There was once a time when New Haven, Connecticut could be considered the centre of the bicycle world, albeit a very long time ago. In 1865, a young Frenchman named Pierre Lallement made his way across the Atlantic and settled in the industrial borough of Ansonia, Connecticut. He went on to build what he called a velocipede, a two-wheeled contraption driven by cranks that were attached to its wheels. Lallement took it for a spin to the neighbouring borough of Birmingham (now Derby), amazing passersby. In 1866 Lallement rode to New Haven, approximately ten miles (16 kilometres) southwest of Ansonia. With the aid of James Carroll, a manufacturer who witnessed the velocipede ride, Lallement filed for and received a patent on his invention – the first such patent on a bicycle in the world. For the rest of the 1860s, New Haven, along with other Northeastern cities, like Boston and New York, became the centre of American bicycle culture as “velocipede mania” stole the hearts of young men.
But velocipede mania was short lived. Lallement returned to France, unable to successfully make money from his invention. Velocipedes, or “bone-shakers” as they were sometimes called, lost favour to penny-farthings, and then to the safety bicycle. And New Haven became noted for other things; some good things, like pizza, and some not-so-good ones, such as being the home of Michael Bolton and the birthplace of George W. Bush.
But times are a-changing. And New Haven, like many other North American cities, is taking part in a bicycle renaissance. Now the Elm City (New Haven’s nickname) takes on the audacious challenge of hosting BikeSummer. Started in 1999 by a group of bicycle activists in San Francisco, BikeSummer is a month-long celebration of bicycle fun with everything from rides, races, talks, repair clinics, and much more. BikeSummer has moved to a different city every year and, in doing so, has acted as a catalyst for thriving scenes in such places as Vancouver, Portland, and Los Angeles. With a population of 125,000, New Haven is the smallest host city yet. So far, a Century (a 100-mile bike race), an art show, a kick-off concert/party, and a series of bicycle tours are planned, with more events in the works.
New Haven’s new face as a kinder, more bicycle friendly place is a surprise to most, including myself. I grew up in Ansonia, and when I left the area in 2000, it seemed to me no one rode bicycles. To find out about this latest trend, I returned to New Haven in April to find out about its progress.
The time is right,” says Bill Kurtz. A native of the area, Kurtz is heavily involved in the city’s bike scene. “New Haven is a compact, old city, so it’s easy to get around. We have a large youth population due to Yale University and the other schools in the area. And we have a city government receptive to bicycles.
In my cruises around town, I saw that people were indeed riding. A bicycling scene is thriving without significant improvements in infrastructure. The city boasts only a few kilometres of bicycle lanes, the first of which were striped in only 2003. The recommended bicycle routes depicted on the New Haven Green Map are haphazard and disconnected, while disadvantaged (largely minority) neighbourhoods are almost entirely ignored. Still, the city promises to stripe more bicycle lanes when they resurface certain streets, and there is talk of a cohesive Bicycle Master Plan.
We’ve been busy all winter,” says Matt Feiner, “so yes, there is a definite increase in the number of bicyclists!” Feiner recalls that in the 1980s he was one of the few people who rode his bike everywhere, and it was his identifying characteristic – “the guy with the bike.” Racing since his teens, Feiner grew up outside of New Haven but moved to Austin in the 90s to pursue art. He was taken by the bicycling scene there, but was disappointed with the state of things in New Haven when he returned in 1999. In response to the poor quality of the only bike shop in town, Feiner opened The Devil’s Gear in 2001, a bicycle shop catering to a wide demographic of cyclists sans condescension. Since then, the shop has become the unofficial hub of bicycle culture in New Haven.
Feiner has been a staunch supporter of Critical Mass. Promoted through The Devil’s Gear, attendance has grown from a pittance in the late 90s to almost 200 riders in the summer months nowadays. Even on a rainy, grey April day the Mass had about 40 people. Bill Kurtz helped explain why New Haven’s Critical Mass has been successful. We look on it as less a protest about cars but more a celebration of bicycles. We don’t try to be antagonistic. If we don’t have the numbers we’ll only take up one lane, and we try to keep aggressive elements on the ride in check. We still cork, but we’ll hand out flyers to drivers. We want it to be a festive experience.”
Helping bring it all together is Elm City Cycling. A coalition of like-minded cyclists, this group has been active in promoting bike fun through their website and through their listserv. News and events are posted regularly, and the coalition acts as a lobbying force in City Hall, meeting regularly with Mayor John DeStefano and the New Haven Police Department. Education is the key, says Kurtz, not only for drivers but also for the police, in order for them to understand the cyclists’ issues.
Kurtz hopes the excitement of BikeSummer will encourage more people, young and old, to ride bicycles. And excitement is a key ingredient to attracting more riders in any city, regardless of bicycle facilities. If it can work in New Haven, then there’s hope for the rest of the US. And finally, there’s a reason I can be proud of my hometown!
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