I Can Bike There!
Ride Illinois has a cool program called, “I Can Bike There.” People ride their bikes places then register the location. It helps folks realize how much they may have been missing by not biking.
The Quad Cities is somewhat unique. Our main MUPs were built to go nowhere. Over time though, various attractions grew up around them. Today, all The Quad Cities main attractions are within two blocks of a paved and segregated MUP. That’s right, you can bicycle just about everywhere and never have to deal with traffic. Now that we have e-bikes, wind, heat, hills and sweat no longer need to be a deterent. It makes me wonder, how many other communities can make such a boast?
The following video is just my ride to work. Many days I leave early and have breakfast or lunch near the 2nd photo. Sometimes, on the way home, I have a craft beer with friends at a brewery by The Botanical Center (friends gather on their patio). Most Fridays we watch fireworks from where I took the picture of the ballpark (great Thai right up the block). Then there are two Farmer’s Markets across the river from each other. Friends, just on this six mile stretch of over 400 miles, I have barely even scratched the surface of all there is to see and do.
Let me reiterate, I did not have to leave a paved, segregated MUP by more than two blocks. No traffic at all! Where can you bike and why are you stuck in traffic?