Posted 10:01 a.m. Thursday, April 16, 2015
A UW-L Associate Professor of History argues in his new book that governments large and small have had a hand in shaping the conflicts seen on the road today.
[caption id="attachment_40409" align="alignright" width="347"]
James Longhurst, UW-L associate professor of history[/caption]
The bike is back in America, but so are arguments about where it belongs.
UW-La Crosse Associate Professor of History James Longhurst offers a historical perspective on current transportation policy, funding and legal rights in his new book “Bike Battles: A History of Sharing the American Road.” The book was recently reviewed in the Wall Street Journal.
In the book, Longhurst argues that governments large and small have had a hand in shaping the conflicts seen on the road today. He examines debates over bicycles and their place in society over the last century and a half.
The book is now available in bookstores, including Pearl Street Books in La Crosse. It is also available for pre-order online at Amazon and through University of Washington Press.
Longhurst, an avid cyclist, will take to road this summer to help explain matters discussed in his book, peddling from Minneapolis to Chicago, on a book tour. Itineraries and contact information for groups who want to host, sponsor or attend tour stops are available on the book website at bikebattles.net. He will have a bike ride, book signing and reception Wednesday, May 20 at Pearl Street Books in La Crosse.
“Much of this is forgotten history,” says Longhurst. “Since Americans don’t entirely take bicycles seriously, historians haven’t always done so either. So stories about 19th century bike laws, cycle paths in the 1890s, and bicycle rationing in World War II haven’t gotten the attention they deserve.”
Longhurst is studying the history of urban and environmental policy, or the decisions that cities make that change their surroundings. The idea to study bicycle history came to him in 2008 when he first started bicycle commuting to work daily.
“Riding to work is great, but it reminds you that not everyone agrees on the place of bicycles and cars on the road,” says Longhurst. “Traffic engineers, bike advocates, and politicians all have had their say on the subject. I wanted to add a bit more history to the discussion.”
James Longhurst, UW-L associate professor of history[/caption]
The bike is back in America, but so are arguments about where it belongs.
UW-La Crosse Associate Professor of History James Longhurst offers a historical perspective on current transportation policy, funding and legal rights in his new book “Bike Battles: A History of Sharing the American Road.” The book was recently reviewed in the Wall Street Journal.
In the book, Longhurst argues that governments large and small have had a hand in shaping the conflicts seen on the road today. He examines debates over bicycles and their place in society over the last century and a half.
The book is now available in bookstores, including Pearl Street Books in La Crosse. It is also available for pre-order online at Amazon and through University of Washington Press.
Longhurst, an avid cyclist, will take to road this summer to help explain matters discussed in his book, peddling from Minneapolis to Chicago, on a book tour. Itineraries and contact information for groups who want to host, sponsor or attend tour stops are available on the book website at bikebattles.net. He will have a bike ride, book signing and reception Wednesday, May 20 at Pearl Street Books in La Crosse.
“Much of this is forgotten history,” says Longhurst. “Since Americans don’t entirely take bicycles seriously, historians haven’t always done so either. So stories about 19th century bike laws, cycle paths in the 1890s, and bicycle rationing in World War II haven’t gotten the attention they deserve.”
Longhurst is studying the history of urban and environmental policy, or the decisions that cities make that change their surroundings. The idea to study bicycle history came to him in 2008 when he first started bicycle commuting to work daily.
“Riding to work is great, but it reminds you that not everyone agrees on the place of bicycles and cars on the road,” says Longhurst. “Traffic engineers, bike advocates, and politicians all have had their say on the subject. I wanted to add a bit more history to the discussion.”