Q01 - Reflection - Designing for Cycling - What do you need to know?

Why is change urgent in your community?
Rome is a big city in which too many people drive to get anywhere. Even though is through distances are quite large, most people don't need to move very far from their home that often. Also, in Rome drivers misbehaving more often than not goes unpunished. There is almost never a consequence to parking where is not permitted even when people park on sidewalks, crosswalks, bike lanes, double park or (this also happens) park right in the middle of the road. This leads to crazy congestion, a very unpleasant environment and, most importantly, a very unsafe city for anyone that is not driving a car (and also for who is).
How will you leverage your unique experience and expertise to tell a moving story about change?
As an environmental engineer pursuing a master in Urban Mobility, my plan is to keep in mind a broad and multidisciplinary perspective on why change is needed. I am personally moved mostly by safety and quality of life when it comes to mobility matters. My approach, as an engineer is technical and moved by data and models, but these are things people may not care about or (rightfully) understand. That's why I believe I should use my knowledge to take the right decisions, but my empathy and personal sensitivity to have citizens appreciate it.
Who is your target audience when advocating for change? (communities, professions, individuals)
This really depends on what one is advocating for. For some aspects, we can talk directly to individuals or families, like when trying to convince people to follow traffic rules better. At the same time though, it is also important to target decision makers in order to ensure that every action is taken to enforce those rules (in this example).
What is the biggest challenge of selling the idea of cycling to your audience? Pick 3 fallacies that people may object to, and write down your response.
The perception is that most people don't see themselves as cyclist, at least in my surroundings. This makes even the more open to change of them, see this change us something that would touch other people. Truthfully, people choose what they see as the most convinient mode of transport to get around and they would probably choose cycling if it was (or they believed it was) for them.

Rome is known for being built on 7 hills. This, despite being through, isn't really a reason to discard it from a cycling city. In most cases, there are alternative routes to reach places that have smaller gradient and the advent of electric bikes makes this argument fall completely;
People may say that they cannot move a lot of things on a bike. This is true (not for cargo bikes) but we don't need to carry our sofa everywhere we go. A few days worth of groceries can easily fit in a bag that can be carried on a bike rack and for those rare occasions one actually need to move big things, they could rent (or own, if it happens often) a cargo bike or even rent a car or truck for those very rare occasions;
I can't bike when it rains. First of all, we are not made out of sugar, we don't melt if we get wet. Secondly, there are many options to cover ourselves, from bike ponchos, to a rainjacket and waterproof pants. Also, for some reason, in a city like Rome were a ton of people use scooters or motorcycles to avoid traffic, the rain doesn't seem to be an issue (maybe speed makes us and our clothes waterproof)

“… but we are not the Netherlands/Denmark/other city!” is a popular objection. Can you think of 3 cities with similar mode shares and high cycling growth that can serve as more “reasonable” models for your work?

Barcelona, Paris, London are all cities that have undergone big improvements in this aspect. Although, one could argue that they have a much more developed public transportation system than Rome (that only has 3 - more like 2.5 - metro lines). It is also true that many cities in North America are becoming more bikefriendly beside not having 15 metro lines (think of Ontario).