Lincoln, NE

We are spending the weekend in Lincoln, NE to visit Chris and his girlfriend and the bike culture here is incredible. Lincoln's downtown is a great example of how to make an area bicycle-friendly. Bike lanes are available throughout to reduce opportunities for car/bicycle arguments and there are bike racks everywhere so you can secure your ride.

The buses also run regularly and are generally full. Covered bus stops are at most major intersections and, from what we saw, run regularly throughout the day.

Granted Lincoln is a college town and college kids are more likely to bike and bus than us regular working stiffs but they've done a nice job making it easy for residents to give their car the day off. By setting things up this way it becomes self-sustaining. You can take the bus to get places so you do. You can ride your bike safely in the bike lane so you do. You can lock your bike when you get to your destination so you do. This isn't a complex solution but one that seems to evade suburban planners. Other urban areas could learn a lot by looking at downtown Lincoln, NE.