In the spirit of Curb Your Car Month and Mother’s Day we bring you a Route of the Month post from local writer (and bus rider) Laura B.:

Route of the Month: Route 10
The Route of Unique Gifts

None of the usual Mother’s Day presents appealed to me. Flowers and chocolates are unimaginative. Magazine subscription?–she already gets a zillion. Then it occurred to me: my three favorite spots for unusual gifts are all on one AATA route, the number 10 circling northeast Ypsilanti.

The number 10 leaves downtown Ypsi 15 minutes after each hour. To catch it from Ann Arbor, take a bus leaving the Ann Arbor station half past the previous hour. Since traffic often causes delays, particularly during rush hours on route 4, it’s best to ask the driver when boarding, “Could you hold the 10 for me in Ypsi”?

After leaving downtown Ypsi, the 10 cruises over the river and down Cross Street. As it turns onto Prospect, riders can debus to walk or bike east down Cross to south on Harris and the first gift stop, Ypsilanti’s well-loved Value World. Riders can also stay on the bus—it stops across the street from this thrift shop, after a trip down Forest and a loop through the township past Appleridge Park.

Value World on Michigan Avenue (debus at the CVS across the street at the stop just after the Kroger’s) boasts four huge racks of purses, ranging from totes to clutches and arranged by color.

On the prowl for possible gifts, I found an adorable appliquéd spring beige canvas purse, in perfect condition, for $2.70. Hmm, a gift certificate to a restaurant could fit very nicely inside. Nearby was a sturdy, elegant cast iron wine rack, also in perfect condition, for $4.24. I estimated the rack would cost up to $60 in a fancy boutique. Tuck in a few bottles of Michigan wine, I thought, to make another nice gift.

Hopping back on the 10 brings riders into Depot Town, where one jewelry hotspot is Silver Spoon Antiques at 27 E. Cross St. The shop specializes in pre-1960 jewelry, and arranges pieces according to color, making it easy to select a piece of jewelry according to the giftee’s favorite palette. The shop’s “amethyst” table is particularly striking, glowing with purple necklaces, brooches, bracelets, and rings. Silver Spoon also has a selection of fancy lacy hankies for around $3 each—another extra to tuck into my appliquéd purse.

Just down the street, Salt City Antiques features a collection of mini-shops under one roof. About 12 dealers offer everything from Fiestaware to antique signs. One striking object was a $22 recipe-book holder with two metal balls suspended from the top back rail of the rack. Laid over each opened side of the book, the balls gently hold it open without fuss.

One short ride on route 10 had shown me wonderful ideas for gifts I’d never thought of. In addition to the fun of discovering unusual items, my Mother’s Day was covered.

Here’s another post from Deputy Editor Michael Betzold about riding the bus. He says that while this is a more critical piece, he fully supports riding the bus.

When you’re doing your bit for the environment but you’re thwarted by the very vehicle you’re using to do your bit, it can be frustrating.

I’m a big fan of the AATA. It’s a system that’s efficient, usually on time, well conceived, but badly underused. Most of the year, I use its wonderful bike racks to cut out the difficult uphill portion of my ride home. Unless I’m feeling energetic at the end of the work day, it’s just way too tempting to pop my bike on the bus and save myself two of the toughest of my five miles home. Partly the reason that it’s so tempting is that it’s not only convenient, but free. My employer, like most smart businesses downtown, provides me a Go! Pass, so I never have to pay for The Ride. And if it’s too snowy or wet a day for my bike commute (as it was a lot of times last winter), I still most often use the bus for my commute.

But here’s the rub: In the winter, aboard many AATA buses the heat is turned up so high it’s sweltering. You’re already bundled up against the cold, and that makes it doubly worse. I used to ride buses in Detroit, and I’m familiar with the Michigan culture’s reaction to winter: Crank the heat up high enough to make you sweat. It’s illogical though, and a waste.

It’s even worse in the summer. I mean, people do need to stay warm, but nobody needs to cool to icicle status. On almost every AATA bus I take during the summer the air-conditioning is at Arctic levels. Now Ann Arbor does have a handful, and sometimes two handfuls, of excessively hot days a year when using AC is reasonable, but it’s crazy for AC to be blasting on high every day for four or five months. The buses have windows. People can open them and catch a breeze.

It’s annoying to hop on the bus and feel like you’re at the mercy of an energy-hogging, out-of-control temperature-control system. With all the energy used for unnecessary AC and overheating on board the AATA buses, I’m sometimes uncertain if the environmental impact nets out as a positive. And I wonder: How can a city that is so forward-thinking on some of its energy and environmental buses condone this useless waste of energy? And how does AATA expect to attract more riders when its buses are sweltering in the winter and ice-cold in the summer?

It doesn’t make sense. Though it still makes a lot more sense than driving a car to work.

So Curb Your Car Month starts tomorrow. Yipee! It’s going to be really exciting.

I was asked by Concentrate (a new online magazine) to share some of my thoughts on Curb Your Car Month and public transit in general. How about that picture?
You can check out all of the blog posts here.

getDowntown has partnered with Walker Tracker to create an Ann Arbor community for all of you walkers out there.  Walker Tracker is an online community where you can log your steps and see how you compare to others in your community.  You can also share thoughts about your walking experience.  This is a free service.  You can sign up here: http://annarbor.walkertracker.com/

During Curb Your Car Month we are going to be having a competition on Walker Tracker to see who can log the most steps for the month of May.  The winner gets a $25 gift certificate to the downtown restaurant of their choice!

