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What a City Would Look Like If It Were Designed for Only Bikes

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Re: What a City Would Look Like If It Were Designed for Only Bikes

#11

Post by jacquesm »

That's a city designed for ONLY bikes, and no city will ever be designed like that, no cars allowed is nice in theory but not workable. To be practical it would at a minimum have to accommodate foot-traffic, supply lines to stores (or did you think that those stores will be supplied by cargo bikes?) and access for disabled people (not everybody can ride a bike).

So it's a nice thought experiment but not at all practical, on top of that 'bike lanes in apartment building hallways' make you wonder just how much experience the designer has riding bicycles, you park your bike at the interface between inside and outside and you don't run around the apartment hallways on a bicycle because of (1) pedestrians, (2) playing kids, (3) the fact that you now have to elevate your bicycle every time you want to go in or out of your house and (4) storing your bike at streetlevel is simply much more practical.

Re: What a City Would Look Like If It Were Designed for Only Bikes

#12

Post by tonyedgecombe »

jacquesm wrote: post #11

That's a city designed for ONLY bikes, and no city will ever be designed like that, no cars allowed is nice in theory but not workable. To be practical it would at a minimum have to accommodate foot-traffic, supply lines to stores (or did you think that those stores will be supplied by cargo bikes?) and access for disabled people (not everybody can ride a bike). So it's a nice thought experiment but not at all practi…

"no cars allowed is nice in theory but not workable"

I think cities existed before cars.

Re: What a City Would Look Like If It Were Designed for Only Bikes

#13

Post by mc32 »

tonyedgecombe wrote: post #12
jacquesm wrote: post #11

That's a city designed for ONLY bikes, and no city will ever be designed like that, no cars allowed is nice in theory but not workable. To be practical it would at a minimum have to accommodate foot-traffic, supply lines to stores (or did you think that those stores will be supplied by cargo bikes?) and access for disabled people (not everybody can ride a bike). So it's a nice thought experiment but not at all practi…

"no cars allowed is nice in theory but not workable" I think cities existed before cars.

You need emergency services access, delivery vehicles, moving vehicles. (ambulances, fireengines, delivery vehicles to fill new houses, moving vehicles for people moving house, etc.)

Re: What a City Would Look Like If It Were Designed for Only Bikes

#14

Post by [deleted] »

tonyedgecombe wrote: post #12
jacquesm wrote: post #11

That's a city designed for ONLY bikes, and no city will ever be designed like that, no cars allowed is nice in theory but not workable. To be practical it would at a minimum have to accommodate foot-traffic, supply lines to stores (or did you think that those stores will be supplied by cargo bikes?) and access for disabled people (not everybody can ride a bike). So it's a nice thought experiment but not at all practi…

"no cars allowed is nice in theory but not workable" I think cities existed before cars.

[deleted]

Re: What a City Would Look Like If It Were Designed for Only Bikes

#15

Post by acaloiar »

Even as a cyclist these designs seem myopic to the demands of civic design such as pedestrian friendliness and affordability. Perhaps a Dubai could afford retrofitting, but as these designs stand, they are only practical (and I use that loosely) for new construction.

Re: What a City Would Look Like If It Were Designed for Only Bikes

#16

Post by sageikosa »

tonyedgecombe wrote: post #12
jacquesm wrote: post #11

That's a city designed for ONLY bikes, and no city will ever be designed like that, no cars allowed is nice in theory but not workable. To be practical it would at a minimum have to accommodate foot-traffic, supply lines to stores (or did you think that those stores will be supplied by cargo bikes?) and access for disabled people (not everybody can ride a bike). So it's a nice thought experiment but not at all practi…

"no cars allowed is nice in theory but not workable" I think cities existed before cars.

Yes, with appropriate access to horse, mule, wagon, river and/or seaport.

Re: What a City Would Look Like If It Were Designed for Only Bikes

#18

Post by notahacker »

tonyedgecombe wrote: post #12
jacquesm wrote: post #11

That's a city designed for ONLY bikes, and no city will ever be designed like that, no cars allowed is nice in theory but not workable. To be practical it would at a minimum have to accommodate foot-traffic, supply lines to stores (or did you think that those stores will be supplied by cargo bikes?) and access for disabled people (not everybody can ride a bike). So it's a nice thought experiment but not at all practi…

"no cars allowed is nice in theory but not workable" I think cities existed before cars.

Large horse-powered vehicles to transport stuff existed before bicycles, and there aren't many cities that weren't designed to accommodate them.

Those that were tended to be built in locations where bikes aren't an option either, usually more for the strategic benefit than because people thought that carrying heavy loads up hills on their back made a pleasant change from roads clogged with horse and carts.

Re: What a City Would Look Like If It Were Designed for Only Bikes

#19

Post by zyxley »

> and maybe even wheel their bike through stores as they shop, with a sleeping baby in the bike carrier, or use the basket to hold groceries

Anyone who has ever actually had a bike for more than a week and who actually shops for their own groceries will know this is a terrible idea.

Re: What a City Would Look Like If It Were Designed for Only Bikes

#20

Post by mayneack »

Avalaxy wrote: post #3

A bike ramp into the apartment is useless. You can just take the elevator with your bike, or you know... Just make a garage for bikes on ground floor. The article doesn't really say much about how to design a city for bicycles, which mostly comes down to providing good roads where you aren't bothered by cars.

Also to make the ramp reach a reasonable height with a reasonable angle, you'd have to have incredibly long buildings that would require going all the way to one end to reach the top floor.
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