CalBike
  • About Us
  • Get Involved
    • Speak Up for Safe Passage for Bikes
    • Tell the Governor: Daylighting Saves Lives
    • Tell Governor Newsom: Decriminalize Fare Evasion
    • Volunteer
    • Join/Renew
  • What We Do
    • Stay Informed about E-Bike Incentives
    • 2023 Legislative Watch
    • Sign-On Letters
    • More…
  • Resources
    • E-Bike Resources
    • What Is an E-Bike? A Guide to California E-Bike Classifications.
    • California Bicycle Laws
    • Map & Routes
    • Register Your Bike
    • Learn to Bike at Any Age
    • Free Quick-Build Bikeway Design Guide
  • News
    • Blog
    • CalBike In the News
    • Press Releases
    • CalBike Insider
  • Shop
  • Donate
  • Search
  • Menu Menu

Why Does the California Bicycle Coalition Care about Clean Freight?

October 11, 2016/by Zac

The California Bicycle Coalition is the newest member of the California Cleaner Freight Coalition. CalBike’s mission is to enable more people to bicycle, for healthier, safer, and more prosperous communities for all. You may now be wondering, what does bicycling have to do with moving goods around our state?

A lot of things, actually. Most directly, dirty freight creates dirty air, which makes it harder to breathe when you’re bicycling, and causes asthma, especially in children walking or bicycling on our streets. Busy trucking and rail corridors create dangerous barriers to walking and bicycling, and make roads scarier places for people to walk or bike.

These issues are most deeply experienced by residents in environmental justice communities located near our ports, goods distribution centers, and major freight corridors. We want to make these neighborhoods safer and healthier places to get around on foot and by bike by powering trucks with clean electric engines, and by redesigning streets that carry freight traffic through these neighborhoods to prioritize the safety of residents over moving more trucks. State government can help by increasing incentives for electric trucks and buses, and by ensuring that Caltrans and local transportation agencies design streets with the safety of people walking and bicycling at top of mind.

But in addition to caring about how our freight system impacts people’s ability to walk and bike, CalBike believes “active transportation” (i.e. bicycling and walking) can be an important part of the solution to improving our freight system.

Cargo bikes, especially those equipped with electric-assist motors, have enormous potential to replace short-haul delivery trucks in our denser communities. Delivery bikes could help make the air cleaner, streets safer and quieter, and save space for loading zones in shopping and dining districts. (And since many cargo bikes are manufactured by small businesses here in California, replacing trucks with these bike would have a positive economic impact on our state as well). With increasing demand for home delivery from services like Amazon Prime Now and Postmates, imagine how much pollution might be spared if most home deliveries in our cities were made by an electric cargo bike rather than a car or truck. A few major companies in the parcel-delivery business, such as DHL and UPS, are already testing out cargo bikes.

This idea is not as new and cutting-edge as it may sound. People all over the world have been using bicycles for moving goods in extremely creative ways since the two-wheeled machine was invented. And, as with getting more electric trucks on our roads, state incentives for companies to trade in dirty delivery trucks for cargo bikes would go a long way.

On congested freight corridors like I-710 in Long Beach, active transportation can help too. Giving people in private cars an alternative to sitting in traffic by biking or walking instead could take cars off those congested freeways and help freight trucks to move more freely. Creating attractive and convenient alternatives to driving would require building safe, connected networks of bikeways and walkways in neighborhoods adjacent to those freeways, networks that provide access to quality public transit systems for longer trips.

On the other hand, if we expand freight corridors like I-710 with new traffic lanes, widely accepted research shows that the new lanes will immediately begin to fill up with more cars and do nothing to expedite freight truck travel along those corridors. We need to be sure that our state and local governments are not investing many billions of dollars to expand freeways in a wasteful attempt to fix the freight congestion problem, when freeway expansion actually makes the problem worse. Instead, and for a fraction of the cost, the state could put those transportation dollars toward making the whole freight system cleaner and more efficient, and toward providing residents better alternatives to driving on congested freight corridors by improving walking, bicycling, and public transit facilities across the state.

Moving goods around our state and to the rest of the country is critical to California’s economy. For the health and well-being of all our residents, we must electrify, improve efficiency, and reduce the impacts of the freight sector on our communities, while continuing to support that sector’s growth. Bicycling can be an important part of the solution.

Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on WhatsApp
  • Share by Mail
https://www.calbike.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/calbike-logo.png 0 0 Zac https://www.calbike.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/calbike-logo.png Zac2016-10-11 18:31:362018-08-11 21:13:42Why Does the California Bicycle Coalition Care about Clean Freight?

