In upfront transparency to avoid sounding like I have a superiority complex based on just how much I love my cargo bike, our family does still have a car. Okay that being said… our cargo bike has replaced 90% of our “last mile” driving here in the city. We take the kids to school on it, we do grocery runs, we take it to the park, out to dinner, just about anywhere we can. In the first two years we’ve put at least 2k…
But, also tfl trying to build more and more cycle lanes ignoring the importance of the pedestrians. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/03/18/sadiq-khan-cycli...
TFL care a great deal about pedestrians which is why many planned cycle lanes were not built and turned into wider pavement space.
Also please keep in mind that The Telegraph is not a neutral actor with regards to Khan. They recently blamed him for the national strikes, which was totally non sensical.
> - might be impossible depending on work or children; The newer style of cargo bikes can for many families replace a car. Have two kids seated in the trunk of the bike and drop them off at kindergarten, then continue biking to work and pick them up on the way home. Those are a bit on the pricier side, though. Still cheap compared to a car, but people often look at them as something "extravagant" or "in addition" to…
> So I think we will see a shift in where people settle, where they will no longer base their lives around owning multiple cars. Magical thinking will not make it so. My partner and I moved further away from the city where she works because we wanted to move in together and we can't afford rent or property where either of us used to live. I work from home so most the time my car sits charging the driveway. However, a…
You might consider getting a velomobile. Slower than a car, but a lot faster than a regular bike. Eg I am currently considering a job that is about 50km away from here, one way times are: public transport 1h50m, car 50m, velomobile 1h to 1h30m depending on effort.
How is looking at reality and making choices that based on that analysis are best for the safety of you and your family self-defeating? You're putting activism into the mix and if you're willing to put more risk on yourself and/or your family to prove a point then it is your choice to do so.
It's not "activism" or "proving a point", it's the prisoner's dilemma. You maximize the global reward (fewest accidents) by putting yourself on the most risky position.
NYC has enough delivery riders that storage and fire risk from overnight charging is significant. I'm sure the same risks apply everywhere but sheer numbers in NYC make it a headline issue. I rode blue bikes while visiting, and I had different observations riding and walking: While walking it seemed like delivery riders where everywhere. While riding, I noticed a lot more leisure and commuting riders, probably becaus…
That's a great point about just being where certain types of riders are. This probably speaks volumes about the infrastructure for cycling, or lack of in NYC. I'm a cyclist and advocate for more bikes, but there is something about putting motorized transportation (e-bikes, scooters, etc.) even closer to pedestrians that seems wrong to me. Getting hit by a car is no fun, but getting hit by an e-bike going 20+ mph can'…
I never felt unsafe walking or riding where delivery riders were delivering. The safety problems I encountered were all due to cars.
Delivery riders have a tough life. They buy their own gear and pay to keep it in the city. Things like UL-listed batteries are important. But so is expansion of bike infrastructure for all kinds of cyclists.
I don't own one, but I know e-bikes popularize cycling. In some places they are the only practical daily use bike. More would be better.
No. Non folding bikes are not allowed on most tube services in central london. The lines that do allow it don't allow it during rush hour.
So how do all the bikes get into central London?
While there are certainly some areas like the City of London which are almost exclusively commercial/office, most of London, even the central parts, is a mashup of different land uses including residential. Not everyone commutes in from the suburbs.
Somewhat unrelated to the article, but I live in a mid-size EU city and dumped my car for an e-bike a few months ago. Surprisingly, it hasn't been that hard (my GF kept her car, and I have a car-sharing subscription): Pros: - Immediately stopped having insomnia. Better feel overall; - about €300/month in additional disposable income. That's basically a free lunch everyday! - significantly faster if parking is taken i…
I always hear people make the argument that cost savings is the biggest benefit of ditching a car and living in a city with good public transportation. Then I look at NYC and it's $5k to rent a 1 bedroom and everything as soon as you walk out the door is 30-50% more expensive than most other cities. No one is saving money not having a car in NYC when everything else is so much more expensive.
You can get paid 1000% depending on your job, so YMMV.
I consider myself a pretty strong cyclist, and I was huffing and puffing trying to keep pace with my wife and kids on the ebike.
Having experienced widely varying amounts of power output with the local bikeshare bikes, their varied condition and assisted vs non-, I don't have any illusions here - it's just a different experience to be able to spin it once and feel the bike boost you up to max effort. Even the heavily built bikeshare frames can easily outclass a road bike, if there's no mechanical issue. Although there often is - the chains, gears and tires really take a beating.
Somewhat unrelated to the article, but I live in a mid-size EU city and dumped my car for an e-bike a few months ago. Surprisingly, it hasn't been that hard (my GF kept her car, and I have a car-sharing subscription): Pros: - Immediately stopped having insomnia. Better feel overall; - about €300/month in additional disposable income. That's basically a free lunch everyday! - significantly faster if parking is taken i…
> you will not kill someone if you ride after a night drinking;
A pedestrian I know was seriously injured (brain damage, years of therapy) by a cyclist who was going the wrong way down a one-way street.
To be fair, the cyclist wasn't drunk, ... so maybe the drinking bit is completely irrelevant. Carry on then.
Most Dutch parents don't bother with harnesses in cargo bikes. Or with helmets on normal bikes.
If they don't have to deal with cars, perhaps it's ok - but yikes. Helmets for everyone because even at 20kph someone could get a nasty/fatal head injury when they're yeeted out of the cargo area.