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Politics & Government

Getting to Work by Bicycle—How One Woman Does It

City Hall employee Alison Regan bikes to work regularly and also serves on the city's Bicycle Task Force.

Alison Regan is someone who practices what she preaches. She is a member of West Hollywood’s recently formed Bicycle Task Force, charged with figuring out ways to get people out of their cars and onto bicycles. And she is also someone who bikes to work.

Regan lives in Culver City, but works as a staff attorney at . She bikes to work several times a week.

The ride takes her about 40 minutes, as opposed to 30 minutes by car. But she doesn’t care about the extra 10 minutes, because she feels better by the time she gets to work.

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“My day goes better when I ride my bike to work,” said Regan, who grew up in the Chicago suburbs and rode her bike to school daily. “The ride really clears my head, helps me let go of worries and frustrations.”

She wears biking clothes for the ride – bike pants and t-shirt/sweat shirt. Once in Weho, she either showers at her gym or showers at City Hall. She keeps work clothes in her office or brings them in a backpack.

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Regan’s route to work takes her along Venice Boulevard, then up various side streets until she hits San Vicente and then Santa Monica Boulevard to City Hall.

While La Cienega would allow her a straight shot north, she avoids it. “La Cienega is too busy and isn’t wide enough for bikes and cars,” she said.

Meanwhile, Venice and San Vicente are wide enough for bikes and cars. And Santa Monica Boulevard has a designated bike lane.

City Hall has bike lockers for staff who bike in. The 4-foot tall bike locker bin, located in the City Hall parking lot just as you turn in, looks somewhat like a giant electrical box. It has 10 individual lockers big enough to store a bike.

Occasionally, it ends up raining after she bikes to work. Getting home on those wet days can be a challenge. Sometimes she will endure the rain and ride all the way back home. Other times, she will take the bus, most of which are now equipped with bike racks on the front.

Her bike is nothing fancy. It’s a 5-year-old mountain bike that she put road tires on. She estimates it costs $200-$300 “You don’t need an expensive bike,” she said. “Just one that works.”

Between riding her bike to work several times a week and driving a Prius, she says she only fills her gas tank every three to four weeks.

Regan’s advice to people who want to try biking to work is to start off taking short trips to build up some stamina and endurance. She also recommends trying multiple routes to get to work.

“Sometimes the most direct route isn’t always the safest,” she said. “If you can find a route where you feel comfortable, then biking to work is a lot more fun.”

She also suggests people take a bike safety class which will give tips on bike maintenance and sharing the road.

As part of the Bicycle Task Force's Infrastructure Subcommittee, Regan makes recommendations for more places to put bike lanes in the city.

“There’s greater demand for bike lanes with more bicycles on the streets now,” she said. “And it’s not just about gas being over $4 a gallon. People are realizing it’s a more efficient way to get around.”

The task force is also looking into Sharrow Lanes – lanes marked with big green arrows on the pavement where cars and bikes share the road equally, rather than bikes hugging the shoulder.

“It will take some education to get people to understand the concept of Sharrow Lanes,” she said, noting that in this area, Long Beach is leading the way in creating Sharrow Lanes. “But they really work well.”

Regan points out that it’s better for businesses to have more people on bikes. “Cars just whiz by, but people are more likely to stop in a business if they’re on a bike.”

Thursday, May 19 will be Bike to Work Day, throughout the region. The city of West Hollywood will sponsor a pit stop between 6 and 9 a.m. at San Vicente and Santa Monica Boulevard, south side of the street.

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