No car, no problem
[An article from last year that I just found.]Are the rising gas prices making you dizzy? Are the insurance premiums on your car hurting your pocketbook? Or do you just not own a car?
Don't despair. Contrary to popular belief, you can live in and get around Baltimore without a car...
On two wheels
If you've got a bicycle and are in the mood for some exercise, you can take advantage of several bicycle trails throughout the city. The two main trails are the Gwynns Falls trail and the Jones Falls trail. The Gwynns Falls trail starts at Leakin Park in Northwest Baltimore and follows a 14-mile path by the western fringe of the Inner Harbor and the Patapsco River's Middle Branch. It connects more than 30 neigborhoods in West and Southwest Baltimore with parklands. The Jones Falls trail runs from Druid Hill Park to Penn Station, paralleling the Jones Falls and passing by several historic mills.
"The city is working on a master bicycle plan to make biking easier," said Michael Strawbridge, manager of the Gwynns Falls trail. "Currently, you can take bikes onto some of the buses and the light rail. We're working on making it a more comprehensive system."
Bruce Greenwald, a northwest Baltimore resident, uses the Gwynns Falls trail three to five times a week. "I've ridden on the weekends a lot," he says. "I'm actually planning to ride to work over this summer. I bike mostly for recreation, but with gas over 3 bucks a gallon, the opportunity to get a workout while getting back and forth from work seems very tempting."
Jennifer Desanta commutes to work on her bicycle once or twice a week during the summer months. "I go down Roland Avenue mostly," she says. Though she bikes regularly, she says that Baltimore is not a very bike-friendly city. "Bikers are not respected in the streets. There are a lot of accidents. If there were more bicycles then perhaps drivers would learn to be more aware."
There are plans to expand the city's current bike trails, according to Anne Draddy, manager of the Jones Falls trail. "The phase from the Penn Station to the Inner Harbor is designed," she says. "We would like eventually to have people come in from out of town, rent a bike at the Inner Harbor and ride all the way up to the zoo."
