No ‘carmageddon’ on auto-free Market Street: study shows bikes and buses benefit

Post by megablast » Fri, Feb 28, 2020, 9:42 PM UTC

dbingham wrote: post #56

Traster wrote: post #51

>His conclusion: When cities shut streets off to cars, people drive less. The myth of a “carmageddon”-style traffic jam is apparently overblown. This seems to completely ignore the fact that what actually has occured here is that the reduction of drivers is a negative for those drivers. Those drivers now either have to cycle or use public transport instead of their cars or have to move. That might seem positive to th…

Well, and the externalities of the driver's carbon emissions are a massive negative impact on all of us. In a city as dense as San Francisco, transit, walking, or biking can easily cover most people's transportation needs. The more we build safe and effective infrastructure for those modes, the more people will use them. And that will be good - in the end - for the remaining few who do absolutely need to drive (thoug…

Post by rovolo » Fri, Feb 28, 2020, 9:58 PM UTC

IshKebab wrote: post #153

itamarst wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

E-bikes! They're amazing. Bicycle with small assist engine. You start pedaling, and the bike engine helps you, so going up hills is easy. Riding one feels like you have super-strength.

Ebikes still cost way too much. You can get a really great bike for £500. An ebike is going to set you back £1500 or more. I think the price will come down but I don't think they're a great solution yet. Fortunately they don't need to be a great solution. In all but the hilliest places plenty of people will bike if the cycle lanes are there. Loads of people cycle in Bristol despite it being quite hilly and not really…

Post by kqr » Fri, Feb 28, 2020, 10:19 PM UTC

paradox101 wrote: post #183

r_klancer wrote: post #147

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Some of those already exist! At increasing levels of car-like-ness: * https://www.wired.com/gallery/best-electric-cargo-bikes/ * https://www.contemporist.com/5-examples-of-enclosed-bike-des... * https://www.arcimoto.com/ (Studiously ignoring parent's intended snark) In all seriousness, I'm expecting an explosion of these new light vehicle body types in the coming decades, as global trends of cheap electric drive + ba…

"I'm expecting an explosion of these new light vehicle body types in the coming decades, as global trends of cheap electric drive + batteries, increasing urban congestion, and less car-oriented urban planning trends converge" Don't motorcycles already serve that purpose? Its already the chief form of personal transportation in most of the Earth's population. The problem I see with all the concepts you posted is that…

Post by rconti » Fri, Feb 28, 2020, 10:21 PM UTC

lotsofpulp wrote: post #59

flyinghamster wrote: post #54

Chicago tried this decades ago with the State Street Mall project [1]. It turned out to be an overall flop, with stores seeing reduced traffic, and by 1993 it was gone and good riddance. As a pedestrian, I hated it when I worked downtown. Maybe they'll do something on Market Street that will work better, or perhaps it might be a better fit there than in Chicago, but I wish them luck, because they're going to need it.…

The weather in Chicago is markedly worse for being outside for half the year.

Post by paradox101 » Fri, Feb 28, 2020, 11:13 PM UTC

kqr wrote: post #195

paradox101 wrote: post #183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I'm expecting an explosion of these new light vehicle body types in the coming decades, as global trends of cheap electric drive + batteries, increasing urban congestion, and less car-oriented urban planning trends converge" Don't motorcycles already serve that purpose? Its already the chief form of personal transportation in most of the Earth's population. The problem I see with all the concepts you posted is that…

I think you might be underestimating the size of a modern car -- they're huge !