While so far only a "white-collar movement," the growing trend of biking to work is leading many cities to provide new amenities to bike commuters, and the federal government to propose employer tax breaks for each employee cycling to work.
"A growing number of cities are making it easier to ride your bike to work -- erasing hurdles big and small, from securing bikes safely downtown, to taking bikes on public transit, to finding a discreet place to shower." Bike stations -- public facilities complete with lockers, showers and repair shops -- are being built in downtowns from California to Washington, D.C. To manage bicycle-related efforts, cities including Chicago, Louisville, Portland, Oregon, are creating biking-policy departments to coordinate bike stations and the building of new bike lanes. A survey of U.S. cities conducted in 2004 found that more than 80 percent of municipalities planned to build new bikeways.
"Nationally, a bill introduced in the Senate last month would give employers a tax incentive to offer employees $40 to $100 a month to cycle to work, and a similar bill is pending in the House."
[Editor's note: Although this article is only available to WSJ subscribers, it is available to Planetizen readers for free through the link below for a period of seven days.]
FULL STORY: The Cycling Commute Gets Chic
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