To the Editor:

In the article, “Advocates of Cycling Weigh Council’s Decision To Table Bike Ordinance” [page one, March 4], those interviewed seemed sincerely motivated to make life better not just for bike riders but for all residents of Princeton. They also seemed frustrated to various degrees by the tabling of the ordinance, and by extension by their inability to effect a desired change. As someone who has spent a career studying and practicing approaches to change in organizations, I humbly offer three suggestions borrowed from experts in the field:

1. Focus on interests, not positions, is one of the principles of negotiation offered by Sheila Heen of Harvard Law School. A particular bike lane on a certain street is a position, increasing safety and sustainability is an interest around which different people (with different needs) can construct a productive dialogue.

2. The late Edwin Nevis helped people understand that in change efforts, recognizing resistance and adopting a respectful attitude in working through it leads to useful outcomes. Assuming that the people who resist the change ‘just don’t get it’ likely impedes the change. Engage the resistance with transparency and curiosity rather than trying to overcome it.

3. Roger Schwarz, perhaps the preeminent living expert on how groups work best, suggests certain assumptions that are helpful in trying to be productive in a community. One of them seems pertinent to this situation: “People can disagree with me and still have pure motives.” Some of the quotes in the article suggest that the ‘advocates’ are starting to pursue this strategy by identifying information that the other side may not possess, but I would advise that they should be equally curious as to what new information those who spoke against the ordinance hold.

As an observer who has lived in Princeton for 11 years and travelled that stretch of Hamilton Avenue to work and back every weekday that whole time, I think that the current resolution is a useful compromise: ”Under the terms of the tabling of the ordinance, a bike lane will be added on the side of street where parking is already not allowed, leaving the existing parking on the opposite side.” I look forward to sharing the road with those who will use the new bike lane, and also enthusiastically anticipate the continued dialogue on safety and sustainability that will address all concerns of Princeton residents including practicality and livability.

T.J. Elliott

Gulick Road