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EQECA 07/12/2011 - 6566� � ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY AND ENERGY COMMISSION Fridley Municipal Center, 643� University Ave Ne GTYOF Agenda Packet FRIDLEY Tuesday, July 12, 2011, 7— 8 p.m. AGENDA Location: Conference Room A(Upper Level) 7:00 Call to Order 7:02 Approve Environmental Quality and Energy Commission Minutes: May 10, 2011 Staff Report 7:05 Updates by Rachel Harris, Environmental Planner Program Manager • Conservation - Recycling Drop-off Event, April 16 • Public Outreach Effort - Watershed Protection, April 23 • Other New Business 7:20 Watersheds in Fridley 7:25 Utility Bicycling Reduces Air Pollution • Breathing Easy (Attached) • Portland: Connecting Leisure Paths with Urban Routes (Attached) Old Business 7:40 49ers Parade � Jack Velin, Tina Nelson, Paul Westby Next Meetings/Announcements Tuesday, September 13, 7 p.m., Conference Room A(Main Level) Adjourn 7:45 p.m. Suggested Reading Materials HEALTH AND SAFETY reat in eas Air particles and rush hour cycling: what's the threat? The health benefits of cycling already outweigh the risks, but improving air quality would be better still. Abigail King reviews the research esus Pascual, a 47-year-old from Seville, southern Spain, tacks, COPD, asthma and so on). In tests, even normally healthy cycles to work every day.,"I do it to improve my health; people experienced temporary drops in markers of their respira- he says. "It's cheaper than buying a second car and it's tory function. less harmful to the environment than driving" For many Particulate matter (PM) with an aerodynamic diameter of less policy-mal:ers, shifting c,ommuters from cars to birydes than 2.5 micrometres (PMZ 5) appears to be especially dangerous. seems like the perfect way to lower congestion; keep the air clean London currently faces legal action from the European Court of and improve public health. R DQular exercise has been shown time Justice for its unacceptable PM�o levels, while newspaper headlines and again to help prevent heart attacks; ward off strokes and to ` have suggested that cyclists who commute face greater risks than counteract obesity. people in cus. Yet recent reports have raised snspicions about the daugers of Regazdless of the background level of air pollution, are cyclists > ,, cycling to work; particularly at rush"-hour. Re"searchhas qnestioned rnoLe eacposed to particles than commuters using other forms of ,' the health unplications of vaziws air panc�les: Lnking them to asth- transport7 �Probably not; conduded a slew of studies published be- _ '" ma, heazt attacks, lung cancer and more -So, svhak.is sci�rn�sts' latest . fore 2010.'-in 2001, Adams et al found the exposure to air pollution thinking? And what is the biggest threat"to cycling commuters? to be the lowes"t in ;tyclists, the same year, Rank et al measured Newspaper headlines ofren talk about air pollution in a generic higher total dust concentYafions in cars than birycles, and in 2007, sense. On a scientific level, it is more complex. Several different Kauer et al fourid that people.in buses and cars were exposed to particles have been studied = fine particles, coazse pazticles, sul- more particulates than walkeis or'ryclists. In 2009, Boogaard et al phur oxide related partides and more — and at the moment there reported slightly higher particle number counts likely to affect is no consensus on exacdy how or why t"ey are dangerous. Most drivers and their passengers than""ry' dists.;Overall (and unsurpris- effects noted so far are cardiopulmonary (lung cancer, heart at- ingly), wallcers and cyclists were exposed to riiore parficulate mat- -- The latest mediwl research suggests that, while inaeazmg � transportation cyding leyeis can"reduce air pollution, rydists � a would he safest ff routed away froin motorised traffic. The `' imphcations;for,cyde lane best-practice could be startling" } ✓ i - i � � , , ,. , � �. ;� ,; � :� . -'-- . , � � . . �� -------e.Q---=��;� • � �.-. _. , � .. ,..:_ _ � . .. �:Y:� r= F : ;. r%�;; � ' N fff ii ii �� u i �� k t �� - ,� �, r i f . . �� ' �. ;..� � � �_ � � � �. �. � j4� �� :..� ��' ...,..:�'k:.: -. . �� s �#� � _ ,, '".""� �.,. —Q 3o- �; � -y - £ s - . ? z��' ^ j k;�1 J R1�� ;� r.: � ^� � ' °. � � ,,��,��. �� —" � I � a z �� ii "� i , � � ; . v--� ,�'�i, �� I�� j 43 .� . � _ � � � � � : ,� , � �''�' � A 4 : ` : � �. i a ; i �- �r a � � r _, �� ,�� - � li 9 �i ;; ,'3�. '� e i � ��I � �� ww` ��.d.��`�.,.�tl� . - r_ '� �� .�'r�I -'—�-�..� . .,�. � ��,- ,�� . -' : �m.c�� t : . s .: ..y.;_ .sr��..- ,:."�cS:: . � �4 � : 1 ' ��'�� ` ��,i � �� . . ��,�.....�:ffi��...._. _. ter on high-traff�c routes chan low-traffic routes. As ever, each of these studies had its own limitations. For example, many failed to account for the variations in the background level of air pollution. n 2010, researchers in the Netherlands published a systematic, large-scale study that compared exposure levels between differ- ent modes of transport at the same time. 'Ihey measured parti- de �umber counts (PNCs), PMzS, PM�o and levels of soot. The study [ook place in Arnhem on weekdays between 0800 and 1000 for each of the following: diesel and electric buses, gasoline and diesel cars and two bicycle routes with different traffic densities. The team also checked background levels of air pollution. The researchers found that "levels of all measured pollutants were significantly higher for all modes of transport compared with urban background ]evels". They measured higher PNC exposures for cyclists on high-traffic routes than for bus passengers on the same coads. However, cyclists on quieter roads had less exposure than those in carbon-fuel buses or in cars, although people on elec- tric buses had least exposure. Yet when it came to the inhaled dose of air pollution, they made some interesting calculations. Cyclists breathe harder and faster than people sitting still, they argued. Therefore, even if the air pol- lution is the same, cydists will inhale more particles as they inhale more air in any given minute. However, they also admitted that journey time had not been factored into the study. Cyclists and buses might travel faster than cars during rush hour, they pointed out, which would lead to a lower overall inhaled dose for cyclists. The researchers concluded their work with the following com- ments: "Cyclists should be encouraged to choose low-traffic routes by making them aware of the potential health benefits" and "city planners should create bicyde lanes with less (preferably no) contact with motorised traffic" It is a view that will, perhaps, upset many in the cyding community who would prefer to see traffic calming in ci�}- czntres instead. Yet in practical terms it is what cyclists ofren already do if they can. Anthony Ricketts, a 31-yeaz-old from Bristol, southwest Eng- land, has always cyded to work He believes that it saves him mon- ey and keeps him fit. "Where possible, I've chosen the safest, quick- est and quietest route to work," he comments. "I would say my exposure to [air] pollution was low" He does, however, have other opinions on the subject, particu- lazly where the UK is concerned. °Cycling should be encouraged;' he says. °It needs heavy investment to improve infrastructure and facilities° As it is becoming cieaz that the UK is heading for an obesity crisis, Ricketts says that any investment in cyding should be made with the health of the country's population in mind. Yet what if traffic, instead of being calmed, was moved on to bicycles instead? The School of Population Health at the University of Auckland ad- dressed that question. Researchers con- ducted a study in New Zealand, a country where bicydes are "seldom used for utili- ty purposes such as commuting° Overall, they reported that "around 1.9% of New Zealanders cycled to work in 2006, about a third of the ]evel seen 20 years ago" They used a combination of surveys, ve- hicle emission and greenhouse gas calcu- lations, the HAPiNZ air pollution study and the WHO HEAT (Health Economic Assessment Tool) for cycling to reach HEALTH AND SAFETY their condusions. Ihe question they asked was this: what would happen if short trips (of less than 7km) were undertaken by bicycle rather than motor car? The results were staggering. As published in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, the paper showed that shift- ing just 5% of vehide kilometres in urban settings in New Zealand to cycling would "reduce vehicle travel by appro�cimately 223m km each year, save about 22m litres of fuel and reduce transport-relat- ed greenhouse emissions by 0.4%". This would ciearly help reduce air pollution overall. But how would it affect the health of cyclists and the local population? The research condudes: "The health effects would include about 116 deaths avoided annually as a result of increased physical activity, six fewer deaths due to local air pollution from vehide emissions and an additional five cydist fatalities from road crashes. "In economic terms, the health effects of a 5% shifr represent net savings of about $200m per year:' Given those figures, it is not sur- prising that the authors finish their report with these words: "Trans- port policies that encourage bicycle use will help to reduce air pollu- tion and greenhouse emissions and improve public health° The limitations of this study must be considered in context too. The authors mention that they might have "overestimated cycling injuries and deaths," pointing to the findings that "cycling levels in Greater London increased by almost 110% from 2000 to 2008, yet the absolute number of cycle casualties was essentially unchanged over this period': 'Ihey also point out that Maori and Pacific cul- tures tend to have disproportionate health gains from regular cy- cling. On the other hand, the HAPiNZ model specifically exduded children. They reasonably supposed that any improvements in air quality would improve child health as well, thereby adding to the benefits of a switch. ew Zealand isn't the only place asking these questions. In the northern hemisphere, scientists at the University of Utrecht also asked: "Do the health benefits of cycling out- weigh the risks?" The answer was an overwhelming yes. The re- searchers used statistical models to caiculate what would happen if 500,000 people switched from using a car to using a bicycle for short trips on a daily basis. On an individual level, it seems Lhat the health gains were sub- stantially larger than the risks for both traffic accidents and pollu- tion-related disease. On a population levei, the gains were even greater as air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions fell and the traffic accident burden decreased. What should policy-makers and those in both the planning and transport departments in urban areas conclude from current med- ical research? De Hartog and his colleagues at the Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences in Utrecht have some sug- gestions. In Environmental Health Perspec- tives journal they write that "policies stim- ulating cycling [probablyJ have net beneficial effects on public hea]th" They suggest building cycling lanes away from major roads to limit cyclists' exposure to air pollution and even suggest banning car traffic during peak school times. Jesus Pascual, the Seville bike com- � muter, doesn't plan to change his behav- � iour. If anything, he says, "these research findings should encourage more people � to cycle to work" ■ � cycling mobility 02/2011 63 � � `f _ _ - i I � � _ I � ' � INTERVIEW � �� • � ' • � • • • • • � • • � • ' • � e _ -- a o �ere i , , _ � . or . _ , a� ,� ._ __ . _ �__y:: : . , : _. _ ,, : :;,� Z � �� Roger Geller, bicycie coordinator for the city of Portland, disc�ss�s tyciing: infrastruct�ire, � `� the economic arguments for planning for utility cyclists ancl how �n eady love of _ cross-country biking has led him to the USA's pioneenng cycle�ity �� _ By Ross Ringham .,r _.. �` „ _ �� _ ,�... - ; �; � � �� -- : �''� � � � Y. : -. � i'� : l�:I/l• :J: � �.� 9 jj � �'+' t, . efi> _:. ��/ �! ♦� �•�p Q � �� - ,� .�.� � 0� ! � � .• . �� ,.'_x,�� rY ,.�4 .. �y :�� '" � .. --" -- - � .� - R_� �m��:j� ,�r . �.J� �� .��x�.�' � !� I�%J//'a.A/J//I!/// �� ; zi �: - . .- � � ... ___:- �� "•-�..,. ��tl.•ii_`i,�.Jaresl!�� Ysnec�c ,=.�;9. " ►"E - • 9• . . �-_ ' .... � � - J� �. . ,. . 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' ' - .: � _ :.. .. . . . _' . t �:..� � _ . - - 76 cycling mobility 02/2011 - � - - INTERVIEW _ _- ; `; . :: : ; . . � _ - _.. ,., ; - _ � � _. _ .. .._ . .. _. ,_-_ � _ . . ., .. . . . ..,_ . - ---- ..... _ .. _ .� . . , . _ , > ..0 r _-. __,.. .., . _ .:. , . , :: twas - tkii's i ---tfie i ,:'.�:'new; #:. -�'� _I, Nai�onal E the satrie z � � : counhes . � _ `}�� y . r - t �. ' l � _ � : : `��f� � �• i ` ! \° . , . � ` r �t .;,�,�t' ` � J—:3' �.z , : ; � ��j��. � �,�� _ ,� � � � +, �-- � i _ r � � 1 _ 1k:.�� `,%' -: . . �� ' _ } . '_— _.'. . _ _ _ . _.__ . .�-.•.�.;: .: _= ' ' ':..�_ .�::. . . . = - � s� = f�''', ' �N ¢ � �u ,�.��. �� 44� . �=tll,.;.�.� -.; . �'�'� n4 , x _r�'��/ -- , . - �� ;' . _ �'-�w: �'�+�,. : _ .... ; _ � ;. ,., _ �; . . 1�' � _ .. ..�� _. . Fi�� - C\ Alongside otherwell-Imowe : � . - n�mes, wch as Mia Brtk, Ro6�'=; ::. BurchfieldandEad � Blumenlwuer,Geller'sefior[s� : topush cycling infrastNctiire. . in Portland have resutted ietlie . t: citybeingmentionedmffie ;: . .. sameawedtonesinUScycle ; � planning ciriles as Amsterdam . . andfopenhagen � t 'i� t� .'� � . � � � " Y i �'.�;n�.:s°�"r� r'. � - f - ryclingmobdii�r�2/�D7'I 17 � - _ ., , _ . _ .. �..s, INTERVIEW Roger Geller, bicycle coordinator for Portland, Oregon, USA the area boasts more micro-breweries and more strip clubs per head than anywhere else in the country. Together, the two attract many out-of-towners. The city's cycling en- deavours have had strong political backing � _ and high-profile support. It counts both Mia Birk (noW principal at planning organisation Alta Planning) and Eazl Blumenauer, a US member of congress, among its bicycle pro- ponents. Geller is the person charged with continuing the pioneering work in transforming an American city - the first and last bastion of the inalienable right to drive a car one block to the drive-thru restaurant - into a European-like bicycle-friendly town. His ap- proach to cyding began with sports, moved through economics and is now embracing the challenge of getting people to use bikes as daily transport. Geller arrives at the cafe by bike, despite the blustery drizzle. Tall, slim and beazded, striding in through the steamed-up glass doors in a tan trench-coat, he looks like Christopher Lee and sounds like Nicho]as Cage: no Lycra or spandex here, no fluores- cent