All you need is a pedometer and you can start logging your steps on May 1.  If you don’t have a pedometer, the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority is offering free pedometers to the first 30 people who request them.  So email me (getdowntown@annarborchamber.org) if you want a pedometer and I can get one for you from the DDA (if you are among the first 30).  If you would like to buy your own pedometer, I know they sell them at Fourth Avenue Birkenstock.

So please sign-up on the Walker Tracker Ann Arbor Community.  And tell your friends to sign up, too!   Sign up here: http://annarbor.walkertracker.com/

An article appeared in the Detroit News today detailing plans to bring Zipcars to downtown Ann Arbor.  getDowntown has been working hard (I think since November) to make this happen.  I am really excited about Zipcars because I really do see it as a way to ease people into the idea of biking, walking, and busing to work, because should they need a car, it’s there.

I look forward to presenting a funding proposal to the DDA tomorrow and seeing how it goes from there!

In the spirit of Curb Your Car Month (CYCM) I’ve invited local community members to write a blog post on a sustainable transportation topic of choice.

This first post comes from Michael Betzold Deputy Editor of the Ann Arbor Observer. Look for more posts from now ’til the end of May.

Want to write a post? email me at getdowntown@annarborchamber.org

I’m in love with my rear-view mirror.

For most of my life, I bicycled by braille. I reacted to passing vehicles by judging the relative menace of their engines’ roar. The sound alone didn’t give me much of a clue as to whether I was about to be grazed or given a wide berth, so I would reflexively tense up every time and move my wheels to the very edge of the roadway. I had learned the hard way not to try to turn around and look. Doing so might make me blind to a hole in the road or cause me to steer right into the path of my overtaker.

Two years ago, when we downsized out of the Eberwhite neighborhood and moved to a one-acre lot in semirural Scio Township, my daily commute to work increased from less than two miles round-trip to ten. I decided I needed to get more serious about bike commuting. So I bought a rear-view mirror and had it mounted on the left arm of my handlebars.

Now I consider the mirror indispensable. I can’t believe I ever biked without one. It’s worth the investment just for the peace of mind: No longer do I ride in fear. On my bike now, I’m as fully aware as I am behind the wheel of my car. I can see when I’m being given lots of room (which is the vast majority of time), when I’m going to be squeezed for space, or if (as never happens, but might) I’m about to be literally run off the road.

The volume of engine noise was never a reliable indicator of the degree of danger I might be in from a passing motorist or trucker anyway. Now I ignore it altogether. A really loud motor means nothing menacing by itself, and a quiet motor should not be reassuring. No one sneaks up on me anymore. I don’t get surprised, I don’t flinch, and I’m not riding tense.

The really serious cyclists who pass me wearing their Kevlar outfits usually have their tiny mirrors attached to their helmets. I can’t say whether that set-up is superior to my handlebar mirror, though it certainly looks more impressive. My own mirror seems clumsy in comparison, but then I’m not going for speed or style. I’m only concerned about comfort, safety, and durability. The love of my commuting life does make my bike four or five inches wider. I figure that just encourages motorists to give me more room. And the really good news is that almost all of them give me lots. Why wouldn’t they? They know I’m watching them closely. I’ve got eyes in the back of my head.

For this year’s Curb Your Car Month Commuter Challenge, we asked folks to sign up to be Walk, Bike, and Bus Ambassadors.  These Ambassadors are enthusiastic about sustainable transportation and want to encourage friends and co-workers to get in on the fun.

We have 24 Ambassadors so far, all with great thoughts and stories.  You can check out all of the Ambassadors (and sign up to be one yourself) by going here: http://www.getdowntown.org/programs/commuter/2008_Ambassadors.html 

Don’t miss out on all of the fun!  Take the Commuter Challenge today!

As part of Curb Your Car Month Frank from WBWC and getDowntown are working together to bring you a very special Ride Around Town on Friday, May 9th.  Here’s a link to the event: http://www.getdowntown.org/programs/events/CYCM_08_RAT_with_Cheese

Frank writes this about the ride:

It’s not May yet, but this RAT is going to be special.  We’ll all be motivated by the promise of cheese at the end of the maze, thanks to the generosity of GetDowntown.  The post-ride, traditionally held at Tios, and more recently at Amos (because they have a public restroom) will be at Zingerman’s Next-Door.  Nancy Shore assures me that this is not a trap!  I trust her!  All RATs will get the cheese!  Yay!

For those who may be wondering what this is all about … the Ride Around Town (RAT) is a demonstration ride.  Participating cyclists must wear bright colors, preferably a safety vest, helmet, and lights.  Well, okay, the lights are moot until November.  We take to the road, as opposed to taking over the road.  Emphasis is on safe urban cycling.  Stop at all red lights and toe-down stops at stop signs.  Take the lane when conditions require it … 4 foot clearance along parallel parked cars.  We even yield to pedestrians who are thinking about crossing the street!

There is a ride no matter what the weather.  If there is a severe thunderstorm, well … we might wait until it passes.  However, I predict a beautiful evening, mid 70’s and clear for May 9.

This is the month to join the RAT pack!  Hope to see you there!

Worried about getting sweaty if you bike to work?

Want to help the environment by biking to work but need some positive encouragement?

Check out Bike Commuting in 10 Easy Steps to make bike commuting a breeze.

The nice folks at the City of Ann Arbor recently created this map showing all of the parking locations for mopeds and motorcycles in the downtown Ann Arbor area.

Hopefully, this will help those who aren’t sure where they can park.