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I harbor a longtime fantasy - born partly of fear, frankly - of Albuquerque becoming a new-millennium haven for the greatest invention in the history of human transportation: the bicycle.

Biking continues to grab headlines for tragedy, most recently for the unfortunate death of a cyclist over the weekend.

But as the old song said: There's something happening here. What it is, fortunately, is exactly clear.

If we make just a few right moves, biking could take off faster than Lance Armstrong in a sprint. And we just might get to the brightest vision in my fantasy: Albuquerque dotted with bikes at rental stations, available to all.

Here's where I'm going.

Paris (France, not Texas) just announced the purchase of 4,000 bikes, available at city-run bike stations located near metro stops. You swipe a pre-purchased card, unlock the bike, and away you go. The city makes money from the deal by the advertising at the stations.

The card, similar to a monthly bus pass, is the key. There have been efforts before at "free bikes for all." Frankly, they were a disaster.

Portland, Ore., is the best known example, with its ill-fated "yellow bike" idea in the Õ90s, in which free bikes were just sitting there for anyone who wanted one to use. Most of them promptly disappeared.

Paris is taking another cut at it, using a rental approach.

I love this idea - this fantasy - for Albuquerque.

"Your fantasy is shared by a majority of RideABQ members," says Ben Savoca, president of the group. "It's definitely an aspiration, but it's still a little early," he said.

"Before it can happen there has to be massive amounts of education. And we need the infrastructure."

Good point there. But I've noticed a funny thing around town: Where bike racks pop up, bikes to fill them are not too far behind.

The Rail Runner Express commuter train is a great example of what can happen when you build capacity to accommodate bikes.

For example, on Monday, there were 120 bikes on board for the day. The range is 80 to 110 on any given day, says Rail Runner Project Manager Chris Blewitt. "We're getting a lot of bikes," he said.

City buses are going to be retrofitted soon to increase their carrying capacity for bikes. Now, car lovers among us might not be terribly impressed, but these small steps hold big dividends.

There was a time in Albuquerque - and here comes that fear issue - when there was a palpable battle between drivers and bikers.

When I moved here in the late Õ80s, I arrived with a spanking new mountain bike, planning on living a biking commuter's life. We lived in Corrales at the time, and it took but three trips in the morning commute across the old Alameda Bridge to get me back in a car. You could feel the passenger side mirrors just off your left side handlebar.

Those were the dark ages of biking here, when we had no bike lanes.

This is a different day, however.

BikeABQ has a rather interesting demonstration plan slated for Silver Avenue between Carlisle and University boulevards Southwest, to make it a bike area. A terrific idea. Better yet, they are looking beyond the natural hotbeds of the University Area, Nob Hill and Downtown.

"After Silver, we're looking at underserved areas. Ever bike on the West Side? It's scary. You take your life in your hands," Savoca says. "That's the key. To get people aware there."

Albuquerque as a bike model for the nation. This one is doable. Some fantasies can come true.