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Cycling Is Key to Safer, Healthier, More Vital Cities

citylab.com

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Re: Cycling Is Key to Safer, Healthier, More Vital Cities

#11

Post by arayh »

CloudYeller wrote: post #5

In most cities, especially in America, there's a vicious cycle: 0) Cycling is dangerous because there are too many vehicles on the road 1) There are so many vehicles on the road because everyone knows it's dangerous to cycle 2) Go to 0 Breaking out of that loop requires building safe infrastructure for cycling, like indestructable cement dividers between bike lanes and vehicle lanes or no-vehicles-allowed-in- days

Agreed. It can be complicated and expensive, but there are a lot of viable proposals for how to approach bicycle-friendly road design ( such as this https://bikeeastbay.org/news/lafayette-commission-approves-c... )

Re: Cycling Is Key to Safer, Healthier, More Vital Cities

#12

Post by chrissnell »

I love cycling. I grew up in my father's bicycle store and nearly 50 years later, he's still running the business and we've all worked in it at one time or another. I ride bikes around the neighborhood with my kids every day.

With that said, the U.S. is not the Netherlands. Like most Americans, I depend on my vehicle to get my kids to school and myself to the grocery store, which are 4-5 miles away from my house. This country is not predominately compact or dense. Cycling is not the de-facto best solution for every place. [1]

I wish we could stop bringing up Amsterdam with every conversation about bike lanes. I'm all for building bike paths over green space but I don't support the closing of busy traffic lanes to support a relatively small cycling commuter population. It creates traffic snarls, more pollution, and wastes a lot of people's time.

http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-vista-del-mar-la...

Re: Cycling Is Key to Safer, Healthier, More Vital Cities

#13

Post by village-idiot »

CloudYeller wrote: post #5

In most cities, especially in America, there's a vicious cycle: 0) Cycling is dangerous because there are too many vehicles on the road 1) There are so many vehicles on the road because everyone knows it's dangerous to cycle 2) Go to 0 Breaking out of that loop requires building safe infrastructure for cycling, like indestructable cement dividers between bike lanes and vehicle lanes or no-vehicles-allowed-in- days

And creating the infrastructure is wildly unpopular, because typically it involves either taking lanes away from cars, or slowing them down.

The initiative to reduce car-pedestrian collisions in LA has stopped because the drivers put pressure on politicians to stop slowing traffic down. Advocates are implying (and sometimes outright saying) that a few dozen deaths a year are an acceptable price to pay for a shorter commute. That's how far we are from solving this problem.

Re: Cycling Is Key to Safer, Healthier, More Vital Cities

#15

Post by dkhenry »

shoguning wrote: post #4

Nice article, but I fear North Americans just don't care by and large. I've had some passing involvement with bike advocacy and have been a bike commuter in Los Angeles for the past six years. My impression is that in the early 2000s, there was a flowering of bike advocacy and infrastructure. But now we've reached the point of resistance where other transport modes are pushing back against any more consideration for…

I think cycling advocacy is alive and well, but the gains aren't as dramatic, because now they are incremental improvements to what has already been won. You are seeing miles and miles of shared bike lanes going up all across the US. I think back in the 2000's even that infrastructure was a pie in the sky dream. The jump to the next level of infrastructure hasn't taken off yet, but you are starting to see some cities actually invest in segregated bike lanes and bike highways. Since those changes require actual work and not just paint on the street I think they will be slower and take a lot more time, but I see them coming.

For instance, inside DC there was a number of dedicated bike lanes, and even a good number of segregated bike lanes. I could get all through the core of the city on a bike with relative safety, once you got out into the north Virginia suburbs the bike infrastructure turned into mostly painted lines, with a few notable trails and then by the time you hit the outer suburbs there was nothing, but they were starting to put painted lines out as far as Reston, VA ( 25mi outside the city )

Re: Cycling Is Key to Safer, Healthier, More Vital Cities

#16

Post by adrianN »

zoul wrote: post #7

I’d love more bikes in our town, but it’s not very flat. Is there some data on how much flat does the town have to be to get around on a bike? (I guess electric bikes change that equation a bit, but they’re still quite expensive.)

How would that data look like? It depends a lot on your personal fitness level what you'd consider too steep. Just looking at number of cyclists has so many confounding variables that I don't think you can infer something about the influence of local geography.

Re: Cycling Is Key to Safer, Healthier, More Vital Cities

#18

Post by gameswithgo »

village-idiot wrote: post #9

Anyone who's believed that the key to sustainable futures is simply swapping out ICE for electric motors simply is being wishful at best, willfully difficult at worse. The biggest problem I have with electric cars is that they continue to encourage low density low efficiency suburbs with hours long commutes into the high density cities. This is economically unsustainable, roads are expensive, and will only get worse…

Hour+ long commutes are also just terrible. Terrible to live through psychologically, they waste time with you sitting still and not moving so you get fat and weak, and they are dangerous.

Re: Cycling Is Key to Safer, Healthier, More Vital Cities

#19

Post by Fricken »

SketchySeaBeast wrote: post #6

My wife has been biking to work for a couple of years now (I work in an industrial zone - I don't trust the awareness of large truck drivers - so I don't follow suit) and it's really revitalized her joy for the city. Her commute has become something she loves. Because of this new found passion we've both bought new bikes, have started passing our weekends by experiencing the city from the view of a bicyclist, and whi…

Oh, are you in Edmonton? I've been cycling 365 since the bad old days, and it's great to see all the new cyclists out all seasons with the city's commitment to keeping the paths clear of snow. Cycling in winter really isn't much more hardcore than walking outside in winter, you just gotta dress for it and slow down a little. Honestly I prefer cold to rain. I look at Vancouver's cyclists and think 'you guys are committed!'

Re: Cycling Is Key to Safer, Healthier, More Vital Cities

#20

Post by adrianN »

village-idiot wrote: post #9

Anyone who's believed that the key to sustainable futures is simply swapping out ICE for electric motors simply is being wishful at best, willfully difficult at worse. The biggest problem I have with electric cars is that they continue to encourage low density low efficiency suburbs with hours long commutes into the high density cities. This is economically unsustainable, roads are expensive, and will only get worse…

Other forms of electric transport, like scooters and electric bikes should be pushed more. Together with decent mass transit they solve the last mile problem quite nicely imho. But unfortunately the car lobby is extremely strong and doesn't want to lose its market.
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