Latest News

  • train passengerTell Governor Newsom: Decriminalize Fare EvasionSeptember 26, 2023 - 3:45 pm
  • Daylighting to Save Lives: Ask Governor to Sign AB 413  September 26, 2023 - 2:33 pm
  • Adding new bike laneActive Transportation Slate Goes to GovernorSeptember 25, 2023 - 9:52 am
Follow a manual added link

Get Email Updates

Follow a manual added link

Join Calbike

  • Link to Facebook
  • Link to Twitter
  • Link to LinkedIn
  • Link to Mail
  • Link to Instagram
About Us

Staff
Board
Financials & Governance
Local Partners
State & National Allies
Careers
Contact Us

What We Do

California Bicycle Summit
E-Bike Advocacy
2023 Legislative Watch

Take Action

Current Projects
Past Projects
Donate
Volunteer
Join or Renew

Resources

Maps & Routes
Crash Help and Legal Resources
Quick Build Guide
All Resources

News

CalBike Blog
CalBike in the News
Press Releases
CalBike Insider

© California Bicycle Coalition 2023

1017 L Street #288
Sacramento, CA 95814
© California Bicycle Coalition 2023

Muralist Mona Caron Creates Art Bike for CalBikebike matchLos Angeles Chapter Leaders Practice Winning
Scroll to top
Font Resize
Accessibility by WAH
  • $2 Billion for Bikes
  • 2020 Legislative Watch
  • 2023 Legislative Watch
  • About Us
    • Social Media
    • Who We Are
      • Board of Directors
      • Local Partners
      • Staff
      • State and National Allies
    • Strategic Plan
    • Our History
      • Past Policy Wins
    • Financials & Governance
    • Sign-On Letters
    • Careers
    • Volunteer
    • Contact Us
  • Become A Corporate Partner
  • Become A Corporate Partner
  • Better Street Design
  • Bicycle Safety Stop Campaign
  • Biking Is Not a Crime
  • Business Member
  • Business Members
  • CalBike Community
  • CalBike Equity Statement
  • CalBike In the News
  • CalBike Insider
  • CalBike Seeks Interim Deputy Director
  • California Bicycle Coalition: Celebrating 25 Years
  • Car Donation FAQs
  • Celebrate our 25th Anniversary
  • Climate Ride for CalBike
  • Climate Ride for CalBike
  • Corporate Partners – Take Action Now
  • COVID-19 and Bicycling
    • FAQs About Bicycling Safely During COVID-19
    • Learn to Bike at Any Age
    • Tips and Tricks for Happy Biking
    • Bike Match
  • Details
  • Donate
    • Donate by Mail
  • Donate Campaign
  • Donate Monthly
  • Donate to the California Mobility Fund, Tax-Deductible
  • Donate, Tax-Deductible
  • E-Bike Purchase Incentives
  • E-Bike Resources
  • Edgerunner 11i Giveaway – OP
  • End Parking Minimums — Yes on AB 1401
  • Events
    • Agenda Reveal Party
    • California Bicycle Summit
      • Guide to an Inclusive and Equitable Summit 2022
      • Location
      • Rides & Tours
      • Schedule
      • Scholarships
      • Steering Committee
      • Virtual Summit
      • Virtual Summit
      • Workshops & Presenters
      • Advance Symposia for the California Bicycle Summit
      • Public Statement of Equity and Inclusion 2022
      • California Bicycle Summit Steering Committee
      • Past Summits
        • 2019 California Bicycle Summit: Intersections
        • 2022 California Bicycle Summit
        • 2019 California Bicycle Summit Program
        • 2019 California Bicycle Summit Guide to an Inclusive and Equitable Summit
        • 2017 California Bicycle Summit
        • 2015 California Bicycle Summit: Equity in Motion
        • 2015 California Bicycle Summit program
        • 2013 California Bicycle Summit
        • 2011 California Bike Summit
    • Advocacy Day
    • California Dream Ride
    • California Dream Ride
    • House Parties
    • Past Events
      • Advocacy Week
      • CalBike Chipotle Chowdown: May 31st, 2018!
      • California Dream Ride
      • California Dream Ride
      • Free Webinar: Gearing Up For A Winning ATP Application
      • Low Carbon Fuel Standards Workshop
      • Transportation Equity Summit
      • Transportation Equity Summit & Advocacy Day
      • Transportation Equity Summit 2017
      • Webinar: E-Bike Grant Opportunity in ARB Car-Sharing Pilot Program
      • Webinar: The Why & How of Protected Bike Lanes
      • Webinar: Ticket Diversion Programs
  • Fake Map Demo
  • FAQs
  • Footer
  • Freedom to Walk Campaign
  • Fundraising Essentials
  • Go For a Ride
    • California Bicycle Laws
    • California Bicycle Laws (2021 Update Draft)
    • Crash Help
    • Map & Routes
    • Why Ride?
