Urban Cyclists: Don't Breathe on Busy Roads

This week across the country, communities are celebrating bicycling with Bike to Work Week. In New York City, the bikes in the Citibank bike share program were free for a day, a bike parade will roll through town in Flagstaff, Ariz., and in Indianapolis local officials are hosting a bike breakfast and blessing of the bikes. Data from the National Household Travel survey shows that the number of bike commuters has risen 62 percent nationwide from 2000 to 2013. That percentage is even higher in communities that have created bicycle-friendly lanes and parking. Today, most adults and older children can ride a bike. But it wasn't always that way. It took advances in the bicycle's design to make the two-wheeled mode of travel user-friendly.

Exactly who invented the first bicycle remains a mystery, according to the

exhibit documenting the history of travel in the United States. But among the earliest incarnations of the bicycle was this kind of model -- a large front wheel capable of being steered. Early versions were first patented in Paris in 1818. They became known as vélocipèdes. The vélocipède became popular in France and England. Soon the big-wheeled bikes could be commonly seen on the streets of London, according to the Smithsonian. But by the early 1820s, the popularity of vélocipèdes declined. This photo shows a cyclist, A.S. Wieners, and his racing bicycle in 1887. Wieners used it in racing events held by the Manhattan Athletic Club.

In 1863, an important innovation would bring back the popularity of the vélocipède, which would soon become known as the bicycle. Pedals were added to the front axle.

, this happened in the Paris workshop of Pierre Michaux. One of Michaux's employees, Pierre Lallement subsequently moved to New Haven, Conn., where he continued work to improve the vélocipède. The Hanlon brothers of New York City, a popular team of traveling acrobats, patented this 1869 model.

By the late 1860s, Americans were showing great interest in the vélocipède. According to the Smithsonian, many carriage makers began creating models and riding workshops started opening up in eastern cities. The sport especially became popular among students at Harvard and Yale. But, as in Europe, that popularity would fade likely because the models then were difficult to ride. Riders had to steer and pedal the same front wheel. The bikes were heavy and taking a spill off of the vélocipède could be painful. Shown is an early group of cyclists using special rail attachments to ride on a spur line of the Pittsburgh and Western Railroad, between Cluffs Mills and McCrays, Penn., in the 1890s.

Another innovation was seen with the introduction of the so-called "Ordinary" in the 1870s. These were high-wheeled bicycles and tricycles developed in England with wire-spoked wheels. Albert A. Pope became the first American bicycle manufacturer when, in 1878, he began manufacturing bicycles under the trade name "Columbia" in Connecticut. Shown is an early Columbia bike model.

Shown here are participants in one of the first organized bicycle tours in America. They are posing with their Ordinaries on a road outside Readville, Mass. on Sept. 11, 1879. The Ordinary was lighter weight and fast, but remained hazardous to the less experienced. Innovators began to look into ways to make bicycles safer, leading to the development of the "Safety" bicycle.

The Safety bicycle featured two, smaller wheels propelled by a chain connected to the pedals. Some versions featured gears, making navigating hills easier. Brakes were also improved and air-filled tires made for a smoother ride. The changes proved a boon and Americans took to two wheels like never before. This version of a man's Cleveland Safety bicycle is shown in a 1899 photo.

The number of bicycles in use boomed as production rose from an estimated 200,000 bicycles in 1889 to 1,000,000 in 1899, according to the Smithsonian. This diamond- and emerald-encrusted bike, shown in this 1896 photo, was owned by M.N. Wiley and featured an oil lamp for nighttime riding.

By 1899, as the Smithsonian notes, not many automobiles had yet been built, horses and carriages were expensive to maintain in crowded cities, and urban public transportation was often slow and inadequate. The bicycle became a popular way of getting around. It was the bicycle's hey day -- as illustrated by this 1897 cover of sheet music featuring a woman cyclist. The popularity would last until automobiles came onto the scene in earnest after 1910.

Although the bicycle's popularity in the United States would decline with the growing popularity of cars, bicycles would remain popular in Europe and, in the United States, they would become popular among children. Advances, meanwhile, continued to make bikes more comfortable and faster. This version, bought in 1935 in Germany, features a rear-wheel hub and a coaster brake inscribed "Torpedo-System Sachs."

Among the major U.S. bicycle companies was the Schwinn Bicycle Company, founded by German-born mechanical engineer Ignaz Schwinn (1860–1945) in Chicago in 1895. Schwinn became the dominant manufacturer of American bicycles through most of the 20th century. (The company declared bankruptcy in 1992 and became a sub-brand of Pacific Cycle). This Schwinn bicycle, built in 1953, was known as the Panther.

The popularity of bikes among children led to various innovations suitable for the smaller set. Who could forget the beloved banana seat bike? This model, the Schwinn Super Deluxe Sting-Ray, was made in 1965.

Along with bike innovation came helmet innovation since head injuries were -- and remain -- a constant concern for cyclists. In 1975, Bell Helmets Inc. manufactured some of the first effective cycling helmets. They were made with a polystyrene foam liner covered by a hard plastic shell.

Innovations continue to make bicycles faster, more versatile and adjustable. Among the latest models today are the rocket bike (shown), which can hit speeds of 207 miles per hour, a solar-powered e-bike with a 40-mile range, and a "smart" bike that warns its rider of dangers ahead with an array of electronic devices. Cycling is experiencing growing popularity as cities, in an effort to green up, are encouraging cyclists by creating bike lanes and bike-share programs. According to a 2014 U.S. Census Bureau survey, Portland, Ore. holds the current record for cycling commuters, with 6.1 percent of commuters saying they bike to work.