Velomobile
Introduction
An enclosed velomobile has an efficiency of about 12.35 km/MJ. They can be entirely person-powered, or battery assisted. They may be better for some people's backs than a traditional bike or cargo bike, while providing a sturdy foundation for carrying children, shopping, pets, and more. These are similar to recumbent bikes, but come with storage space and often an outer casing to protect riders from wind or rain.
Velomobile
An enclosed velomobile has an efficiency of about 12.35 km/MJ. They can be entirely person-powered, or battery assisted. They may be better for some people's backs than a traditional bike or cargo bike, while providing a sturdy foundation for carrying children, shopping, pets, and more. These are similar to recumbent bikes, but come with storage space and often an outer casing to protect riders from wind or rain.
Safety Tips
How to Get Your Child to Wear a Bike Helmet "Riding a bicycle is an excellent way for kids to spend time outdoors getting exercise. It's also an Earth friendly way to get around. Falls from bicycles cause serious head and facial injuries, though, so make sure your child wears a helmet for every ride.
Here are tips on how to help your child get into the habit."
General Tips for Stress-Free Travel
Don't feel like you have to change 100% of your habits immediately. If you don't usually walk or cycle, then start with one day a week, or just mornings or just afternoons, then build your muscles. Slowly challenge yourself to do more, or choose transport mode according to where else you will need to go on a given day, or with respect to weather conditions.
Try a test trip to places like school or your doctor's office before your scheduled visit. This will let you know if you need to add more time for to cross at intersections, or if a short cut through a park will let you cut off a few minutes that would have been spent sitting in traffic with your regular drive.
Bring water and a snack for long trips.
Wear appropriate protection. A sun hat or cap, umbrella, rain coat, and appropriate shoes or warm clothes can make the difference between a fun journey and extreme discomfort. Check the weather in case a cold front or storm hit in the afternoon.
Use map or app if you are in a new place.
Take breaks! This is especially important if you have a smaller child, or one of you isn't used to the new mode of travel.
Resources
Community
NACTO: Urban Stree Design Guide "A blueprint for designing 21st century streets, the Guide unveils the toolbox and the tactics cities use to make streets safer, more livable, and more economically vibrant. The Guide outlines both a clear vision for complete streets and a basic road map for how to bring them to fruition."
School Zones
Safe Kids: Take Action Toolkit: How to Fix Unsafe School an Zone in Your Community "Find strategies, advocacy tips, model documents, and resources provided by our Public Policy team to help you work in your communityto make safety changes to your school zone. Changes covered in ouraction plans can improve safety for pedestrians, bike riders and all of us near schools.You can learn more about child safety risks in our report, "Alarming Dangers in School Zones," which led to the development of our Take Action Toolkit."
Family & Friends
How to Get Your Child to Wear a Bike Helmet "Riding a bicycle is an excellent way for kids to spend time outdoors getting exercise. It's also an Earth friendly way to get around. Falls from bicycles cause serious head and facial injuries, though, so make sure your child wears a helmet for every ride.
Here are tips on how to help your child get into the habit."
Organizations
For bike-specific organizations, click the Bike Advocacy Groups button to learn which organizations are working in your area, or explore the International section for resource on how to start your own group.
Transportation Alternatives "For 50 years, Transportation Alternatives has led the movement for safe, equitable streets in New York City. TA uses a combination of neighborhood-level grassroots organizing and citywide advocacy to push for changes in public policy, street design, enforcement, and resource allocation that transform our city’s streets for the better."
The Transportation Renaissance in NYC is being Led by THIS Group
23:24 minute video "Discover the transformative infrastructure changes that TA has advocated for over the years- like the iconic Prospect Park West protected bike lane, the game-changing Queens Boulevard redesign, and the ever-expanding network of Citi Bike stations."
Maps
Further Reading
You may also be interested in the following.