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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)

#111

Post by pchristensen »

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 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."

In the US, it's basically illegal to build any kind of development that doesn't require a car or two. Some exceptions, like Kentlands in MD, or Stapleton in Denver, require developers to prepare plans in advance, lobby for variances to zoning and parking requirements. It's also harder to get financing for non-standard projects. All this means that unless you're building a standard subdivision, an office park, or a strip mall, you're at a competitive disadvantage and incur higher costs and risks.

Let there be no illusion that the "market" provided the built environment we have.

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

#112

Post by dwiel »

run4yourlives wrote: post #102
Luc wrote: post #56

I think having the right legal framework helps a lot to get a good bicycle culture. Here in Belgium, when a car hits a bicyclist, the car driver's insurance will always pay for bodily damage of the bicyclist, even if the bicyclist is at fault. Most streets where I live (in the center of Antwerp) are one-way for cars, but two-way for bicycles. And cars are limited to 30 km/h. My wife goes to work on her bicycle and ge…

Here in Belgium, when a car hits a bicyclist, the car driver's insurance will always pay for bodily damage of the bicyclist, even if the bicyclist is at fault. Sorry, but doesn't anyone have an issue with this? Why is there an expectation that cyclists cannot possibly be held responsible for their actions? By this logic, if my mini hits a bus, I shouldn't be responsible, even if I ran a red light. I tend to agree wit…

Biking by itself is not that dangerous. Biking near cars is dangerous. If you want to drive around in a 2 ton vehicle with the power to kill, you better damn be responsible for it.

Also, there is an imbalance in incentives to not get in an accident. If a car and a bike get in a wreck, the person driving has almost no risk of injury where the person on bike is at risk of dying or getting seriously injured, depending on the situation. This law gives people driving a little more reason to be more careful.

Also, keep in mind in the US, if a car hits a pedestrian, the driver's insurance always pays no matter whose at fault.

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

#113

Post by jacquesm »

lutorm wrote: post #110
jacquesm wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Going fast and having just a front brake can easily cause you to do a forward flip. 80% of your stopping power is in the front brake, but if you're going very fast engaging the front brake for an emergency stop can make a bad situation worse. That's a pretty sad story there, I read a bit on his site and he seems to have been a very nice and knowledgeable guy. I'm pretty sure he would have smiled at the way you charac…

I've never bought the front brake argument. As a bicyclist, motorcyclist, and physicist, I know that 100% of your stopping power is on the front brake, exactly because (as you say) the front brake can make you do a forward flip. This means that all your weight is on the front wheel, and the only thing you can do with your rear brake is make the rear wheel lose traction, and that will indeed make a bad situation worse…

I went ass-over-teakettle once on a tenspeed in Amsterdam traffic, I was very much in a hurry (trying to catch the train to work) and rode faster than the car traffic, a guy turned right into my 'lane' and I hit the front brake in a reflex. Too hard, I flipped right over and bounced off the pavement after doing a salto. Bad scrapes everywhere, fortunately nothing more serious than that (I used to be made of elastic, if I tried that today I'd be dead). I never realised that you could do that until it happened.

I was 'right' too, but since swerving wasn't an option and my front brake worked a bit better than expected I wonder if there would have been a better way to handle this (sliding sideways for instance). Accidents lurk in remarkably small corners. My nightmare scenario for a fixed gear cycle would be downhill at a good speed with a sudden obstruction. That would be the 'perfect storm'.

Glad to hear your wife is fine, bicyclists are on the bad side of any close encounters of the third kind with other traffic.

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

#114

Post by jonknee »

Niten wrote: post #20
bobbyflanders wrote: post #8

In other words, I should come into work completely drenched in sweat? In many parts of the USA, it is very humid and temperatures can easily reach 90 and above. How do you expect people to bike in such conditions? In addition, many people commute long distances to work, which may take up to an hour just by car. Bikes are great, but not very practical.

I often bike to work, which for me is about 26 miles each direction. I take a shower right before I leave, and when I get there I just have to rinse down and change out of my cycling jersey. The theory behind the pre-ride shower is that body odor is caused by bacteria on your skin, and showering temporarily knocks out enough of your bacteria that it won't cause significant odor during your ride. (I'm not aware of act…

> Even on our hottest days here in south Florida, one can easily bike a mile, fully dressed, without breaking a sweat.

Perhaps we're different, but I break a sweat in a couple minutes simply going outside in FL this time of year. Add riding a bike and I'm drenched.

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

#116

Post by pragmatic »

harscoat wrote: post #24

21st Century, that anybody can argue against (in this thread or elsewhere) that going by bike to work is way better, healthier, more humanly fulfilling, than by car leaves me speechless. Vote for mayors pro bike roads or ask for showers at work, there is always a solution.

Where do you live?

Does it reach 95 degress F with almost 100% humidity in the summer and -50 degrees F in the winter? Does it ever snow 12 inches+ at a time? Is there every freezing rain followed by inches of snow covering it?

My point is, what works in California doesn't work in Fargo or Minneapolis. Even driving a diesel automobile. They gel up bad. Same with electric cars, the temperature (hot and cold) kills batteries.

If I lived in Santa Barbara, yeah, biking to work would be awesome.

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

#117

Post by arethuza »

brazzy wrote: post #79
arethuza wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No - not even close for total amount of precipitation. However, the Scottish Highlands do excel in miserable drizzle that falls continuously for days, weeks and probably months ("dreich"). And yes, I am Scottish and have spent a lot of time outdoors!

By "rainiest" I did mean "highest number of rainy days" rather than "highest amount of precipitation".

Is there an "official" name for that statistic?

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

#119

Post by roc »

run4yourlives wrote: post #102
Luc wrote: post #56

I think having the right legal framework helps a lot to get a good bicycle culture. Here in Belgium, when a car hits a bicyclist, the car driver's insurance will always pay for bodily damage of the bicyclist, even if the bicyclist is at fault. Most streets where I live (in the center of Antwerp) are one-way for cars, but two-way for bicycles. And cars are limited to 30 km/h. My wife goes to work on her bicycle and ge…

Here in Belgium, when a car hits a bicyclist, the car driver's insurance will always pay for bodily damage of the bicyclist, even if the bicyclist is at fault. Sorry, but doesn't anyone have an issue with this? Why is there an expectation that cyclists cannot possibly be held responsible for their actions? By this logic, if my mini hits a bus, I shouldn't be responsible, even if I ran a red light. I tend to agree wit…

I'm not seeing a huge difference between that and the state of vehicle laws in my home state (Michigan).

Here, if you strike another car, you're at fault. Regardless of what another vehicle does, you're expected to maintain safe stopping distance and an 'exit' if your lane needs to be vacated in an emergency.

I have a friend who actually did get a ticket for hitting a car that ran a red light. Granted, the car running the light got a ticket for breaking the law, but 'fault' for the collision was assigned to my friend.

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

#120

Post by MichaelSalib »

pchristensen wrote: post #111
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 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." In the US, it's basically illegal to build any kind of development that doesn't require a car or two. Some exceptions, like Kentlands in MD, or Stapleton in Denver, require developers to prepare plans in advance, lobby for variances to zoning and parking requirements. It's also harder to get fi…

I am saddened that I can only give this comment one upvote.

In fact, in most US cities, it is illegal to build high density development like the kind that already exists in those cities.

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