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Investigating the effects of bike lanes in Minneapolis

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Re: Investigating the effects of bike lanes in Minneapolis

#71

Post by monkey_monkey »

sixstringtheory wrote: post #37
nashashmi wrote: post #5

Fair question: Are dedicated bike lanes near pedestrian friendly paths a safe transportation environment? I feel that bikes and electric scooters are more dangerous than cars.

I'm going to assume it's saf er . I can't remember the last time I heard about someone riding a bike or scooter killing a pedestrian. Oh wait, I've never heard of that. But I have heard of people driving cars that have killed: - other people driving cars - cyclists - pedestrians - themselves Why do you feel that bikes and scooters are more dangerous than cars?

> I can't remember the last time I heard about someone riding a bike or scooter killing a pedestrian.

It does happen, but it's very very rare.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-58009784

Re: Investigating the effects of bike lanes in Minneapolis

#72

Post by yboris »

worldmerge wrote: post #19

I just visited Minneapolis for EYEO Festival. I was amazed at how good cycling was there. I now can't see my hometown the same and have started considering Minneapolis to move to. Check out PeopleForBikes' city ratings.

Same here - just came back from EYEO Festival (which was amazing!) and was impressed with the bike-friendliness of the city. I drove around to explore the city by car and there were bike lanes in most places I drove.

Re: Investigating the effects of bike lanes in Minneapolis

#73

Post by alistairSH »

dhr wrote: post #14

I recently moved to the twin cities. The bike paths are absolutely amazing, and given that the whole state is pretty flat, it's not hard to get around the city for work or for fun. Bike paths are plowed in winter, but biking in -10C weather doesn't sound pleasant. I haven't tried winter biking yet, and honestly, I'm a bit scared to.

I'm near DC, so nowhere near as cold as Minneapolis, but I do cycle down into the mid-teens F. For shorter rides, I just wear normal winter outdoor clothing (heavy socks with hiking boots, soft-shell pants, base layer+wool mid-layer+light shell jacket). It's chilly for the first few minutes, but I warm up pretty quickly.

The only part I find really hard to balancing clothing with effort. Easy enough for a quick run to the pharmacy or whatever. Harder for a workout or longer ride, where the effort ramps up quickly and excessive sweat quickly becomes a problem.

I enjoy riding in the snow (on my mountain bike). But, it's a once/season treat here.

Re: Investigating the effects of bike lanes in Minneapolis

#74

Post by ordiel »

And how much of the general population does that total of people cycling is? Like 0.05% of the population? Cycling is nice healthy and eco-friendly yet being honest they dont trully serve a metropolitan area, more bus routes and comunal tranportation methods is what is trully needed on an urban area,

Probably there were only 3 people using bikes and now there are 5, that is a HUGE percental increase but not quite significant as a whole

Re: Investigating the effects of bike lanes in Minneapolis

#76

Post by KennyBlanken »

alistairSH wrote: post #36
boringg wrote: post #9

Easy equation - make safe biking in the city and people will use it instead of driving if weather permits. It's such an easy equation to improve the quality of a city.

if weather permits Reminds me of an old cycling adage (possibly predates modern cycling, not sure): There's no such thing as poor weather, only poor clothing choices. I hate to come across as a Nordic fetishist, but there are several cold northern cities known for their year-round cycling. Bike paths are plowed and/or heated. And people just layer up. Oulu, Finland comes to mind - paths are designed to drain well so…

Indeed. 43% of Minneapolis bicyclists ride year-round: https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/36685502.pdf

I always found winter riding far preferable to the alternative: walking in the cold to a bus stop, standing there for 5-10 minutes, standing for 15 minutes in a lukewarm bus, then walking 5+ minutes in the cold...

...versus biking home, and being warm within 5 minutes, and having all my jacket zippers open by the time I get home in a total of 20 minutes, walking in the door toasty warm.

Half the problem is that most of the American populace considers itself experts on bicycling despite knowing fuck-all about it (never use the front brake! Tell your kids to ride against traffic for safety! You'll sweat to death biking to work in the summer! You'll freeze to death biking to work in the winter!) and the other half of the problem is that the American populace is incredibly bigoted towards anyone on foot or especially on a bicycle, and considers themselves road vigilantes whose duty is to punish the cyclist in front of them for every traffic violation supposedly committed by another cyclist that they witnessed at one time.

Re: Investigating the effects of bike lanes in Minneapolis

#78

Post by alangibson »

SeanLuke wrote: post #60

This was a case study with no control group. Case studies are, IMHO, close to useless. Having read the study, I'm not impressed. No attempt was made to compare Minneapolis with peer cities as controls, that is, ones which did not increase bike infrastructure. A limited model was attempted regarding climate impacts, but beyond this little was done to control for external factors. Thus we have no idea if the change in…

You're right in your criticism of the study. Luckily the Netherlands has already proven that for bike infrastructure, if you build it they will come.

Re: Investigating the effects of bike lanes in Minneapolis

#79

Post by swader999 »

jupp0r wrote: post #59
loeg wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Poor weather is also hard on the drivetrain. It’s not just a matter of rider discomfort — riding in the wet is also just more expensive and more time-consuming, mile for mile. (I ride a few thousand miles per year, but mostly not in the rain and never in the snow.)

What do you do instead of riding when it’s wet or it snows? I bet it’s also harder on their drivetrains and biking is still cheaper. Spiked tires work really well in winter by the way.

There's almost no weather you can't bike in, just requires decent clothing and studs like parent mentions. In Calgary Alberta one year I commuted 50 km across the city each way with ebike for an entire year. With decent snow clearing, studded tires there was probably only ten days I didn't want to or couldn't take my bike.

Re: Investigating the effects of bike lanes in Minneapolis

#80

Post by xhkkffbf »

donatj wrote: post #32

Minneapolis resident here. Unlike the other Minneapolis resident here, I feel like I see most of the bike lanes entirely disused. A project in my neighborhood turned a major thoroughfare into a one way with a separated bike lane, and I've seen maybe 40 people use it since it's completion a few years ago. I'm curious what a 69% increase looks like in real numbers - a 20% increase on next to nothing is still next to no…

I'm a keen biker and I just don't ride in the winter, especially in places like Minnesota. When you mix the snow, ice and darkness together, it's just too much. Summer is better because of the late light, but I can only go to casual, fun events. If I'm supposed to be dry and presentable, a bike doesn't work in the summer.
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