cycle helmet. This relaxed look is a key accomplishment of Geller's work. He is responsible for ensuring that cyding is recognised as a mode of transport in the city. While he has solid foundations and political support to build on, changing hearts and minds> and altering the behaviour patterns of residents, is proving as challenging in Port- land as it is in other cities around the world. "For cycling to have broad appeal, you have to do something different than expect cyclists to behave in a vehicular manner" Gel- ler explains. "I used to ride to work on a racing bike with my clothes in my backpack because I wanted to go fast, because I needed to go fast. No-one likes to be at the head of a slow-moving parade. It's a lot of pressure being in front of a load of cars. "Once I started riding on a commute route, however, I could wear normal clothing, I could ride an upright urban bike. It's all so much more comfortable." o let's get one big question out of the way: cycling infra- structure - does its inclusion or exclusion make any differ- ' ence to increasing the number of utIlity cyclists? "There is a very strong correlation between implementing a bike-lane network and increasing the number of riders;' Geller an- swers. "Our whole approach to bicyding is based on the four types of cyclists and this dictates how we develop facilities, not just in Portland, but nationally." 18 cycling mobility 02/2011 Geller's main target is the group he calls "the interested but concerned". He says: "the `strong and fearless' are the vehicular cyclists, the 1% of the population willing to ride in a busy street in the absence of any separation from traffic. It's a very small group. Then we have the `enthused.and the confident; which makes up perhaps 10 or 15% of the population. This group won't ride in traffic in the absence of a bike lane, but give them a 5ft bike lane and they'll ride ° Geller points to this group as having put Portland on the map as a cyding city. "The most recent data shows that cycling accounts for about 6% modal share in the city; Geller says. "It varies by area. In some parts of town, it's as high as 25%. "The profile of the change of transit [pubic transport] users over time has remained pretty flat, whereas bicycle use is skyrocketing. Our charge is to figure out how to maintain that and how to bring that to all parts of the country." To do so, Geller recognises that isn't just infrastructuce that is needed. However, he says: "'Ihe infrastructure underpins every- thing. The experience that people have has got to be a good one. You can put in all the bike-share programmes and education and promotion that you want, but if people dont have a good experi- ence, they won t do it again." = his goes a long way to explain Portland's approach to build, build, build. "Since 1994, we've been building a network° Geller explains. "We've got the most comprehensive cycling network of any North American city. If you are a moderately skilled cyclist who is somewhat traffic tolerant, you can preriy easily ride a bike anywhere in Portland." But he says: "We recognise that's not enough. There's this large, third group which represents maybe half of the population, the group that we call-the `interested but concerned' That's the group we're aiming for. That's the average person" The average person needs a different type of infrastructure, Gel- ler argues. "Think about the Dutch principles for bikeway design: safety, comfort, attractiveness, the network must be direct and have high connectivity. And there's an interesting distinction between safety and com- fort. Let's say you ie a vehicular cyclist, riding on a busy street car- rying 30,000 cars a day moving at 30mph. Where do you ride? You take the middle of the lane. You are safe. No-one will run over you. The chances of getting hit from behind in a situation like that are almost zero. You're safe - but you're not comfortable. Most people are not going to do that. Our challenge is to create conditions that up he calls ; says: `the lar cydists, o ride in a sepazation �, Then we �erhaps 10 �ffic in the �nd they'll the map as g accounts ies by area. users over Rocketing. nv to bring ure that is �ins every- good one. cafion and od experi- h to build, network° ve cycling ely skilled �sily ride a this ]arge, ation, the the group ture, Gel- ay design: land have and com- street car- ride? You over you. ;e that are �st people tions that � �� INTERVIEW • _ l, mean you are as comfortable riding a bike as you are when driving for the bicyde programme and then moving to his current post a car, where you don't worry about traffic ° in 2000. Geiler comes back to infrastructure: "What we determined is "I've always been a cyclist; he explains. "I was at college at a that the standard Sft bike ]ane doesn't provide that for the average time when cross-country bike touring was becoming very fashion- person. We're looking more at cycle