The Oakland Press reported about Michigan’s Governor commuting by bike to the State Capitol:

Gov. Jennifer Granholm is riding her bike to work a couple of times a week, an example of a way she says Michigan consumers can save money.

The 49-year-old governor lives just southwest of the city center, about 3 miles from her office near the state Capitol. She rode her blue bike to work Wednesday, accompanied by her security detail.

The state Department of Transportation is looking at state roads to figure out where it would be safe to add bike lanes and is planning to expand park-and-ride lots and add more, since some are at capacity as more drivers carpool to save money, Granholm said.

Heather Newman of the Free Press also blogged on this:

Granted, Granholm’s three-mile commute isn’t exactly a grueling workout. But most of us make plenty of short trips - to the dry cleaners, or the local supermarket/convenience store, or the movie rental place - that we could probably reach easily on a bike. Or walk to, for that matter.

It’d save a little gas, and it might add a few calories to our daily workout. It’d cut down just a bit on our personal smog emissions. But more importantly, it’d contribute to giving us all a more healthy, active lifestyle - one fueled by the recognition that our legs can, in fact, take us to meaningful places.

Today’s Detroit News has an article on road users switching modes from cars and trucks to cycles — both motorized and not.

Local shops say customers also are dusting off the bikes and cycles they own, fueling a significant increase in demand for tune-ups and repairs.

“We’re seeing bikes that haven’t seen the light of day in years,” said Liz Szewczyk, an employee at Continental Bicycle Shop in Hazel Park. Not only is the maintenance and repair business booming, she said, but also the sale of commuter bikes — those that come with fenders, lights and other safety features for longer commutes.

“When gas was $3.50 (a gallon), customers started trickling in,” Szewczyk said. “Then it hit $4 and (business) went poof.”

The Detroit Free Press also ran a similar piece yesterday.  It includes an interview with Andy Staub from Beat the Train:

Andy Staub, 42, also relies more on his bike, but for commuting 12 miles from his Dearborn Heights home to his job as a slitter operator at Olympic Steel in Detroit.

He used to bike mainly for sport a couple of days a week. But due to gas prices, he’s added a third day and is considering a fourth.

The commute takes him about 50 minutes by bike, compared with 25 minutes when he drives his 1998 Jeep Cherokee.

The Flint Journal recently ran an excellent article on bike commuter Doug Cook. Here’s an excerpt:

Before you complain about your miserable drive in Wednesday’s winter storm, talk to Doug Cook.

He was the guy on the mountain bike ducking the spray from passing cars in the dark at 5 a.m.
Weekend forecast

Nearly every day for the past year — no matter the weather — Cook, 49, has commuted to work on a bike from his Grand Blanc Township apartment to his job as a business systems analyst at the University of Michigan-Flint.

He does it on a steel-frame bike immune to road salt, three layers of clothing, a big halogen headlight and flashing green light on the handlebars, red flashers on his helmet and bike, and red tube lights on a reflective vest.

From the Detroit News:
The City Council may amend an ordinance that prohibits cyclists from riding on main roadways.

The council approved a recommendation this week to review the ordinance, which requires cyclists to ride on sidewalks or bike paths, if available, and not on main roads.

The request was spurred by Livonia resident Ken Pumo, who frequently commutes about 10 miles to and from his retail job in Novi by bicycle.
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