At Bike Expo, City Promotes More Cycling And Local Shopping

Last weekend's New England Bicycle Expo at the Armory included several presentations about initiatives to increase the number of cyclists and safe cycling conditions in the city. Nicole Rioles, the coordinator of the city's health initiative, Shape Up Somerville, told attendees about one grassroots organization's efforts to introduce people to cycling, help them monitor their travel and encourage them to use their bikes to shop locally. 

The Green Streets Initiative runs Walk/Ride Day on the last Friday of the month, inviting people to leave their cars at home and walk, cycle, skate or take public transportation to work or school. 

Rioles said that participants will soon be able to use the organization's website to track how far they've traveled and the approximate number of calories they've expended. She said that the widget in slated to launch in about three months when the website gets an overhaul.  

Green Streets also intends to expand Walk/Ride Day to six surrounding communities and aims to get at least 10 percent of the population involved, Rioles said, noting that participation in Walk/Ride Day has already grown. She said that a group of Tufts environmental planning students found that 15 percent more people joined the initiative in April, and that participation was high among public and private school students. 

"This is a piece of evidence that shows this works," Rioles said. 

Reasons to Participate in Walk/Ride Day 

Not being stuck inside a car and in traffic could have not only environmental and physical health benefits, but also mental health ones, Rioles asserted. 

"We see this as a way to add happiness to people's lives," she said. 

Walk/Ride Day participants get discounts at some local businesses, but Rioles said getting people on bikes could also have long-term benefits for the local economy. 

"If you're living a local lifestyle," Rioles said, "You're going to give your business to local stores in the community." 

Rioles encouraged the audience to buy small amounts of groceries and other goods from local businesses instead of shopping at a big box store once a month.