tracks, at buffered bike lanes, able. It was a big fad in the late 1970s and early 1980s, before moun- at improving conditions at intersections with bike boxes, using tain biking. Everyone was doing it. People were doing cross-coun- signals for bike-only movement at complex intersections. We try races from LA to New York and back again.'Ihere was something want to make it supremely comfortable for people. We want to about those tremendous endurance races that I really liked. For a make the interaction with motor vehicles feel as comfortable and long time, it was a big part of my identity. I d ride all the time ° be as simple as possible" Geller, who is 52 and has two children, He spent the early part of his cazeer working in environmental has worked for the city since 1994, first as a project manager fields, afrer gaining a BSc in chemistry and an MA in urban envi- cycling mobility 02/2011 79 INTERVIEW Roger Geller, bicycle coordinator for Portland, Oregon, USA Roger Geller (right) is adamant that for more people to Wke up utiliry rycfing, the experience murt be'suprememly comfortable' Comfort is very different from safery, which is a major considerotion when catering for the average person, he says ronmental policy. Geller then landed a job working for TELLUS, a consultancy in Boston that undertook economic analysis of electri- cal power and demand. "This was a time when nuclear power was gaining interest in the East" explains Geller. "The company's economic analysis showed that if you reduced demand, you wouldn't have to worry about the supply. Before you develop a nuclear power station, you had to look at the demand profile. They wrote a lot of successful plans for jurisdictions for power companies which demonstrated that you can reduce demand through energy efficiency and through insula- tion; you could reduce demand to a point where you don't need additional power generation" Later, Geller began looking at rerycling waste systems, to dem- onstrate how jurisdictions could save money. He says: °There were garbage barges searching the globe for plaees to dump. It was get- ting very expensive to get rid of such garbage. We modelled sys- tems that showed that, by implementing rerycling programmes with a mixture of different treatment options, jurisdictions could dramatically reduce the amount of money they were spending on solid waste° While this work experience might not have directly informed Geller's later standpoin[s on cycling infrastructure, it did give him an eariy insight into pushing for reform. He says: "IYs always the economics that drive matters, at both the governmental and the personal level. There is only ever going to be a small subset of peo- ple who are going to recycle because it's the right thing to do. Port- land says if you put out this much gazbage, it will cost you this much per month. Md recyding is free. The city gives everyone the tools they need to retycle and tries to make it as simple as possible." o how does the money stack up for cycling infrastructure? According to Geller, the city's entire cycle network has cost far less than $60m (€42m) to build: "If our entire bike lane network disappeared overnight, if we had to replace everything, what would it cost us? $60m is not even what we've spent. It's tak- 20 cycling mobility 02/2011 Drawn to ryding from an early age, leisure cyding played a large part in shaping Geller's identity and life views. His mission now is to inaease the number of bicycle users on Portland's streeu, rather than lycra-clad, racing-bike "(ydists" ing a look at the replacement cost of everything. 'Ihat induded not only what we spent to build the bike lane network, but at things that were in place long before we got here. Things such as traffic signals, bridges across the freeway that were built as pedestrian and bike bridges: these were in place and we took advantage of them. We didn't build them. The state built them many yeazs ago. "Then we take a look at data as to what it cost to buIld a four- lane urban freeway. The range is $20m to $80m [E14m to E56mJ. So we're right in that range. So we said, for a mIle of urban freeway, we built an entire bicycle system that's recognised as the best in North America" Other comparisons are equally as telling: "In a 15-year period, £rom 1995 to 2010, the entire Portland metropolitan region, not just the city, spent $153m [E107m] on active trans�lortation - and no more than half of that was for bikes; pedestrian stuff is always more expensive. We spent $2.lbn [E1.5m] on transit. We spent $4.2bn [E2.9m] on roadway and freight improvements° For Geller, the results speak for themselves: "Between 1990 and 2008, we've seen an increase of 14,900 in the number of daily bicy- cle commuters. So there were 14,900 new bicyde commuters in 2008 who weren't there in 1990. That represents a 600% increase. We've seen 13,200 new transit users in the same period. And we've seen 37,000 new