bikes around town

ok, so we're talking about the utmost utility here, but there are bikes everywhere. i forgot to take a pic at the train station today when i was buying my bus pass, but i'll get a pic tomorrow morning of the racks and racks of bikes parked there.

this is the church parking lot... no, really

and the other lot. really, there's a service going on and there are only two cars parked near the building.

a public bike rack
and getting around town? you just do it on a bike...
in your regular clothes. i wonder if the industry that caters to sport cycling in the US has been the biggest barrier to the practical usage of bicycles. well, not the biggest barrier. there's legislation and the car lobby to blame for that, but the cycling industry itself focused on cycling as a sport, which, i believe, comes from the fact that it's a higher margin sale AND it represents much more return sales as bike nerds upgrade their bikes incessantly.

it's probably easier to stay in business selling new bikes than it is to repair (and stock the parts for) really old bikes. however, that doesn't mean they shouldn't try to sell practical bikes to everyday people.