Tina Mowry, director of the Greater Des Moines Transportation Management Association, said her group’s goal is to achieve a permanent 10 percent reduction in the amount of peak drive-time traffic in the metropolitan area by 2004. To help meet that goal, the TMA is offering a variety of options to motorists, including its inaugural “Ride Your Bike to Work” program, to be held May 16 in conjunction with National Ride Your Bike to Work Day. TMA officials say everyone biking to work just once a week would result in a 20 percent reduction in commute driving. Bicyclists participating in the free event will congregate and ride into downtown or other metro locations together. They include: 63rd Street and Ashworth Road, Val Air Ballroom parking lot; 73rd Street and Aurora Avenue, Urbandale High School; Beaver Avenue and Adams Street; Northwest 66th Avenue and Neal Smith trail, Sycamore Access; Copper Creek Plaza in Pleasant Hill; the Iowa State Fairgrounds at Grand Avenue and East 30th Street; Bill’s Cyclery at 4411 S.W. Ninth St.; and Park Avenue and Great Western Trail. Parking will be available at each location.

Q: In addition to reducing traffic congestion, what are the goals of this program?

A: Our goal is to get more people to commute to and from work by means other than driving their car. We also want to get people thinking about the type of system we would need if we were to make this a city for people to bike to. We have great trails in Central Iowa, but we want to make this a business commuting option.

Q: Will this become an annual event?

A: We’re going to try. Our job is to educate and people about their options and track their behavior and see what’s needed.

Q: What other cyclist-related projects are you working on?

A: The TMA and Greater Des Moines Partnership are working to install 24 bike lockers downtown. The lockers can be used by those who want to store their bike in a safe place. We’ll have to see if it’s well received before we add more.

Q: Can Des Moines become a cyclist-friendly city?

A: I think there is a lot of interest in it in the metro area. It’s always been a topic that has been discussed. Obviously biking is not the No. 1 choice for the majority of people. But biking is a great option for some people four to six months out of the year.

Q: Has the city considered adding bicycling lanes downtown?

A: There aren’t any plans right now as far as I know. Hopefully they will try it and see what happens. The city has a long way to go for bicyclists and motorists to get along. But events like this show there is interest out there to utilize this commuting option. The city has always been open to look at new ideas, and honestly, we haven’t made it plausible yet.