May is Bike Month!

May is National Bike Month, promoted by the League of American Bicyclists and celebrated in communities from coast to coast, including here in Shasta County. Established in 1956, National Bike Month is a chance to showcase the many benefits of bicycling — and encourage more folks to giving biking a try.  

In many ways, climate change and modern transportation go hand in hand. The life-changing technological advances and extraction economy from the Industrial Revolution that ushered in new modes of travel are the same technologies and mindset that have contributed to the wide-scale pollution of the planet (CO2, NOX, particulate matter and other pollutants).

California’s transportation sector accounts for about 50 percent of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions, nearly 80 percent of nitrogen oxide pollution, and 90 percent of diesel particulate matter pollution. Motor vehicles are the leading cause of air pollution and carbon emissions in the United States, though other modes of travel, such as planes and cruise ships, create greater emissions per trip per person. 

Transitioning the transportation sector away from the use of carbon-based fuels, incorporating zero and near-zero emission technologies, and promoting clean and healthy mobility is critical to achieving climate change goals, clean air standards and returning to a right relationship with the earth.

Bike Month Activities
 

Dream it

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Dream it 〰️

Lower Your Footprint, Push on the Pedal

For short distances, walking or riding a bike is a great choice for low-to-no carbon emissions. The development of E-Bikes and E-Cargo Bikes and protected bike lanes make using a bike to get to work, do shopping, and have fun easy for people of all ages and abilities to enjoy without burning fossil fuels. Public transportation like buses, subways, and trolleys are almost always better for the planet than driving a car, because the more people traveling together in a vehicle, the smaller the carbon footprint of each person. 

Every gallon of gasoline you don’t buy avoids 22 pounds of CO2 emissions, and every mile you walk burns an average of 100 calories. Avoiding just 10 miles of driving every week would eliminate about 500 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions a year.

 
“Using a bike as your transportation improves air quality, allows people to get exercise, and can improve mood by moving and being outside.”
— Sara Sunquist, Healthy Shasta Coordinator
 

  • Golden State Greenhouse Gas

    California’s transportation sector accounts for about 50 percent of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions

  • 1 Gallon = 22 Lbs

    1 gallon of gasoline = 22 pounds of carbon dioxide

  • Healthy You, Healthy Planet

    Every mile you walk burns an average of 100 calories

  • Annual Impact

    Reducing weekly driving by 10 miles would eliminate ~500 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions a year

Walking and Biking is an easy way to fight climate change!

Celebrating National Bike Month this May is a fun way to start your move to using a bike more often AND lowering your carbon emission footprint. Healthy Shasta and many other local partner organizations have put together a list of fun activities to celebrate clean and healthy mobility all month long for people of all ages and abilities.

You can also encourage your local elected officials to continue to make our communities more bikeable and walkable!

Be sure to check out the work of Shasta Living Streets. They are about to open the new Shasta Bike Depot in downtown Redding and will launch a community-wide equitable E-Bike Share Program in the coming months.

Transitioning to clean, active mobility is getting a whole lot easier!