Spotted in DC: Rent-A-Bike

I'm always delighted to encounter things that encourage bicycling in cities, so I had to take a couple of shots of this lovely row of old school bicycles for rent in front of the National Portrait Gallery/American Art Museum.

A quick review of the Smart Bike DC website paints an interesting picture. The self service bike rental program, which has been successful in Europe, is a product of a partnership between Clear Channel Outdoor and the DC Department of Transportation. Clear Channel is the much reviled media giant that has put a stranglehold on American radio, and their Outdoor division controls a great deal of the nightmarish public advertising we have to wade through daily. Happily, there's no advertising on the bikes or the station right now, though who knows how long that will last.

Anyone in the DC area know the story behind the partnership?

And do you think is it better to have bikes with potential ads, or no bikes at all?

Spotted in Seattle: Best Bus Stop Ever!

Despite complaints from the locals about sub par public transportation in the city, I must admit that Seattle has some of the nicest (ad free!) bus shelters I've ever encountered! Most had a lovely wave pattern on the glass, and some featured what looked like children's art on the bottoms halves, but in the Ballard area they had the deluxe package...






Think your bus stops are better? Send me a picture and I'll post it on the site.

News Roundup

A bunch of recent-ish stories I've been meaning to post for a while...

Ode Magazine:

The ins and outs of Eco-Tourism

An overview of the friendlier, funnier "New Activism"

Earth-Friendly Fast-Food?

Christian Science Monitor:

Using bikes instead of trucks for transport.

Why organic farming is good for Africa

"Just how 'green' is that shirt?"

Spotted in NYC: Bike Parking

I ran into this amazing bike parking/shelter/safety campaign thing last time I was in NYC and I seriously wondered if I had walked into an alternate universe (or at least a movie set). While it could certainly use more posts to chain bikes too, it's definitely a major (visible) step in the right direction.
You can find out more about the ad campaign shown on it HERE.

Hop on the Green Train

It seems Amtrak has jumped on the Green bandwagon with the most recent issue of their Arrive magazine (which is in seat back pockets on their Northeast lines). Titled "Special Green Issue" the cover announces that it was printed on recycled paper (only 10% post-consumer waste and paid for by an advertiser) and contains articles on subjects like "Recyclable Shopping" (flea markets!), "Sustainable Dining" (seafood specifically), "Environmental Investing" (land conservation) and an interview with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The rest of the issue is their standard fare and I assume they'll go back to non-recycled paper next issue. Definitely not the most progressive take on environmentalism, but it's a start. I look forward to the day that "Green Issue"s are the norm and not "special".

If you're interested you can read the entire Arrive Green Issue online here.

Backlog

Sorry for the silence from me (and thanks to Brad for keeping the site rolling), mid-week holidays clearly throw me off. Anyway, I have a backlog of stuff to write about, so here are a few quick links to start:

Despite everything More US Commuters Are Driving Alone.

Corporate Car Fleets and Car Rentals go Green.

San Diego fights Walmart.

Cities are building more bike paths.

Since all of these are from the Christian Science Monitor, I think this a good time to explain the appeal of this paper:

• Despite the name the content is not religious (nor biased towards a religious viewpoint). There is only one article that relates to Christian Science per issue and it is clearly marked in a box at the end of the paper.
• They have a top notch international staff of reporters (rare outside of the big players, most papers rely on Reuters and AP).
• They are extremely balanced in their reporting.
• They do not sensationalize and are one of the few papers that actually goes out of their way not to encourage copycat behavior.
• Their motto is "To injure no man, but to bless all mankind."