friendly environment, start Ohio’s first bicycle-share system, add a 3C/D rail station, and implement the first of many streetcar routes as has already been recommended. It is all about “sense of place”, and it can do more to attract residents, business and investment into our city than any corporate welfare check could ever hope to do.
Courteous Mass – Taking over the streets of Downtown Dayton
Courteous Mass is Dayton’s newest bicycle advocate group that aims to do monthly group rides in the urban core of Dayton. The name is a play on the already-established Critical Mass – a bicycling event typically held on the last Friday of every month in over 300 cities around the world. Unlike that group that has been perceived as a protest group, “Courteous Mass – Dayton” is a group focused on promoting the positives of creating a bike-friendly city. Dayton’s event is to be held every first Friday of the month – which then leads into Dayton’s First Friday art hop events, giving riders a reason to stay downtown afterwards.
Matt Lindsey founded the group which has already had a kick-off meeting last month and a “Shakedown Ride” this past Friday for a few initial folks to check out the route before the group’s first official ride – Friday April 3, 2009. For now the group will be starting at c{space (20 N. Jefferson) – Dayton’s community “third space” for local artists, musicians and other creatives. Gatherings start at 4pm with the rides starting at 4:45pm. So if you have a bike, want a reason to leave work a little early on a Friday, want to get some exercise, want to meet some new friends and want to help add some vibrancy to the streets of Downtown Dayton while showing community leaders that there is a need for bike-friendly streets and planning – then come down on Friday April 3. I know I plan to be there!
Become a “Street Smart” Urban Cyclist!
You may not be thinking of cycling just yet, but Spring will be here before you know it. For those of you who enjoy bicycling in the urban environment as well as on the trails, the following course might be of interest to you. This is a course on urban bike riding offered by two "League of American Bicyclists"-certified instructors to be held at the Wright-Dunbar Interpretive Center, 16 S. Williams St., on two Saturdays, April 5 and 12.