LANGLEY — Bicyling is the Rodney Dangerfield of transportation.

So said a crowd of biking enthusiasts who pressed for greater respect for the Earth-friendly form of getting around during Thursday’s forum on bike-ability in Island County.

Bicycling and non-motorized transportation experts led a discussion about bike-ability during the latest Exchange, a series of issue-orientated public forums sponsored by The South Whidbey Record.

The forum’s focus: Making the island a better place for bikers.

While bicycling is increasing in popularity, Gordon Black, the executive director of Bicycle Alliance of Washington, would like to see awareness grow within governments; local and state.

The Bainbridge Islander is passionate about bicycling and an advocate for the activity that he said would help reduce global warming.

“The beauty of bicycles is that you can go further with about the same amount of energy as you could walking,” he said. “You can go faster than you can walking. You can do all that and you don’t create any contribution to the warming of the planet.”

He recalled the Oscar-winning documentary that featured Al Gore, who spoke about global warming but failed to mention bicycles as a way to reduce heating of the planet.

“How come Al Gore never mentioned anything about bicycles in ‘An Inconvenient Truth’?” Black asked. “This is the single best, most efficient transportation invention ever and the man did not spend a second talking about bicycling.”

Black works to educate lawmakers and other government officials on the value of pedal power, often by taking them on bike rides through their cities. The politicians get to see firsthand the successes and failings of bicycle support on roads, Black said.

“We’re going to make sure bicycling is part of the solution in this state so that as we begin to look at ways of reducing our environmental footprint, there will be a place in our transportation system that is bigger than it is presently for bicycles and bicycling,” he said.

But Black sees that the wheels won’t start to turn toward biking immediately because land-use planners primarily focus on automobiles as opposed to alternate transportation methods.

“If you look at American history for the past 50 years, it’s all been about planning for the automobile,” he said. “We have had a generation of cities emerge, the post-World War II boom, the suburbs; it’s all based upon a system in which the motorcar rules supreme.”

Some cities are stepping up, he added.

“The city of Bainbridge Island authorized a non-motorized advisory committee, which is a long way of saying they have designated a group of people, bicyclists and walkers who advise the city council at regularly scheduled meetings and provide input to the comprehensive plan,” he added. “They have convinced the city of Bainbridge Island to spend money on shoulder improvements. They have convinced the city that bicycling is an integral part of developing sustainability in your community.”

Island County is just getting started. It hired Joantha Guthrie last year to work as the county’s non-motorized transportation representative.

“What my job is at Island County is non-motorized transportation; that’s everything to do with cycling, walking, kayaking, any way that you can get around this island; literally around or across it without using a car,” Guthrie told the crowd of

70 or more.

Guthrie has begun to see changes within county government.

“In the last year, there has been a huge shift in the way public works looks at bicycling, walking and non-motorized transportation,” she said.

“This year was the very first year that they included me in the planning of what roads they were going to improve this year,” she said.

Guthrie has also seen success in grant requests focused on biking.

“I wrote a grant and asked for money from the federal government to produce what the community has asked for — which is a bike touring map for all of Island County,” she said.

She has also worked with county employees to design a bike route, and has evaluated routes on Whidbey and Camano islands.

Guthrie hopes to eventually see a bike route that stretches from Deception Pass to Oak Harbor, as well as more bike-friendly roads throughout Island County.

Other speakers said bicycling is not only good for the planet’s health, but for people, too.

Whitney Webber works as Island County’s chronic disease prevention person. Webber said a number of new initiatives support bicycling and healthy living, including a bike-safety program that’s been launched in the Oak Harbor School District that provided bikes and helmets to students. The idea is to get kids to become more active.

On the South End, Bill Frederick of Freeland said trail initiatives are being supported in and around Freeland.

“The momentum is building,”

South Whidbey Record publisher Sherry Mays said after the close of the Exchange.

Mays has joined forces with Wheels on Whidbey, a new island-wide bicycle advocacy group.

“It’s good to start slow and watch this grassroots effort build with a healthy foundation. WOW needs to tap into people’s passions for cycling, health, safety and more,” she said.

“There are so many incredible projects already in the works,” Mays added. “Being able to bring people together to hear about how they could plug into these projects was terrific.”

In an effort to promote safe and enjoyable bike riding for families, Half-Link Bicycle Shop at Bayview Corner will sponsor a bike parade during the Earth Day celebration on Sunday, April 20.

Families will meet at the pond behind Bayview Community Hall at 10 a.m. Prizes will be awarded for the best decorated bikes in both youth and adult categories.