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I live in Washington, D.C. and have witnessed the explosive growth of Capital Bikeshare its first year of operation. It has been amazing. Residents and businesses all want a CaBi station near them.

And it has brought an often divided region together because it is a partnership between the District Department of Transportation and Arlington County, Virginia. And soon Capital Bikeshare will be expanding to Alexandria, Rockville, Shady Grove and College Park. The Southland is also made up of many often competing jurisdictions. That's why bike sharing should be region-wide, not just in L.A. city proper. Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Culver City, Long Beach, Pasadena etc.. should all get together on implementing a region-wide bike sharing system.

Bike sharing is the one thing that fundamentally changes the rules of the game and changes the culture. After all, how can drivers be aggressive and hostile at old grannies, tourists, and families leisurely biking on those sturdy, shiny red bikes? No longer is the stereotype of a D.C. biker that of an "action sport" bike messenger dodging traffic and running red lights.

I was in Europe this past summer and enjoyed bike sharing in London, Paris, Barcelona, Brussels, Berlin and other cities. L.A. needs bike sharing to loosen the grip the car has on the city and create more balance and harmony like in European cities where millions bike to work, to the grocery store, everywhere every single day.