First and Last

When winter doesn't have New England in its chilling clutches, there are two dates we bike commuters anticipate -- the first day and last day of school. The school year changes everything on the road, and these dates are highly correlated with the number of drivers, their speed and determination, and the presence of school buses, all of which make commuting by bike a white-knuckle affair.

Every year, it is amazing how dramatically traffic volume falls after the school year ends. Cars vanish as soon as school closes, as parents shuttling children can stay at home, as traffic can redistribute itself throughout the day because deadlines around school hours have vanished, and as vacations draw off a percentage of automobiles each week.

Not only that, but drivers' attitudes shift noticeably. The less frantic pace of life when school is out helps with this, but also the greater awareness of outdoor activities, and the outdoors overall, probably contributes. More drivers have their windows open, are wearing lightweight clothing, and are on their way to hiking or biking themselves.

Roads when school is in session can be so crowded that we cyclists need the cops. This has happened a couple of times, when I've been hung up at a particularly bad intersection and a police car happening by turned on its lights and blocked the traffic long enough for me to get through. This would only happen during the school year.

School buses are another source of stress and traffic woes for commuting cyclists. Because they clog roads, they slow drivers down and clump cars together artificially. This has two effects -- one, cyclists encounter packs of cars; second, the drivers are trying to make up for lost time after getting a school bus out of their way. Combined, these two effects make cycling commuting a little more nerve-wracking.

This all confirms how the car culture occurred because of a threshold effect or "tipping point." We've all experienced this -- we drive somewhere nearby not because we couldn't bike or walk, but because there are too many cars, the roads are too busy, the streets are too dangerous because of the cars, so we add to the cars on the road by driving. Summers confirm that if we might ultimately be able to tip back into a more balanced transportation picture if we can get enough cars off the roads or redistributed throughout the day. With the end of the school year, cyclists see car volume edge down toward the threshold again, and can ride more comfortably during commutes. And that's the lesson. Have a nice summer.