Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

After Spike in Deaths, New York to Get 250 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes

nytimes.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

131–140 of 317 posts

Re: After Spike in Deaths, New York to Get 250 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes

#131

Post by dublinben »

de_Selby wrote: post #64
schrodinger wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One thing I like about the newer NYC bike lanes is they put them inside of parked cars. It means you’re generally protected from traffic by a row of parked cars. And there’s a large enough buffer that you don’t have to worry about getting hit by an open door.

How does that work if the cyclist is going straight and cars are turning across them (e.g. Making a right turn). Does it not make it harder for the traffic to see the cyclist?

Protected intersections for bicycles are possible, and compatible with this kind of protected bike lane.

http://www.protectedintersection.com/

Re: After Spike in Deaths, New York to Get 250 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes

#132

Post by asteli »

objektif wrote: post #128
jacobreg wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not ridiculous to say the urbanest area should try to set an example for other urban areas

Why muct we accomodate the needs of bikers? Why do they hold a special place? Can we instead invest in subway?

This is about transit safety. Cyclists are in a lot more danger than pedestrians, because unlike peds, they don't have special infrastructure set aside from them for the most part.

Re: After Spike in Deaths, New York to Get 250 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes

#133

Post by bobbylarrybobby »

tombert wrote: post #112
OutsmartDan wrote: post #62

As an avid cyclist in NYC, this is a huge step forward into cyclist protection. I can't tell you how many times i've almost been hit, or doored, by a car. Sometimes, it's a lot safer to run a red light to get in front of a car versus waiting for the light to turn- but of course that's not legal. Honestly, as huge and condensed NYC is, I am surprised this hasn't happened years ago. It's much, much more efficient to ge…

My biggest pet peeve is when cops treat the bike lane as additional parking. I've seen cops do it just to walk into 7-eleven and buy a snack. I wonder if that will be addressed at some point.

Cops all drive into the city from Long Island. They don't understand how New Yorkers actually live and get around; to them a bike lane is a curiosity for weirdos who like to get around on a child's vehicle.

Getting change in this regard will require either very serious change in how cops are regulated, or a change in cops' mindsets regarding cars and bikes. Not sure which I'd bet on happening first.

Re: After Spike in Deaths, New York to Get 250 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes

#134

Post by yalph »

I dont really want to hurt people’s feelings but why do we care about this topic so much? I am kind of confused about why people are so passionate about bike lanes. Isn't it better if we focus on improving the subway and the bus lines before anything? I would like to see an open minded discussion about the pros and cons of this.

Re: After Spike in Deaths, New York to Get 250 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes

#135

Post by acchow »

wefarrell wrote: post #59
pwthornton wrote: post #5

This is big time for America. If our biggest city can’t show leadership on pedestrian and bicyclist safety, we can’t expect any other city to as well. New York is really lagging behind where it should be. Despite being by far the biggest American city, it is overrun with cars. Protected bike lanes, street improvements to make crossing the street safer, and dedicated bus lanes will improve the city for all New Yorkers…

I commute on my bike in NYC daily and I am far more terrified of pedestrians and other cyclists than I am of cars. Cars for the most part pay attention and obey traffic rules. Cyclists less so and pedestrians ignore rules entirely and frequently aren't even aware of cyclists.

Does someone know the name of this bias/fallacy?

Re: After Spike in Deaths, New York to Get 250 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes

#136

Post by btrettel »

fennecfoxen wrote: post #51
trenning wrote: post #44

Don't get your hopes up, Uber drivers will still find a way to block the bike lanes.

And the cops. And the firefighters parking outside the fire station. And when a car does hit a bike and NYPD shows up... well... https://twitter.com/joemewler/status/1177042296900071425

I've been thinking about starting a cyclist-oriented "neighborhood watch" type organization because the police don't do much anything about violence against cyclists, much less more "minor" issues like parking in the bike lane. At the very least volunteers could document things like this properly.

Re: After Spike in Deaths, New York to Get 250 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes

#137

Post by Rebelgecko »

8ytecoder wrote: post #42
schrodinger wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One thing I like about the newer NYC bike lanes is they put them inside of parked cars. It means you’re generally protected from traffic by a row of parked cars. And there’s a large enough buffer that you don’t have to worry about getting hit by an open door.

In Oakland, California and some parts of SF, these lanes are being used as pickup drop and cruising lanes

We had the same trouble in Los Angeles.

When they swapped the bike lane and parking, there was no physical barrier so everyone parked in the bike lane [1].

Even when they added bollards and painted better, lots of people still don't understand[2][3]

[1]: https://imgur.com/82LdPTF.jpg

[2]: https://imgur.com/lihBjtM.jpg

[3]: https://twitter.com/LABikeLaneBlock

Re: After Spike in Deaths, New York to Get 250 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes

#138

Post by rb808 »

SwellJoe wrote: post #124
rb808 wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Netherlands and much Denmark aren't that cold in winter, many years it wont even snow. Further the summers are cool.

Not unlike New York City. But, how about Finland? They also ride bikes a lot more than most US cities, and Finland definitely has harsh winters. Edit: As for summers, I've regularly biked in Texas throughout the summer over many years (I've lived without a car quite a bit in Austin). The peak of the day is rough, but the usual commuting hours aren't too bad. New York has nothing on Texas summers.

I know AMS and NYC well, Finland - do people bike all winter? The snow is one thing, the icy roads and cold make it tough.

Re: After Spike in Deaths, New York to Get 250 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes

#139

Post by smt88 »

mschuster91 wrote: post #41
smt88 wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because you don't win points for prevention of hypothetical harm. See: vaccine "debate". Pro-vaccine policies saved millions of people who are alive right now, but you can't run on a pro-vaccine platform until people start dying again.

You can run a pro-vax platform - if the populace is not too dumb and uneducated. Anyone with a slice of a brain understands that anti-vaxx is a deadly game. The problem is that (not only in the US!) education funding has gone way downhill and the "free speech!!!" absolutist crowd does not realize that truly free speech depends on an audience intelligent enough to separate facts from quackery (such as homeopathy, anti…

I don't disagree with everything you said, but suggesting people should be jailed for misunderstanding scientific facts is a pretty obviously disastrous position to take.

Who is the arbiter of the truth? What about people who are sincerely misinformed and well-intentioned?

Free speech laws in the US seem to strike a good balance: if you're selling a product under false pretenses, you can be sued. If you're just publishing content, you can't be sued.

Re: After Spike in Deaths, New York to Get 250 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes

#140

Post by bobbylarrybobby »

eatbitseveryday wrote: post #4

Why do deaths have to be the trigger to prioritize safety? Examples: Boeing, this article, and a recent HN post [0], etc. [0] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21374525

The deaths are the very evidence that the system is unsafe and needs fixing. Until people die, a safe system and an unsafe system look very similar to all but the most trained eyes.
Post reply on HN