Bike style, bike culture, bike imagery — they’re important for many cyclists. The people who ride, the communities that form around this alternative mode of transportation, and events like critical mass have been important for the increased popularity of urban biking, but the elevation of style over utility in some biking communities has received its share of backlash, as well. There are some biking companies that have adopted techniques that car advertisers use, such as removing the reality from the actual experience of biking.

And there’s an exclusivity to this type of stylized culture for some.  Bowery Lane Bicycles in New York City is one such example. Its ads include images of models with bikes. Still, others might say that the point of the bike is that it’s cheap and inclusive, not a status symbol. It’s an easy, free way to get around.

Others might settle on the notion that the commercialization of biking is just a part of the twentieth century condition. Plus, the beauty of biking is that it’s public: it makes sense in cities, where people are seen. And thus its evolution into a form of cultural expression is inevitable and, in many ways, follows European cycling culture.

The New York Times writes about the trend of fashionable women cycling in a city where the number of bikers increased by 26 percent in 2009:

“She is one in an increasingly visible band of chic New Yorkers whooshing along the green-painted bike lanes that have proliferated in Manhattan, from the Brooklyn Bridge to the Hudson and from TriBeCa to Harlem, clutching BlackBerrys and clad not in spandex but in fluttery skirts, capes and kitten heels.”

The role of women in cycling is not only an indicator that biking culture is on the rise more than ever, but it also shows that women feel safe on the streets, weaving between cars and riding downtown at night. One blog, called Candy Cranks, is a collective blog of female riders from around the world who provide “insight [in]to bike culture in their home cities.” The blog includes writers from cities like Jakarta, Tokyo, Shanghai, Glasgow and Chicago. Their purpose:

A lot of women find the prospect of cycling on busy roads daunting. By showing how other females around the globe cycle for all different reasons whether it be to commute, for fun, fitness, sport, socializing or just cruising to the local cafe, we hope to encourage other girls to get out there and start spinning!

It’s happening in other places, too. In Curitiba, Brazil, there’s a Cycle Chic Blog (part of a series of blogs showcasing bicyclists and their style around the globe).  As we highlighted a few weeks ago, Curitiba also hosted a Tweed Ride for World Carfree Day. But with the focus on style, gear (i.e. bags and lights) and image, we can’t help but wonder about everyone else.

What about the people who ride solely for its cheapness or because they have no other options?  With the preponderance of a certain type of flashy biker, will policies, safety measures and drivers ignore cyclists in low-income and immigrant-dense communities? Or are the media and hype that surround biking simply good for bikers everywhere? American biking culture, for instance, is becoming more expansive, including not only bike racers and bike messengers but also commuters and youth.

Another question: Do these fashionable people ever wear helmets?

Nonetheless, the increase in women cyclists, in particular, further promotes access for all. And clearly the trend is catching on in other parts of the world. Biking is about merging aesthetics and function and by its very nature, it’s inclusive, from groups of kids barreling through the streets to throngs of city dwellers commuting to work in the morning.