There are many Nashvillians working diligently to make our city more bike friendly, and a city that we all should model in this quest is Portland, OR. Portland is already home to numerous bike shops (over 50 are listed on bikeportland.org) and other bike-related businesses, including some of the most respected names in frame building.

The culture of cycling in Portland has taken a lot of effort, and money. The city already boasts well designed bike lanes throughout town, and the city funds a program to get commuter bikes into the hands of underprivileged riders. The city was recently named the second most bike friendly city in the world. And now, Portland has announced a new bike initiative that will cost $613 million dollars. It is an exciting proposal that will propel this already innovative city into a new stratosphere of bike love! There is also talk of L.A. adopting a large bicycle initiative, which would include a bicycle freeway.

I recommend reading the article linked above, as well as a recent article on how to create bike friendly cities. Nashville has huge potential to become a bike friendly city, so educate yourself and get behind our city!