SURVIVE I-5, BIKE, DON'T DRIVE!

The clock is ticking. Extensive I-5 closures are coming in August. Do you have a plan?

Construction work on northbound I-5 between Spokane Street and I-90 will require around-the-clock lane closures from 10 p.m. Friday, Aug. 10 through Wednesday, Aug. 29. Crews will close several lanes of northbound I-5, leaving only two or three lanes open to traffic. The closures will have significant effects on traffic in the Puget Sound area.

What are you going to do?

Ride your bike!

Cascade Bicycle Club suggests riding your bike during the I5 closure this August. This closure represents a great time to try bicycling as your transportation option. Cascade Bicycle Club has put together a list of commonly used bike commuting routes surrounding the closure zone. Click here to see the list of routes with links to maps.

Weather
The weather is usually clear and pleasant in August, so many of the potential weather hindrances will be absent.

Traffic
As if traffic isn’t bad enough on an average day, predicted impacts during the closure are dire throughout the city. Why bog yourself down in the frustration when cycling is a much more pleasant alternative?

Environment
Citizens in our region are fortunate to have a spectacular shoreline and mountain landscape dazzling every horizon. Working together, we can protect it on multiple fronts. Cycling offers an excellent alternative to releasing pound after pound of CO2 into the atmosphere. One mile driven equals roughly a pound of CO2 released into the atmosphere. Riding a bike, on the other hand, releases none.

Health
Why not make these two weeks the kick-off to your fitness program? Riding a bike at a modest speed burns 300 calories per hour!

Financial gain
Pouring gas into your automobile just so you can burn it sitting in traffic makes no financial sense. Save your gas money and treat yourself to something better than a fossil fuel bill.

You won’t be alone.

During the month of May, thousands of people just like you answered Cascade Bicycle Club’s challenge to choose cycling instead of driving to work during the Group Health Commute Challenge. And on Friday, May 18, more than 19,000 people ditched the gas pedal for the bike pedal, riding to work on Starbucks Bike to Work Day!

Record-breaking participation in both programs clearly demonstrates that thousands of area residents are willing to ride a bike to work every day. Join us!

How Cascade Bicycle Club Can Help

• Schedule of commuting classes, including Urban Cycling Techniques and more
• We're also recruiting leaders for bike-buses (groups of cyclists commuting together) during the I-5 closure.
• A new bike commuting forum where you can meet seasoned bike commuters online.