Critical Mass: cycling as a political statement

In fact, the ride was originally termed "Commute Clot" by early participants. Started in September 1992, the first ride had only 45 riders. The term "Critical Mass" was taken from the movie "Return of the Scorcher," a movie that promotes the use of bicycles a the primary form of transportation. "The term comes from Chinese bicyclists being unable to cross an intersection until they achieved sufficient numbers, or critical mass at the intersection to stop traffic" explains Chris Carlsson, one of the founders of Critical Mass. "Once a month we are a Critical Mass, filling 3-4 long blocks of San Francisco’s Market Street at the tail end of rush hour."

By 1996, rides routinely consisted of over 500 riders, with some rides having over 3000 participants. Currently between 1000 and 2000 cyclists can be expected each month. The rides move at a stately pace, between 4 and 6 miles per hour.

Riders are usually accompanied by 25 to 30 San Francisco police officers but “accidents” still happen, particularly when motorists get angry. One much-discussed event occurred in the spring of 1993 when a motorist attempted to drive through a pack of cyclists. When a group of riders came to the rescue of friends who had been knocked down, the car was left with several broken windows. Police charged two cyclists with assault, but the charges were later dropped.

Critical Mass has spread to other California cities, including Berkeley, then throughout the U.S. to East Coast towns such as Boston, Philadelphia, and New York City. It has also made the jump overseas. Cyclists in Brisbane, Australia ride en masse on the last Friday of the month. Over 7000 cyclists ride down the coast in Rio De Janeiro every month, in the only - so far - Critical Mass ride with a corporate sponsor, Diet Coke. (Map)

(Not every city has met with success, however. Critical Mass rides in Washington DC ceased last fall due to lack of interest.)

After yet another dust-up between cyclists and SF police, The San Francisco Examiner recently printed an article about Critical Mass. Citing accident statistics that show numerous biker injuries caused by automobiles, the Examiner noted that many cyclists feel that the traffic laws don’t apply to them. The article quoted Peter Tannon, an SF city official, "It doesn’t matter whether the hammer hits the vase or the vase hits the hammer. It’s still the vase that’s going to get smashed - cyclists are still the most vulnerable.” In fact, most Critical Mass promoters support running stop signals and riding on the freeway. "Nice bicyclists finish last," says Michael Vandeman, a CM supporter. "How To Make a Critical Mass," a WWW- published Critical Mass "how-to" manual, explains "Should Critical Mass obey the same traffic laws that motorized traffic follows? Yes and no. For the most part, traffic laws were made for cars, as anyone who routinely bicycles through stop signs can attest, and they certainly weren’t written with large groups of bicyclists in mind. So the answer to this question is obvious: Critical Mass should bend or ignore existing traffic laws where the group’s safety and effectiveness are served, and follow the law where it serves our interests and needs."

Not all Bay Area cyclists agree with the group’s tactics, of course. In a letter to the Examiner, bicycle commuter George Rehmet explained his point-of-view. "Regarding the quote, ‘We are traffic’: The cyclists have admitted it. Now let us act on their own words. As traffic, they should obey the rules of the road. Think of all the revenue the City could derive from those who flout the law; disobeying stop signs, not keeping up with the flow of traffic, speeding through pedestrian signs ad nauseum. Also, as traffic they should be licensed. Think of that as a revenue enhancement."

Where does Critical Mass go from here? Founder Carlsson explained his vision in an 1995 article called "Bicycling Over The Rainbow: Redesigning Cities - and Beyond."

"The space we've opened up in Critical Mass is a good beginning. Out of it must grow the organic communities that can envision and then fight for a radically different organization of life itself! We will never shop our way to a liberated society. So questions of utopia lurk beneath the Critical Mass experience. what kind of life would you like to live, if you could choose? What of all the work that this society imposes on us, is work worth doing? What kind of technologies do we need?"

Bring your bike to the Standby Café at Yonge & Temperance (N. of Adelaide) at 5:30 on the last Friday of each month. The mass ride begins around 6pm.

It'll be a slow, friendly ride, for once in relative safety. We’ll occupy the road, jamming Yonge, University, College, and Bloor. Cars will honk, cyclists will cheer: We’re not blocking traffic, we are traffic.