111–120 of 145 posts
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Amsterdam has a different layout than most US cities but it became a car city much like everywhere else. They fought to change. This is what the Dutchs did https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/may/05/amsterdam-bic...
Let's not ignore the fact that Amsterdam is almost completely flat.
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Around here they create X crossings, where the bike lane and the right hand car lane cross each other in an X. This is sheer madness.
How would you handle locations where cars are turning right and cyclists are riding straight?
Like this:
https://goo.gl/maps/HJnyxbs1hnJ2
https://goo.gl/maps/VatZztEiXTJ2
https://goo.gl/maps/PpSaGeChwS12 Note the advanced bike stop line.
https://goo.gl/maps/zJZNRTYQ5ZL2 Note the bike-only tunnel.
https://goo.gl/maps/CWLmL1DTsBs
https://goo.gl/maps/dGJSZnQVfw82
https://goo.gl/maps/rvf9hP3DvV62
https://goo.gl/maps/sYNKHgEBsZk Note the two-way left turn for cyclists.
https://goo.gl/maps/63YCi5hzz6M2 There is a X-crossing right of this, but cyclists vastly outnumber cars here, and it's being removed.
In virtually all examples it is physically impossible for right-turning cars and cyclists to conflict, unless the driver is grossly negligent. There is no conflict due to phasing: one phase for straight-through cars and cyclists, one for right-turning traffic.
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The places where people ride bikes en masse, like Amsterdam, have physical separation. Very few people want to have cars whizzing by a few feet from their elbows. If you want people to seriously consider cycling as anything other than a hobby you need physical separation of bicycles from cars. Unfortunately cycling advocacy organizations in the United States tend to be opposed to physical separation.
Drivers tend to see cyclists as intruders, and fail to give them the space and respect that they give other “legitimate” vehicles. The bike lobby exists to combat this. Things like Critical Mass rides, signage, and road paint are all about changing driver psychology and raising awareness about a cyclist’s right to occupy the travel lane. If you’re going around saying car and cycle traffic should not mix, you are its…
One thing I would change is to mandate proper turn signals on bicycles. Some people aren’t good at hand signals, and you have to take your hand off the brake to make them, which just seems ludicrously unsafe to me.
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I've always thought cities with a snowy season would be great candidates for bike lanes. Bicycling drops dramatically in the winter, so the bike lanes sit mostly unused. This makes them a good place to deposit excess snow.
Ever consider that cycling drops because the bike lanes are where snow is either not cleared, or is used to deposit snow from auto lanes?
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The conditions you describe are bikable. A shower would be essential. Those who are willing need no special accommodations.
Technically bikeable: yes A long unpleasant bike ride for your daily commute: also yes I think biking works if it's either a last mile type of thing via bike share programs combined with public transit, or if you are biking in a denser city. In NYC with lane splitting, sometimes you can be faster than cars.
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I accept that but wouldn't it be better if we both had a choice that suits us? My city has hills that even my car has problems with.
Ebikes whip up hills with ease that lower power cars struggle on. The main limiting factor is they are limited to 25km/h by motor power but even that isn't too bad.
I’m in The us and the assist cuts out at 20mph. I get that since I’m sharing the roads and paths with other bikes/joggers and cars (and the ocational electric skateboard/kick scooter). I tend to ride much faster with the ebike and can see how this added power can get me into more trouble.
I really enjoy the boost though.
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Cars do just fine in snowy places. I don’t see a reason why bikes shouldn’t. Stability, slippage, being exposed to freezing cold and wet, the lack of an engine assist, no heat, two fewer wheels, and did I mention cold? Just throw in the same effort that you do to keep car lanes open, and you’ll be fine. Open for a car and open for a bike are different. You can drive through some snow, slush and ice, but I hate biking…
> less safe, less reliable Doesn't seem true where I live. Maybe you have a study to support this claim?\ > Bikes probably do make more sense if a majority of your population lives in one or two cities, otherwise it just doesn’t. Cities in general seem to be conducive to bikes. Not sure why the whole country needs to live in just one or two cities or how that could logically follow.
Nationwide, you’re more than twice as likely to die while riding a bike than riding in a car, per trip, according to a 2007 study led by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention epidemiologist Laurie Beck. Bike riding is also about 500 times more fatal than riding in a bus. Though Beck didn’t run numbers on subway and commuter rail systems, they may be the safest form of transportation of all. Despite a series of well-publicized accidents and maintenance issues, Metrorail and Metrobus reported just two injuries per million riders in 2015.