Is San Diego’s Bicycle Master Plan in Trouble?

The San Diego Bicycle Master Plan is one way the city hopes to get more people to consider biking as their main mode of transportation while also expanding access to the city’s extensive biking network. But the plan will cost $312 million by city estimates, and some are speaking out against spending that money to make biking more accessible. Why?

According to census data, the most popular mode of commuting to work is driving alone, at 75 percent. Biking is the least popular, at 0.9 percent. Three times more people walk to their jobs than bike. Does this merit taking another look at spending and instead putting that money somewhere else? Or are there ways to ensure we get more bang for our buck with the Bicycle Master Plan?

Suggestions to Fix the Plan

One suggestion would be to identify factors that predispose commuters to bike, such as physical stamina and short home-to-work distance, and to target marketing campaigns for cycling toward them. Another target could be employers who have on-site shower facilities and storage lockers, since many workers are expected to show up to work clean and in professional or semi-professional clothing.

Some citizens believe that bike lanes are already vastly underutilized and have mounted their own campaign to collect field data and study bike lane usage.

What do you think? What would it take to motivate you to bike to work instead of taking your car or public transportation?