  • History Archive
    • 2012 Legislative Year in Review
    • 2012-2017 Strategic Plan
    • 2013 Legislative Year in Review
    • 2014 Year in Review
      • Govenor Signs Protected Bikeway Act
    • 2015 Year in Review
      • 2015 Leg Tracker Wrap-Up
      • E-bike Prohibitions Removed
      • Stop the Helmet Mandate
    • Better Bikeways for All
    • Getting More Bike Lanes Just Got a Whole Lot Easier
    • Governor Signs Protected Bikeways Act
    • Governor’s Transportation Agency increases bike funding by 35%
    • Reforming the CTCDC
    • SSTI Review of Caltrans Scathing and Hopeful
    • Stop AB 738
    • Summary of 2011 Legislation
  • Holiday Fundraising Opt-Out
  • Humpback
  • Invest/Divest
  • Join CalBike and Get Special Gifts
  • Join CalBike and Get Special Gifts, Ed Fund
  • Join the CalBike Mailing List
  • Landing Page
  • Landing Page
  • License Plate
    • Bicycle Awareness License Plate FAQ
  • Newsroom
    • Press Releases
  • OmniBike Bill AB 1909
  • Our Initiatives
    • Bike Education
    • Bike Share
    • Full Lane for Safety
    • Fund California’s Bikeways
      • Walk-Bike Networks
    • Legalize Hand-Holding: Riding Two Abreast
    • Open Streets
    • Protected Bike Lanes
    • Quick-Build Bikeway Networks for Safer Streets
      • Order a Quick-Build Promotional Brochure
    • Three Feet for Safety
    • What We Did: Past Campaigns and Projects
    • Transportation Justice
      • Breaking Down the Silos
      • CTC Assessment
      • Mobility Justice Labs
      • SB 1 Campaign
        • SB 1: Program by Program
    • Streets for Everyone
      • Better Bikeway Design
      • Complete Streets Campaign
        • Call Your Assembly Member to Support Complete Streets Bill, SB 127
        • Support the CalBike Complete Streets Campaign
        • Complete Streets Supporters
      • Low-Stress Bikeway Networks
    • Central Valley Bikeways Project
      • Central Valley Bikeways Survey
      • Project Plans and Resources
      • Project Maps
      • Fresno
      • Bakersfield
      • Merced
    • Healthy Climate and Communities
      • Autonomous Vehicles Must Make Biking Better
      • Bike Sharing
      • Bike Tourism for Economic Development
      • Community Bike Shops
      • E-Bike Campaigns
        • SB 400 E-Bike Voucher FAQs
    • A Stronger Movement
      • Electing Allies to Office
      • The Untokening
      • Walk Bike Youth Leaders
  • Plan for the Future Campaign
  • Recurring Donations
  • Register Your Bike
  • Resources
    • Design Best Practices
      • Bike & Pedestrian Plan Inventory
      • Webinar: Complete Low-Stress Bike Networks
    • Fact Sheets and FAQs
      • Complete Streets Fact Sheet
      • E-Bikes Fact Sheet
      • Give Me 3 FAQ
      • Helmet Mandates Fact Sheet
      • Protected Bikeways Act FAQ
      • Safe Routes to School
    • Funding Sources
      • Active Transportation Program Resources
      • Webinar: How to Access State Funding for Bike-Share and Micromobility
    • Get our Beautiful Jersey
    • Other Resources
    • Our Video Channel
  • Salsa test page
  • Shop
  • Subscribe
  • Summit Thank You Page
  • Support the INVEST in America Act
  • Take Action
    • $10 Billion for a Bikeable Bay Area
    • Bike the Vote
    • Call the Assembly to Support AB 3153
    • Complete Streets Petition
    • Connected Bikeway Networks Petition
    • Drive Less-Bike More Petition
    • Dutch Reach Petition
    • National Transportation Funding Petition
    • Reform Traffic Law Enforcement
    • Save Bike-Share!
    • Show Your Organization’s Support for SB 127
    • Sign the Petition: $10M E-Bike Affordability Program
      • Thank you for supporting affordable e-bikes for Californians
    • Tell Governor Newsom to Sign the Complete Streets Bill Today!
    • Tell the Assembly to Support E-Bikes
    • Tell Your Senator to Support the Bike Parking Bill
    • Visionary Transportation Planning: AB 1147
    • YES on AB 117
    • Yes on AB 1238
    • Yes on SB 288 for More Bike Lanes
    • Tell the State Health Officer that Bike Repair Shops Are Essential
  • Tell the State Health Officer that Bike Repair Shops are Essential
  • Temp
  • Thank You
  • Thank you
  • Thank you
  • Thank You
  • The Latest
  • The Latest
  • Yes on AB 43 for Slow Streets
  • Driver Cut Off
  • Driver Left Turn
  • Driver Right Turn
  • Entering the Roadway
  • Passing