motorists" Infrastructure isn't just about bike lanes, and economic motiva- tion isn't just from the government. "We have bicycle corrals, where previously you could park one or two cars and now you can fit ten to 20 bikes;' says Geller. "We have 65 locations - businesses and associations - which have these, and another 68 which have re- quested them. We're installing four a month, which is all because business-owners want them. It tells the whole story." That whole story includes business-owners recognising that a lot of customers are coming in by bike and, as a result, they need to attract these customers by being bicyde friendiy. Businesses are recognising that, as Geller puts it, "cyclists are not this scruffy lot who aze unemployed and who ride a bike because they can't afford Infrastructure isn't just about bike lanes and bike boxes. For Portland, involving businesses has been critical ro the success of the ryding programme. S[udies have shown that there's a sound economic wse for enabling utility ryding - to the tune of SSOOm (E560m) a year to drive cars - but not only do they have money in their pockets, often they have more money in their pockets than their friends who drive° Geller recounts a study by Joe Cortright that found metro- politan Portland residents drive four miles a day less than the na- tional average. "Because of that, we spend $1.2bn [€0.8bn] less per yeaz on transport than we otherwise would Of that sum, $800m (E560mJwhich would oth- erwise have left the region circulates in the local economy" "' In the end, Geller notes: "It comes down ••� � to money. We're going to have a million '� � more people coming into the metropolitan ��' area in the next 20 years. We cannot build a • �'�� '� system which will accommodate them all. "We've seen 12% more trips on four of our downtown bridges from 1990 to 2008. All of those trips have been by bicycle. The number of cars has remained flat. Those bridges are working for cars the same today as they were 20 years ago. "Because the increased demand for mobility is being met by bicyde rather than cars, we don't have the conges- tion. We dont have to make the capital expenditure to widen the bridges or change the intersections. That's why our city traffic engi- neers and our politicians are recognising that we really can provide for increased mobility with the bicycle ° Geller is frank in his appraisal of Portland's cyding infrastrudure. "We have not built, by world standards, a good system," he sayz. "Merely an OK system with limited appeal." Planners across the rest of the US gulp as they reriew their own fadlities in compa�son... ! hat's next for Portland? "We're going to keep building;' �� `�; : Geller dedares. "We're building bicycle boulevards called Neighbourhood Greenways, which are ]ow-traf- fic and traffic-calmed streets. We improve them to work well as b�ke`"aYs• We improve intersections, install traffic calming, divert traffic from some streets, turn all stop signs so that cyclists do not have to keep stopping. 'Ihey work really well in grid patterns. Chil- dren can ride on them and this has attracted the `interested but concerned' demographic. "We're creating a dense grid of these boulevards and we aim to have one within a half-mile of 80% of Portlanders within the next few yeazs. Bike lanes will remain the dominant element, but the boulevards will reach further into the neighbourhoods and will have more mass appeai:' Bike sharing is something that the city has been considering for a while. "We're getting close, but it's a cost consideration;' Geller re- � �•� veals. He confirms that there is a lot of inter- � � �� est in a joint venture between public and •� � private sectors, which would see the city •� provide capital and the private sector pay for the operational costs. "We're trying to figure how to come up with the capital funding;' Geller says. � Overall> Geller is convinced of the need to continuously improve whatever faciGties a city has. "The thing that the city of Pordand provides is an example of what you can achieve. We're now fairly advanced. We have added more daily bicyde rides in the last 20 years than we've added daily transit riders. We need to keep on with what we've been doing: engineering, construction, education, encouragement and widening corridors" For a nation that is often the butt of jokes for its brash lack of modesty and "Uncle Sam knows best° approach, Geller and Port- land remain humble about the city's cycling achievements, notable though they are in the land of the stars and stripes, and the city has played a key role in contributing to the new NACTO best-practice urban design guidelines. `Our systems, experien�e and data shows what you get when you invest in the bicycle. To date, our investment in bicycling has still been meagre. We have not built, by world standards, a good system, merely an OK system with limited appeal. We can build it much better° ■