It occurs to me that some people may be interpreting my intentions expressed in this website to start banning cars from the streets.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  I know so well that it is unrealistic to ban cars from streets.

As a matter of fact withing the next 10 to 15 years people will notice only very subtle changes.  The primary changes express on this site is that bike lanes and pedestrian pathways would be made far safer for people of all ages from accidents between cars than it currently is so people will feel safer walking and riding their bikes.  It is hoped that this would incite more casual bicycle ride their bikes on a daily basis and that especially students would walk and ride their bikes to school reducing traffic jams around schools.

As more people ride their bikes, fewer will drive their cars.  This is a totally volunteer choice people will make.  As there is more interest in riding bikes and walking the city will invest more resources to improve pedestrian and bicycle infrastructures such as beautifying these routs and developing more trails for pedestrians and cyclists as well as convenient shortcuts.  These gradual improvements will entice even more pedestrians and cyclists not to drive but to walk and ride their bikes further reducing the number of cars on the road.  This will be a gradual process taking decades.

The Vision expressed on this website is that of a community long into the future perhaps 75-100 years from now.  This process of increasing biking and reducing cars is an evolutionary process where people will increasingly, by choice, ride their bikes instead of drive their cars due to the many advantages of riding bikes and its advantage for the long terms sustainable growth of our community.

Changes to our values and way of life evolve gradually.  This blog simply proposes that the city take a sustainable long term outlook for directing growth and make gradual changes to the city to align with such a long term Vision.  It is being suggested that this star with making our streets safer for pedestrians and bicyclists.  Road will not be closed to traffic until that time such road are no longer used by cars which could be many decades into the future.  No one will be forced to do anything.

Keep driving your cars if that is what you want to do.  But I feel that in the long term adding more and more cars onto our streets as the population grows cannot last more than a couple of decades.  There will become a time that the city will be a perpetual parking lot of traffic jams and extreme hazard for bicycles and pedestrians.  I also realize that developing a public transportation system that brings buses close to the homes and destinations of all residents will be very expensive and likely cost an enormous amount of money to establish and run and is not sustainable because many streets cannot be reduced in size.  But riding bikes short distances (less than 5 miles) is very inexpensive, practical, allows the reduction or shrinking of streets, and is sustainable.