Change of Scenery

When I cycle to work, I follow the same basic route on most days.  Sometimes I'm detoured.  For example, about three years ago, the RFK Memorial Bridge was closed, so I had to go through the East Side of Manhattan rather than Randall's Island.  At other times, however, I take short side-trips that more or less parallel my normal commute.

This morning was one of those times.  For some reason, when I got to the Bronx side of the Randall's Island Connector, I decided to turn right rather than left on 133rd Street.  Then I took a left onto Walnut Avenue, which cuts through the industrial heart of Port Morris and ends at 141st Street.  Normally, I would take Willow Avenue, which parallels Walnut but ends at 138th Street.  

Along Willow Avenue, I pass a great piece of street art.  But on 141st, where I rode this morning, I encountered an even grander (OK, the artists themselves probably wouldn't use such a term!) urban artscape:

Tats Cru is a group of graffiti artists who have become muralists.  Depending on who you ask, they "evolved", "went mainstream" or "sold out".  I suspect that when they reached an age at which they had to support themselves, and possibly others, they took whatever someone was willing to pay for their work.  I can't say I blame them.

What it means is that some of their work, at least, will survive.  And so will they.  I am happy for that.  So many people and things haven't--except in the memories of people who've lived, and cycled, in this city.

Bicycle Ambulances In Uganda Are FABIO!

There are some places that can't be reached easily, or at all, with cars or trucks.  In some places, like rural Uganda, that can be a matter of life and death. 


Uganda's infant, newborn and maternal mortality rates are among the highest in the world.   The harsh terrain spreads between the vast distances pregnant women often must traverse in order to get care for themselves or their newborns.  As an example, early in her pregnancy, Sandra Naigaga had to walk more than four kilometers (2.5 miles) to access antenatal care in Kibibi.  Later in her pregnancy, that distance may as well have been the distance to the moon.

Fortunately for her, the First African Bicycle Information Organization (FABIO:  Could you ask for a better acronym?)  introduced bicycle ambulance service to her region's two major health centers late last year.  FABIO has been offering similar services, ferrying pregnant women as well as other people needing medical care, in other parts of Uganda since 2006.

Sandra Naigaga (R) after arriving at the antenatal care centre in Kibibi

Aside from the services it provides, another thing that's great about FABIO is that it tries to maintain an environmentally sustainable system that can be easily maintained by local people using local materials from local sources.  So, the ambulances are built around basic black bicycles for which spare parts are readily available, even in such a remote region. And the carts that are attached to those bicycles are made from locally-sourced materials.  FABIO's ambulances are thus "African solutions to African problems," in the words of field officer Jeremiah Brian Nkuutu.  

Jeremiah Brian Nkuuti welding a carriage for a FABIO bicycle ambulance.

While most of the bicycle ambulances are of the pedaled, mechanical kind, FABIO also has ambulances towed by rechargeable e-bicycles.  These are used in hilly areas and, like the bicycles, are chosen for their reliability and the local availability of spare parts.

What They Notice

Years ago, I would attract attention while riding my bike.  In many communities, people stopped riding bicycles as soon as they were old enough to drive--if, indeed, they ever rode bicycles in the first place.  Seeing an adult on two wheels instead of four, and pedaling instead of stepping on a gas pedal, was strange for many people.  

And, in my workplaces, I was "the one who rides a bike."  I didn't mind the appelation:  I simply wished others would ride.

Apparently, it's still possible to get attention simply by riding a bicycle: