"Without a hint of irony — not to mention larceny — one downtown professional recently told me with a straight face that he was so excited about the Yellow Bikes program that he planned to secure one to a post in front of his office — with his own personal bike lock to make sure it was there whenever he wanted to ride it.
On a recent day while walking into the lobby of a downtown apartment building, I came upon — you guessed it — a Yellow Bike, parked toward the rear, evidently by someone who also did not understand — or care about — the spirit of this act of generosity.
That's right. The Yellow Bikes project is a gift from members of the Lexington business community, not some taxpayer-funded city program. That's what makes it especially disheartening that Yellow Bikes are pretty hard to come by, these days. Many have vanished from the downtown area they were intended to enliven — spirited away to who knows where?
You're forgiven for doubting that there exists in the hardened heart of business some level of egalitarian spirit, even whimsy. But Corporate Social Responsibility has come of age with the new century and this lighthearted project, while delightful and fun, has a serious purpose: to reduce a leading burden on business by encouraging our population to adapt a healthier, more active lifestyle.
So when you steal a Yellow Bike (yep, Mr. Professional; making it so nobody but you has access to a bike amounts to taking it and keeping it for yourself, i.e.: theft), you act against the best interests of your community. Plus, you open yourself to assuming ownership of a range of unflattering adjectives.
While many other progressive-minded cities of the world are finding the resources within tax-funded municipal budgets to launch impressive and extensive public bicycle programs, the Lexington Fayette Urban County Government — soon to pay the price for years of neglecting to maintain its storm and sanitary sewer systems — is not exactly in a fiscal position to finance novel concepts. So, when it comes to fun, even whimsy, it's either the largesse of the private sector — or nothing.
Lexington's Yellow Bike program is an expression of a civic spirit among some business men and women who are willing to apply personal effort — and money — to trying something new, fun, and healthy for the benefit of their hometown. In the words of Lexington Yellow Bikes.com, the concept "is a community-sponsored, all-volunteer program dedicated to providing human powered transportation to residents, workers and visitors in and around downtown Lexington." These sponsors and volunteers have purchased, placed and now maintain the bikes for all to use and enjoy in the downtown area.
The idea materialized on the streets of downtown Lexington on the morning of May 18 when this group of private-sector sponsors rolled up their sleeves and personally placed dozens of the bright yellow, single-speed bikes with baskets and locks all around the downtown area. A $10 fee purchases a skeleton key to the system's universal locks. Folks living and working in the downtown area are offered the opportunity to move around the district on a bike with the understanding that once they lock it and leave it, it's fair game and could be gone when they return, ridden to some other area of a specifically defined downtown district. The idea was to place enough bikes within that area so that a replacement could be found nearby.
It was nice, while it lasted. Unfortunately, in the very noticeable absence of Yellow Bikes, once sprinkled all about downtown Lexington, we see something disturbing about the character of our community. It's a challenge to identify exactly what that is. To be sure, there probably are as many variations on why this or that bike has gone AWOL as there are missing bikes. But we need to think about what this says about us.
Lexington's a beautiful city. It is chock full of wonderful people. But some among us clearly wouldn't recognize the definition of community if it came along and let the air out of the tires of that Yellow Bike they've expropriated.
The Yellow Bike program already has served to help draw attention to Lexington's paucity of bike lanes and trails and has driven demand for remedies. Mayor Newberry has listed bike trails and lanes among his administration's priorities and will hold a first-ever Bike Summit in September. Councilman Jay McChord has succeeded in securing initial funding for a 35-mile north-south "Healthways" trail that would stretch from the Kentucky Horse Park to the Kentucky River. It has not been lost on many of Lexington's emerging leaders that great cities — among which Lexington aspires to compete — either already offer extensive bike-friendly environments or are developing them quickly.
As for Yellow Bikes? Quirky, yes — there is room for improvement, but you have to start somewhere. And besides, what's wrong with a little fun once in awhile, especially if it comes in the form of a gift at no cost to taxpayers? Well, evidently what's wrong with it is the way it brings out the larceny in some people.
In the meantime —and on the bright side— we continue to hear suggestions for improvements. Much of the chatter focuses on an enormous public bicycle program recently introduced in one of the major capitals of Europe.
Unveiled in Paris on July 15 and dubbed "Vèlib" (an adjunct of Velo, French for speed, and Lib for freedom) the program makes more than 10,000 three-speed bikes available for pick-up or drop-off at any of 750 stations spread throughout the city. Unlike the one-time, low cost fee of the "Yellow Bike" program, a Velib bike is available at no charge only for the first 30 minutes of use. After that the cost is 1 euro, or about $1.35, for the first half-hour, 2 euros for the second half-hour and 4 euros for each succeeding half-hour. Riders can purchase Velib subscription cards for periods of one day (1 euro); seven days (5 euros); and one year (29 euros).
Proposals for similar programs are under discussion in Chicago, Washington and New York.
The sponsors of Lexington's Yellow Bikes understand that supporting such a project reflects well on them and their interests but also enriches the community.
This is about recognizing how a community benefits from such transactions between the private and public sectors. And how a community suffers when some among it act in self-interest with little or no regard for the consequences to others.
Bogarting a Yellow Bike? Please. Put it back on the street.
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