How the pandemic might be changing people鈥檚 perceptions about bike rides

The Washington Area Bicycling Association wants to know how people’s perspective on biking has changed during the pandemic. (Courtesy WABA/Colin Browne)

A D.C. bicycling advocacy group wants to know how the coronavirus pandemic has changed the role that bikes play in people’s lives.

鈥淲e鈥檝e been doing some surveys and trying to determine what are people鈥檚 needs from this program that we have,鈥� said Washington Area Bicyclist Association, or WABA, spokesman Jonathan Kincade.

Talking about the , Kincade said people seem to be viewing biking as a more viable option for after the pandemic.

The reasons for this could include the discovery that biking is fun and a concern about the safety of using public transportation. Some are also interested in building awareness.

鈥淲hat it means to ride on a trail, or how you ride though a city and what you should do to establish yourself in a lane or what you do when you鈥檙e commuting from one place to another,鈥� Kincade said.

offers live events, such as Q&A session webinars called “Questions Encouraged.”

鈥淗ow do I know what bike to pick? How do I know what size bike to get?鈥� are common questions for beginners, Kincade said. 鈥淥ne of the first things that we ask as a response to that question is, ‘Well, what type of riding do you want to do?'”

WABA has a聽.

鈥淗ow do I keep my kids out of the way of cars? What are some good places to go riding and work on skills, especially if you live in D.C. and you鈥檙e not close to many parks or opens spaces?鈥� Kincade said.

Touting on-the-ground, practical experience of members, Kincade said they have awareness in Montgomery County, Maryland, in Arlington and Alexandria in Virginia and across D.C.

鈥淚鈥檓 a big fan of telling people to go to RFK (Stadium) because there鈥檚 a lot of space out there,鈥� Kincade said.

WABA is about more than being a biking or transit organization. It鈥檚 also a people organization.

Friday mornings at 8 a.m., there鈥檚 a virtual coffee hour. The Tuesday webinar is for those who identify as women, trans or femme.

Kincade believes that engaging with different communities and the things that they need can be a learning experience that extends beyond the life of the pandemic.

鈥淗opefully using this as an opportunity to address things as unrelated as it sounds, as climate change. Since the pandemic, we鈥檙e seen that emissions are down because people are driving less,鈥� Kincade said. 鈥淗opefully there鈥檚 a way that we can use this moment as a learning point and as an opportunity going forward into the fall and into 2021, when things are back open again, hopefully.鈥�

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