Wednesday, July 09, 2008
By Joshua Welsh

Two years ago, I built a bicycle. I collected the parts from several local and online stores. Then, with several boxes of parts and a golden yellow frame, I went to Freeride, the nonprofit bike recycling shop in Homewood.

The people at Freeride let me use their tools to assemble my bike after I donated my time to teach others what I had learned about bikes and bike maintenance. I was building my bike for my daily commute of eight miles from Friendship to the South Side, primarily to address health issues.

Two years later, both my heart and my lower back are stronger because of this decision, a decision that was made on the eve of our city’s winning its prized “Most Livable” recognition.

Today I am faced with a new health issue. Air polluted by soot can increase the risk of cardiovascular death by 150 percent, and Pittsburgh is now known as the “sootiest” city in America, as recently ranked by the American Lung Association. Due to one modest coke plant a few miles from Downtown, we have relapsed into a reputation that plagued our city until most of the steel mills closed in the early 1980s.

Short of riding while wearing a breathing mask, I, like other Pittsburghers, have no means to filter out the clouds of microscopic soot belched into our air by the Clairton coke plant, oil-burning vehicles and nearby coal-burning power plants. We also have to face ozone action days as they arrive with the hottest days of the summer.

As we witness each day in the news, the era of cheap oil appears to have reached its end. A respected energy analyst from Goldman Sachs recently said oil could reach $200 per barrel within two years. Increasing worldwide demand, eclipsing a supply that already may have peaked, could bring prices to $7 per gallon.

Many proposed solutions, including developing more efficient vehicles, expanding public transportation and living closer to work, would help. But the fact remains that if we want to save money on gas in the short term we need to drive less. One way of doing that is to turn some four-wheeled trips into two-wheeled trips, powered by our very own American legs.

The benefits of cycling do not stop with saving gas. Not even accounting for rising fuel prices, the cost of operating a standard-sized car for one year is nearly $8,000, according to AAA. The cost of operating a bicycle for a year is less than $150, estimates the League of American Cyclists.

The light to moderate physical activity offered by cycling helps to improve mental health, reduce stress and lower the risk of developing chronic diseases such as stroke and coronary heart disease, which, in turn, help to lower health-care costs.

Studies have found that nearly half of all vehicle trips are shorter than two miles. On average, it takes 10 minutes to travel two miles by bike. And remember: Most vehicle pollution is emitted within the first few minutes of traveling — before pollution-control devices begin to work effectively.

One way to encourage more people to bike would be to enact the city’s bicycle plan (yes, it has one) and by developing more safe cycling routes. If enough of us begin to cycle even a little bit more, we will save money and improve our health while reducing energy use, traffic congestion and air pollution.

Ultimately, we can help everyone in the Pittsburgh area breathe a little easier.
Joshua Welsh is an industrial designer who lives in Friendship (rembelly@gmail.com).
First published on July 9, 2008 at 12:00 am