Solving transportation needs through cycling |Thomas Stokell | TEDxAtlanta

Thomas Stokell encourages us to utilize successes in cycling adoption and adaptation to solve transportation needs.

This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at http://ted.com/tedx

We're living in a time

in which we're polluting our world
at an alarming rate,

in which the majority
of people in the West

are not getting enough physical activity,

and in which we're spending a lot of time,
wasting a lot of time and money and energy

stuck in traffic.

Thankfully, we're also living in a time
in which riding a bicycle is awesome.

(Laughter)

It makes you feel good.

You arrive at your destination
feeling energized

and connected with the world around you.

It's good for your health,
it's good for the planet,

and it helps to make
our cities more livable.

So, how can we get more people cycling?

Well, it's a combination
of infrastructure, improving safety,

and changing people's
perceptions and behavior.

And one of the things that I've been doing
over the years is looking at

how we can apply behavior change theory
to getting more people cycling.

And I have just one idea
that I'd like to share with you today.

And that is, that when we're looking
to encourage people

to adopt the behavior of cycling to work,

we need to understand
that this overall behavior

is actually made up
of lots of sub-behaviors and stages

that people go through
from not cycling, to thinking about it,

to trying it out, to getting a bike,
to cycling a little bit, a little bit more

and cycling to work.

And within each of these sub-behaviors
are a number of barriers

that people need to overcome
to get to the next stage.

And so, it is important
that we understand this

when we're trying to encourage
people to take up cycling.

Because if we say to someone
who is down here, as a non-cyclist,

"Hey, you should cycle to work.

It's good for you.

You'll save money;
it's good for the environment,"

it's kind of a big ask.

And we need to keep this in mind
because our energy is much better spent

focusing on the next little step
that we can get people to take.

And one of the strategies
that we have found to be quite effective

in getting non-cyclists to take up cycling

is simply encouraging them
to have some fun

and ride a bike for just 10 minutes.

And what we find
when people do this is they go,

"Hmm, actually, this isn't so bad.

This isn't as hard or as scary
as I thought cycling was.

This is actually quite easy
and quite fun."

And that's a fantastic first little step

that we can get people to take
on this wider journey.

So taking a step back

and looking at the question
of how do we get people cycling,

what about the infrastructure
and improving safety?

Well, thankfully, all the solutions
already exist there out in the world.

If you go to any good cycling conference,
you will find the technical expertise,

the case studies,

the wheels already invented

that we can bring into our cities,
adapt, and roll out,

that will result in more people cycling.

So if the solutions are already there,

why aren't we seeing
their widespread application?

Well, there's a number of reasons,

and one of them is that many people
don't believe it's possible

to get more people cycling in their city.

"Oh, it's too far,
there's too much traffic,

it's too dangerous,
it's too hot, it's too wet."

And thankfully, we now have evidence
from around the world

that the possible is indeed possible.

So, looking at Spain and Seville,
they invested in cycle lanes

and went from 0.5 per cent
of trips by bicycle

to 6.6 per cent of trips by bike

in just six years.

In Portland, they increased cycling
by more than 200 per cent.

In Denver, you can see they increased
the number of cycle lanes

and had a corresponding increase
in the number of people riding bikes.

And I could show you
evidence of this trend

from around the U.S. and around the world.

Now, just to be clear
about what I'm not saying.

I'm not saying that you can turn
every city in the U.S. or the world

into a Copenhagen or an Amsterdam,

where about half of all the trips
are done by bike.

That's amazing.

However, our cities are laid out
quite differently.

But in the U.S.,

about 40 per cent of all trips
are less than three miles.

And it's within these short trips
that the opportunity lies for cycling.

So, what I am saying is that
if we want to get more people cycling,

if we commit to it,

then it is absolutely possible for us

to get five per cent or more of trips
in our cities done by bike.

And finally, I think it's interesting that

when we look at some of the other problems
that we're facing in the world today,

one of the barriers that we may by facing

is that many people
don't believe in what's possible.

But thankfully, I feel
that the tide is turning

and more people are believing
in what's possible in their own lives,

for our communities, and for our planet.

And so, let's keep on believing
that we can make the possible our reality.

And let's make it happen.

Thank you.

(Applause)