Trading Freeways for Bike Paths: An LA Girl’s Take on Biking in SB

As an LA girl, if my friends live more than a thirty minute drive away, that’s a deal breaker. 

Having to do the mental gymnastics of calculating how long it takes to get somewhere round trip, with the obligatory traffic and parking buffer, often makes the whole hangout seem more enjoyable if I just stayed home. Unfortunately for high school me, this meant that I rarely saw some friends outside of school, and if I did see them, much of our free time was spent at school related events like football games, school plays, or trips to our school’s nearby shopping center. 

Even though my high school was in a very walkable neighborhood, I feel like no one talks about how socially isolating it can be to grow up in a car centric city. As a high school underclassman, since no one in my friend group had a driver’s license yet, our ability to socialize was reliant upon a designated parent to shuttle us around. While there are public transportation options in LA, they are not nearly as robust when compared to other major cities, like New York or Boston, which restricted my ability to go anywhere, with anyone, at any time. While some may say that finding time to meet with friends outside of school is frivolous and unimportant, I believe that being a teenager means navigating constant physical and mental changes, which require a strong support system. These hangouts, no matter how silly, make all the difference.  

I was used to relying on a car to connect with others.  But when the time came for move-in day, I brought my bike up on a whim, after remembering the endless bike paths I crossed on my UCSB campus tour. What started out as a spontaneous decision has completely transformed my social life. From traveling from the ILP to IV Theatre in less than ten minutes to make back-to-back lectures, to pedalling from my dorm to Devs for sunset watches, to impulsive  late night Wingstop trips, my bike has been my saving grace. 

Beyond simply taking me from point A to point B, the biking culture at UCSB has given me something that I had never had back home: the ability to make connections wherever I go. I can still remember my first bike ride around campus, circling UCSB’s perimeter with one of my hallmates to find the Rec Cen. It took us a good half hour to actually locate the Rec Cen, but throughout our time riding, I was able to meet someone who would wind up becoming one of my closest friends. 

 Throughout my time here, I’ve noticed the joy a car-free campus brings not only to me but also the entire student body. Friends bike along side by side debriefing on their days, acquaintances wave across campus, and people yell at each other during the inevitable pedestrian-biker collisions. Being outside of the confined space of a car forces an environment of interaction, as people are always within reach, both physically and socially. Friendships here can often feel more fulfilling because they are measured by shared memories, not by their distance apart or how often they can see each other. The convenience of biking makes friendships feel effortless, which caused me to think about how the level of walkability of a city directly affects relationships. 

Back in LA, distance was a dividing line. But at UCSB, no place can really feel too far because there is always the option to bike, walk, or take the bus. The freedom to go anywhere I want, at any time, and with anyone, without having to worry about traffic times or parking, has unlocked a level of independence that I never thought would be possible. The ability to make spontaneous plans is a privilege that is unfortunately only available to the lucky few that don’t live in car centric cities. 

But these last-minute late night plans are ultimately what truly define the teenage experience. Since moving to college, the freedom that I have gained has made me realize how many opportunities to connect I missed out on in my early teen years due to my city’s lack of walkability. In an increasingly digitized world, where relationships are already difficult to build, does it really help that many major cities’ urban planning makes connection physically difficult? 

It is in the quiet moments, when biking back from a late night study session or a meeting at my sorority house, that I wish that every place could be as accessible as UCSB. Everyone deserves an equal opportunity to connect freely, without the barriers of traffic, distance, or parking. Living in a walkable community has been the ultimate equalizer. Freedom can take on many forms, but to me, it is the rhythmic bounce of my bike wheels rolling along the pavement.

• biking
• City
• college
• friendships
• la
• traffic