More News

En ‘Mass’

Local cyclists band together to ask for their share of the road

Thursday, Oct. 6, 2005

Click here to enlarge this photo Christopher Anderson⁄The Gazette University of Maryland student Sam Goering (left) gets ready to join a Critical Mass bike ride through College Park. Areacyclists ride in a large pack through the streets of town, partly in an effort to remind motorists to share the road. Click here to enlarge this photo Cyclist Dan Hall signals a left turnin traffic on Route 1 in College Parkduring a recent Critical Mass ride.Signaling repeatedly for access to theleft turn lane, most motorists ignoredhis gestures, forcing the group to wait until traffic had passed.

‘‘I sometimes feel like the price of gas should be higher. I think people need to start to move away from using fossil fuels,” he said. ‘‘Gas-powered vehicles are environmentally destructive, and our nation’s dependence on foreign oil is also a negative aspect of fossil fuels.”

Hall doesn’t own a car, and never really has. He’s been commuting by bicycle since he arrived in College Park a few years ago to attend the University of Maryland for his double major in history and secondary education.

Aside from having his studies to keep him occupied, Hall is involved with a group of people who get together to ride bikes in and around College Park called Critical Mass.

‘‘Critical Mass isn’t an organization so much as the name of the bike ride,” Hall said.

It’s semi-organized, so there aren’t any set-in-stone plans every month, but Hall is open to suggestions regarding good times to ride.

‘‘It’s difficult to plan one on certain days at certain times,” he said. ‘‘People are busy with work and school and other stuff.”

Still, participants somehow find the time to ride with Critical Mass, and many have their own reasons for doing so.

‘‘Some demand safe space on the streets to ride to work, others do it in protest of ‘car culture,’” he said. ‘‘Some are reclaiming space or simply having a fun bike ride at a relaxing pace with a supportive community.”

Hall mentioned that although it may be wishful, he would like to think that when people see a Critical Mass in action—when they are accustomed to seeing only automobile traffic—it would stir something inside them.

‘‘It might make them think about alternatives to driving everywhere,” Hall said. ‘‘With the rising cost of gas, hopefully people are taking note of alternate means of transportation.”

Share and share alike

Aside from a few angry drivers, most people accept the group and give them the space they deserve on the road.

‘‘We don’t seem to get too many people upset when there is a big group of us,” Hall said. ‘‘Although some riders have been yelled at.”

According to some Web sites, the first Critical Mass ride was held in San Francisco in 1992. The concept spread, and Critical Mass events began popping up in other cities.

Andrea Calderon, 20, of College Park is an anthropology and biology double major and has attended the University of Maryland for three years. She has been part of the College Park Critical Mass almost since its inception about a year ago.

‘‘I’m really proud of it for getting as far as it has,” she said.

Both Hall and Calderon were quick to point out that the definition of ‘‘critical mass” is ‘‘a point or situation at which change occurs” or ‘‘the size or amount of something that is required before an activity or event can take place.”

‘‘This hits at the heart of our rallies,” Calderon said, explaining that it is never too late to encourage change. ‘‘I think that now is a good time for us to come together for discussion, whatever point of view we may have, and I think the biking community is a good place to do so.”

But before social change, there must be social disgust.

Justin Ross, 26, an employee of Proteus Bicycles in College Park, said he hears many people complaining about the recent hike in gas prices, but it hasn’t been enough of an increase to persuade more people to ride bikes.

‘‘I wish I could say that the shop had seen more bike sales and more business coming in,” he said. ‘‘But we haven’t.”

He compared the United States with Europe, saying Europeans have to pay more for gasoline and, in turn, ‘‘there are more bicycle commuters over there.” Maybe if gasoline prices climb higher, more people would ride bikes, he said with a hint of hope.

‘‘Everybody is affected by the cost of gas,” he said. ‘‘It’s going to take more than the spike in prices to change minds.”

Changing gears

Changing minds may be difficult, but nurturing reconsideration can be slightly easier.

One group making headway when it comes to encouraging people to commute by bicycle is the College Park Area Bicycle Coalition.

The group has been around since 1988 and has proved to be a valuable resource for many—from the mountain biker to the avid commuter cyclist. Touted as an ‘‘educational and bicycle advocacy organization,” the CPABC has set goals to educate and inform people about bicycling. One of the goals is to make College Park and the surrounding areas more bike and pedestrian friendly.

This doesn’t translate into the group biking softly and carrying a big stick. The CPABC is committed to creating ripples with county and state politicians to ensure that bike paths and equality considerations are included in the plans when a road or new construction are discussed.

‘‘We are more a grassroots type of a group,” Kelly said, explaining that he and CPABC have actively voiced the need for more bike lanes and better roads. ‘‘A bike is a vehicle in all 50 states.”

The group is working on a color-coded map so people can find a way to get nearly anywhere by bicycle.

Although Larry Bleau, 51, of College Park is the CPABC treasurer, he was first and foremost a member, and has been for almost 13 years.

He gives Kelly and others input during and between meetings. He has also been involved in focus groups regarding new roads and improvements on older roads.

‘‘When I was asked if U.S. 1 should have bicycle lanes,” he said, ‘‘I gave my opinion.”

Bleau said that as someone who has ridden on Route 1, ‘‘it definitely needs better bicycle access.”

And Bleau knows what it means to be an everyday avid cyclist. He rides his bicycle ‘‘almost all of the time.” When it is dry out, he rides. And sometimes when it isn’t so dry, he puts on the rain gear and rides anyway, although he mentioned that he has to look a bit harder to locate a place to lock his bike that has shelter from the rain.

‘‘Before I got married, if I wanted groceries, I biked to Shoppers and made sure I had panniers large enough to carry back what I needed,” he said. ‘‘I would plan my trips ahead of time and make the most out of every trip I made.”

Bleau looks at transportation differently than those who drive cars everywhere.

‘‘What this does is eliminate a lot of extra trips, something those who study transportation call ‘trip consolidation,’” he said. ‘‘I noticed users of cars tend to practice this less often.”

Whatever the reason why people bike, there seems to be a central idea—that they may not be the majority on the road, but they still want drivers to acknowledge their presence and to be courteous. In turn, most cyclists will follow the rules of the road and give drivers the same respect.

But don’t forget to enjoy the ride.

‘‘Not only is Critical Mass a fun bike ride,” Hall said, ‘‘it’s able to shake up someone’s commute.”

He admits that although participating in Critical Mass isn’t likely to shift people’s views of suburban sprawl or change their minds about car culture, he still enjoys the fruits of his labor. Especially when, he said, people see the group and possibly think twice about the impact their cars may have on the environment.

Or not.

‘‘But at the very least we’ve made someone’s commute a little more interesting,” Hall said. ‘‘Even if it is at the cost of velocity.”

For more information

Critical Mass main site:

http:⁄⁄critical-mass.info

College Park CriticalMass site:

http:⁄⁄umcp.org⁄index.php⁄CriticalMass

College Park Area BicycleAssociation site:

www.cpabc.org⁄home.htm

Proteus Bicycles site:

www.proteusbicycles.com

E-mail Sara Schwartz at sschwartz@gazette.net.