To the uninitiated, buying groceries by bike may sound daunting, but with a little planning, hauling home supplies can become an enjoyable part of the weekly routine. Avoiding parking hassles, working exercise into an already busy day, and earning extra dessert calories are just a few of the perks of biking to the market.
Santa Barbara resident Diana La Riva does the majority of her commuting around town by bike, and shopping is no exception. “I do have a shared car with my sister. Maybe once a week we use the car, if we have to.”
La Riva says that one of the major advantages of biking to the store is rolling right past overcrowded parking lots. The trade-off is spending a little time and mental energy thinking about purchases and prospective routes. “I live on the Mesa, at the tip-top; it gets hard biking heavy things up. I don’t buy olive oil, wine, and cans of coconut milk all on the same day; I have to plan it out.”
