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In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars (2009)

nytimes.com

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Re: In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars (2009)

#81

Post by toumhi »

edash wrote: post #73
toumhi wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've lived for two years in Austin, now in Amsterdam (the one in Europe). Amsterdam (and actually, most of Europe) is infinitely better for biking than Austin. Actually I almost never rode my bike in Austin. Always cars passing at high speed right next to you. I think USA cities have still a lot more to do to be real bike-friendly.

I'm sure US cities have a relatively long way to go, but biking in Austin is feasible and safe. I don't own a car (and neither do many of my friends) and it's great. Just live in Austin (the actual city) and not Round Rock, Pflugerville et al. Leave a few minutes early and take roads meant to accommodate bikers. It can be challenging when it's 100+ degrees, but you learn to adjust. And with the new car sharing progra…

I lived in Austin itself, and I would consider many of the roads seriously dangerous. There are no really roads meant to accommodate bikers, only roads for cars (Anderson Mill Road and Parmer Lane come to mind). The stupid thing, from a biker point of view, is that even if you try to bike on smaller roads, at some point you are forced to join a big road. Also, since urban planning didn't take into account alternative modes of transportation, the distance to bike is ironically much longer than if you take your car(in Europe it's usually the contrary since you can bike on all roads, so it reduces the distance). So, I really see biking as transportation strongly discouraged there. Big up to Austinites who ride their bike though!

Re: In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars (2009)

#82

Post by arethuza »

KoZeN wrote: post #47
unwind wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In Sweden (average 164 days/year with rain), there's a saying typically used by parents when their kids complain about the weather. It goes, translated very verbatim: "there is no bad weather, only bad clothes". It's far snappier in Swedish where it rhymes, but I guess the point comes across, still. Update: after reading a few more comments, I guess this doesn't address the other end of the spectrum, that it can be t…

I remember watching Billy Connolly doing a stand-up show years ago where he went on a massive rant about people complaining about the weather. He rounded of his rant with the statement: "There's no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes." To this day I consider that quote to be one of my all-time favourites as it really helps me smile whilst most people are depressed over the fact that it's cold and wet.

Presumably the "Where dae ye think ye are? Benidorm?" rant :-)

Re: In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars (2009)

#83

Post by chopsueyar »

organicgrant wrote: post #32
toumhi wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've lived for two years in Austin, now in Amsterdam (the one in Europe). Amsterdam (and actually, most of Europe) is infinitely better for biking than Austin. Actually I almost never rode my bike in Austin. Always cars passing at high speed right next to you. I think USA cities have still a lot more to do to be real bike-friendly.

Hipsters in Austin ride their fixies off car bumpers. Having a death wish is trendy these days. Greenbelt is also BA. (badass) I admire them for staying fit on their bikes. Helps to counteract their main foods of Lone Star beer and clove cigs

I believe Obama outlawed "clove cigs".

Please, think of the children.

Children are now only allowed clove cigars.

Re: In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars (2009)

#84

Post by lispm »

ugh wrote: post #65
limmeau wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's the U-Bahn's policy on taking along bikes?

Not during rush hour (6-9am, 4-6pm), and your bike needs a ticket (€2.50/day). http://www.muenchen.de/verticals/Mobilitaet/Fahrrad/Rad_U_S_... That’s not very friendly, I wouldn’t use that except in emergencies. That’s probably why you don’t see bikes on the U-Bahn.

Here in Hamburg you don't need a ticket for the bicycle. Busses also may transport them. Ferries are free, too.

Re: In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars (2009)

#85

Post by eru »

cosmohh wrote: post #55
coffeejunk wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I now live in Munich, which also calls itself a bike town. Although there are a lot of people riding their bikes, the streets are not at all as bike friendly as the ones in Münster. Each trip is somewhere between a suicide mission and a pleasant journey depending on where you want to go.

Sure, compared to towns like Münster, Freiburg or Amsterdam, Munich could offer better bike support, but there are still lots of bike lanes and you are rarely forced to use car lanes, so I would still consider it quite bike friendly.

Cambridge, UK, also has lots of bikers. There could be more bike lanes etc, but the car drivers are quite forgiving.

Re: In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars (2009)

#86

Post by eru »

brc wrote: post #66

I get the point - and I support the development of car-free suburbs for people who want them. Streets safe for children, people saying hello instead of staring from behind closed windows, etc. Less local pollution, more friendly streets, less accidents : all pluses. I just don't want to see some zealot telling me I can't have a car, and that I am some sort of evil person for having one. Further, not everywhere is sui…

I find lots of strange laws (or just rules / contracts) much more acceptable locally, where you can choose to live in this community or not --- than would be acceptable on a larger scale like a nation.

Re: In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars (2009)

#87

Post by Mz »

whatusername wrote: post #70
harscoat wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To illustrate the "humanely fulfilling": while students in Rotterdam, we had to ride our bikes back 5km from a pub... it just started raining, but while biking the sky literaly fell on us. We arrived soaking wet, drenched. Among us, this remains one of our best memories.

I've had some amazing experiences getting drenched too. But I'm not sure that it would be that amazing on my way into work. (Likely carrying a laptop).

I live without a car in a rainy area. I've showed up at work a handful of times simply drenched. Not fun, but it actually happens a lot less than I thought it would. It doesn't bother me particularly in other situations, like on the way home from work or when going shopping. But, yeah, showing up at work drenched kind of sucks. Of course, as others have mentioned, how you dress matters so with planning this can be ameliorated if you travel by foot or bike regularly -- which seems to be an alien concept to folks who are very dependent on their cars.

Re: In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars (2009)

#88

Post by eru »

organicgrant wrote: post #23
bobbyflanders wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All great solutions, but the infrastructure just isn't there (as already mentioned). Blame it in "brain-dead urban planning", or "stupid housing considerations", but that doesn't change the fact that biking to work is simply not possible for most people. If you live in the suburbs of New York, biking to Manhattan to work just isn't practical. If you live in the middle of the country, biking to work can be a nightmare…

You hit the real root of it there. Detroit auto bought out the passenger rail system in LA in the late 40s, then shut it down (true story). Oil drives concrete & consumption. Crack in a US sidewalk? Break it up and pour a new pad. Euro sidewalk? All pavers. Pull 'em up, fix a sewer line or whatever and put the same ones back down.

What do you want to tell with the tale about the sidewalks? We also have some concrete sidewalks in Europe. And pouring new concrete isn't too bad. You can even re-use the old broken down concrete for some things.

The trend even seems to be to make Autobahnen out of concrete. (Although that's not very relevant I guess, because Autobahnen are rarely digged up.)

Re: In German Suburb, Life Goes On Without Cars (2009)

#90

Post by tiki12revolt »

jacquesm wrote: post #78
organicgrant wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hipsters in Austin ride their fixies off car bumpers. Having a death wish is trendy these days. Greenbelt is also BA. (badass) I admire them for staying fit on their bikes. Helps to counteract their main foods of Lone Star beer and clove cigs

Fixies (fixed gear bicycles) are illegal in traffic in almost all places and are intended for track use only.

I'm not exactly sure that is true. If they have a brake mount and at least one brake, they are street legal. Do you have a source for your assertion?
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