Grownups on bicycles.

Here's a notion: bicycles as a form of urban transportation in L.A. Read the article.

Living in Portland, I have three observations.

First,the writer notes the absence bike lanes, etc. Apparently being able to use both streets and sidewalks just isn't enough. Well, here in Portland we have experience with cycling as alternative urban transportation. We have bike lanes and we invest gobs of money in huge overpass bridges for exclusive bicycle use, but we can't afford the expense and bother to repair Naito Blvd. It's a matter of priorities, right? In Portland, people on bicycles are entitled to come first. People who drive cars are just pedestrians who burn fuel.

Second, notice the end of the article. Evidently, much of the charm of bicycling is that most other people don't do it. If it becomes too popular, cyclists would just have to find some other way to feel exceptional. (Less like Americans and more like . . . people who aren't Americans. Like the Dutch, maybe.)

Third, well, somebody has to say it. Grownups on bicycles just flat look goofy. And they frequently smell bad.