From 4 tires let's move on to 2

When I started studying my degree, a trip to Seattle was presented, but during the trip we
were going to take advantage of visiting Canada for 3 days, we were several students of
Industrial Engineering. The days we were there we used public transport and when we were
in Canada, we had the idea of renting bicycles. The tours were fascinating, we were all happy
and nobody seemed to complain, it was as if we were all used to transporting ourselves that
way. When we arrived in Mexico, we continued to frequent each other to go out, but during
the outings here we never used any public transport, nobody had bicycles at home, and
nobody used to go to the recreational route. One day at the university we decided to go to
breakfast, the place was not within the university, but it was not far away, it was within the
same area so each one decided to go in their car. It is a sad reality to realize how people
change within another country and their country. The idea of riding bicycles was silly,
dangerous, humiliating, uncomfortable, etc. But in another country, it was an incredible
fashion, something to show off. That's when you realize that there are prejudices about an
activity, and you have to start breaking them in order to start a good change.

In recent years, a high increase in the use of cars has been reported in Mexico, the figures
are alarming, car use grows 3.5 times faster than the population. The problem does not only
lie in environmental pollution but in health, physical, mobility problems, among other
things. The 3 main reasons why people do not use bicycles are: lack of traffic safety, lack of
infrastructure and poor signage according to the article "Main reasons why Mexicans do
not use bicycles" by Janneth Del Real. But is it a reality or a belief?

It is a reality that in Mexico there is road insecurity. Between 2007 and 2012, an average of
16,750 Mexicans died annually as a result of injuries due to collisions, rollovers or run over,
of which in 2012 30% were pedestrians and 2% cyclists according to "Guide to interventions
for prevention of injuries in urban cyclists "but since 2011 an agreement began to be
established between the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Communications and
Transportation (SCT), which has the general objective of reducing deaths from traffic events
by 50% by 2020. what the strategies of road safety, infrastructure and signaling have
increased to give that safety to the cyclist.

A 220% increase in bicycle use after covid-19 occurred according to the Mexican Transport
and Mobility Association (AMTM). This change is due to the fact that people have chosen
to use bicycles in order not to use public transport and not to expose themselves to social
distancing, also to maintain better health. The benefits that we find in the use of the bicycle
are not only concentrated in health but also economic and environmental issues. According
to the economist, several interviews have been done and people comment on similarities.
If before they spent 1 tank a week for $ 500 pesos, this for a month was $ 2000 pesos but
now that they have increased the use of the bicycle 3 or 4 times a week, they spend 1 tank
a month, thus reducing $ 1500 pesos. On the other hand, a report by the Deutsche
Sporthochschule, entitled "Cycling and Health", shows that cycling increases the heart rate,
reduces blood pressure and helps control cholesterol levels, which reduces by up to 50 %
the risk of developing a coronary disease and speaking of environmental benefits, reduces
carbon dioxide emissions by 11%.
Now let's focus on Jalisco, which is where most of us are. On June 16, 2020, the best score
was registered among 31 cities evaluated in 11 different axes such as road safety, climate
change, regulation and urban planning, among others. In the 11 items evaluated,
Guadalajara achieves three ratings out of 100 in the areas of climate change, institutional
capacity, and education and promotion. Based on the results that have been obtained in
recent years, we can say that it is a good time to start using the bicycle without prejudice
that Jalisco does not have good tools to promote the use of the bicycle since we are the
most fortunate.

The use of the bicycle continues to have disadvantages, since in our country several
elements need to be promoted but in recent years it has gained great strength and people
are beginning to turn to see this option of transportation. Objectives have been set to
reduce road accidents, including signs, laws, among other things. As it has also been wanted
to inform people of all the benefits that its use can generate. And it should be noted that as
citizens of Jalisco we have the best facilities to ride a bicycle. It is not about selling our cars
but about starting to use it a little more and leaving behind the taboo that exists on bicycles.

Reference

Diario Responsable. 2021. La bicicleta, el vehículo más rápido en la carrera hacia un futuro sostenible - Diario
Responsable. [online] Available at: <https://diarioresponsable.com/noticias/31197-la-bicicleta-el-vehiculo-
mas-rapido-en-la-carrera-hacia-un-futuro-sostenible> [Accessed 2 November 2021].

Máspormás. 2021. ¡A rodar por la CDMX! Conoce los beneficios de andar en bici. [online] Available at:
<https://www.maspormas.com/especiales/rodar-por-la-cdmx/> [Accessed 16 November 2021].

La bicicleta, el vehículo más rápido en la carrera hacia un futuro sostenible - Diario Responsable. (2021).
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mas-rapido-en-la-carrera-hacia-un-futuro-sostenible%3E%20[Accessed%202%20November%202021].

Ramírez, B. (2021). Promueven seguridad vial durante Paseo Muévete en Bici. Retrieved 16 November 2021,
from https://www.jornada.com.mx/notas/2021/05/23/capital/promueven-seguridad-vial-durante-paseo-
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(2021). Retrieved 16 November 2021, from http://mexico.itdp.org/wp-

content/uploads/MasCiclistas_MasSeguros.pdf