Blazing New Trails for Milwaukee Bicyclists

In his role as Milwaukee’s first bicycleand pedestrian coordinator, DaveSchlabowske has guided the city to a Bronze-Level Bicycle-FriendlyCommunity designation from the League of American Bicyclists. He is currentlyworking to finalize a new plan for the city that could add up to 125 miles ofnew bike lanes. Most of us have already benefited from his efforts, or soon will,as the weather warms and we get out of our cars and onto our bikes.

Whatdoes it mean for Milwaukeeto have earned a Bronze-Level Bicycle-Friendly Community designation?

This is a nationalprogram in which cities are ranked for bicycle friendliness. The ranking ispartly based on the percentage of people who bike to work, and our percentageis currently a little over 1%. The good news is it has gone up about 370% inthe last 5 years, so it is going up fastfaster than national averages, whichis good from a bicycle-friendly community standpoint. We're continually workingto improve. If we can get our commuter share up to 1.5% to 2%, triple our bikelane miles, and have bike racks available on every bus as we do now, I think wehave a reasonable expectation of getting silver next time we apply for ranking.

Whybike to work? Isn’t it faster to drive?

One of the bigadvantages to bicycling is that you can get closer to your destination. We usedto have a commuter race where we would race bikes against a car. Of coursebikes don't go as fast as a car. However, when you have to park two blocks awayand then walk to your office, as a lot of people in downtown Milwaukee do, thenit becomes faster to bike to work because you get to pull right up in front ofwhere you work.

Whatadvice would you offer to someone who is just starting out commuting to work onhis or her bike?

All you need is a bike.You don’t need Lycra. You don’t need a shower at work. You don’t need anythingbut a bicycle! Try it out on a day when you don’t actually have to go to workso you can check out your route and see how long it takes you. Then, if you tryit, like it and decide to do it on a frequent basis, I think it really helps tohave a bike that is left just for that purpose. Have a basic bike that has alight, fenders, a pump, a lock and a rack. Save your fancy bike for theweekend.

Whereis your favorite place to ride in Milwaukee?

I really enjoy the HankAaron State Trail. I like it as a commuting route because I may see peoplefishing for salmon, or get to wave to Picasso the miniature horse that is oftenwalking on the trail. I may see coyotes or herons. I like that.

“Bike to Work Week” takes place June6-11 in Milwaukee.Visit the Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin’swebsite at www.bfw.org for more information and event listings.