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Paris cycling numbers double in one year thanks to investment

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Re: Paris cycling numbers double in one year thanks to investment

#21

Post by gambiting »

giraffe_lady wrote: post #8
davidw wrote: post #3

Using 'induced demand' for good - I love it. People are under the impression that things "are just the way they are" in the US, but it is very much a political choice to not dedicate more funding to keeping people on bicycles safe from automobiles.

I'm sure some people do but I know on HN specifically in most threads around american urban cycling you will see some extremely clear-eyed car advocates. They (rightly) recognize that better prioritizing cycling requires, to some extent, fewer resources allocated to car use and oppose it on those grounds. Some of it is ignorance but a lot of it is not, and a continuing car-centric world is just their well understood…

The thing that is somewhat counterintuitive is that countries with amazing cycling infrastructure are also very good for drivers because you just get less congestion on the roads. There are some great youtube videos about it - how driving across Amsterdam takes less time than covering 3 miles in LA, that kind of thing.

Like, if you like driving cars, a place like the Netherlands is great for it because you spend more time actually driving and not standing in traffic(because most people are out on bikes and not in cars).

Re: Paris cycling numbers double in one year thanks to investment

#22

Post by mattcantstop »

h1fra wrote: post #19

People not living in Paris can't even grasp how much the city has changed in just 6 years. Starting a bit before 2020 but massively accelerated by the covid situation (and public transport saturation). You could barely cycle safely before and now it's hard to not find a bike lane. Because of the fast pace, of course not everything is perfect but we have to celebrate this as much as we can.

That's a problem I desperately hope the US has to encounter soon. Too much demand and we have to accelerate our plans to satisfy all those people on bikes!

Re: Paris cycling numbers double in one year thanks to investment

#23

Post by dublinben »

giraffe_lady wrote: post #8
davidw wrote: post #3

Using 'induced demand' for good - I love it. People are under the impression that things "are just the way they are" in the US, but it is very much a political choice to not dedicate more funding to keeping people on bicycles safe from automobiles.

I'm sure some people do but I know on HN specifically in most threads around american urban cycling you will see some extremely clear-eyed car advocates. They (rightly) recognize that better prioritizing cycling requires, to some extent, fewer resources allocated to car use and oppose it on those grounds. Some of it is ignorance but a lot of it is not, and a continuing car-centric world is just their well understood…

Even as a driver, if you think about the second-order effects of getting more (other) people out of their cars, it becomes obvious that it would improve traffic for you. An enlightened self-interested driver would want to increase investment in alternatives to driving, since that is the only proven solution for congestion.

As a video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8RRE2rDw4k

Re: Paris cycling numbers double in one year thanks to investment

#24

Post by richrichie »

The second order effect is that tax rates will increase to cater to increase in social security payment and medical care thanks to increased life expectancy. That might also divert money from other public spending that could mean living longer but with lower quality of life.

Re: Paris cycling numbers double in one year thanks to investment

#25

Post by bryanlarsen »

giraffe_lady wrote: post #8
davidw wrote: post #3

Using 'induced demand' for good - I love it. People are under the impression that things "are just the way they are" in the US, but it is very much a political choice to not dedicate more funding to keeping people on bicycles safe from automobiles.

I'm sure some people do but I know on HN specifically in most threads around american urban cycling you will see some extremely clear-eyed car advocates. They (rightly) recognize that better prioritizing cycling requires, to some extent, fewer resources allocated to car use and oppose it on those grounds. Some of it is ignorance but a lot of it is not, and a continuing car-centric world is just their well understood…

Almost every additional cyclist is one less car. And since bicycle infrastructure is a lot cheaper than vehicle infrastructure, spending a dollar on bicycle infrastructure can improve conditions for car drivers more than spending that dollar on car infrastructure.

Re: Paris cycling numbers double in one year thanks to investment

#26

Post by [deleted] »

favflam wrote: post #4

I switched to cycling for transportation. Benefits: 1. way more access to the city 2. eliminated need to go to gym; transport time doubles as cardio time 3. freed up time to see people; 15 minutes door to door is hard to beat I really hope US cities head in this direction. It is a no brainer for cities: 1. higher density -> lower taxes per person, higher tax rev per sqm 2. lower cost of living -> lower inflation 3. q…

[deleted]

Re: Paris cycling numbers double in one year thanks to investment

#28

Post by JAlexoid »

lkbm wrote: post #12
favflam wrote: post #4

I switched to cycling for transportation. Benefits: 1. way more access to the city 2. eliminated need to go to gym; transport time doubles as cardio time 3. freed up time to see people; 15 minutes door to door is hard to beat I really hope US cities head in this direction. It is a no brainer for cities: 1. higher density -> lower taxes per person, higher tax rev per sqm 2. lower cost of living -> lower inflation 3. q…

I biked for transportation (and fun) for years and it was great. In 2022 I moved and had no bike for eight months and hurt my back ~four times in that period. I got a new bike about a year ago and have had no back pain since (until randomly yesterday, but I'm 41, I guess it's expected that it'll happen occasionally). Biking doesn't seem like a back exercise, but you are using your core and flexing it a lot, and for l…

Cycling is fairly heavy on your lower back and the need to balance yourself means that your core gets a huge hit a lot of the time.

Unless you have one of those lounger bikes, you're getting an exercise that hits almost everything below your ribs.

Re: Paris cycling numbers double in one year thanks to investment

#29

Post by beej71 »

ckemere wrote: post #9

Having just moved from Houston to Manhattan , I have been really impressed by the number of bikes I see. One factor, which this article doesn’t seem to discuss, is the e-bike. In Paris, is it mostly classical bikes, or are the electronics becoming widespread there too?

On that topic, I ride a regular bicycle but I love that there are so many e-bikes on the roads these days. The city where I live is blessed with pretty good weather for a lot of the year and e-bikes enable people who live out towards the edge of town to get downtown with relative ease.

Even though they lack some of the benefits of a simple bicycle, they drive the same infrastructure development that I need.

Re: Paris cycling numbers double in one year thanks to investment

#30

Post by ryandrake »

I don’t get how you can make bicycling your only form of transportation, even if the bike travel infrastructure and parking is adequate. When I bicycle, even for a short amount of time like 15 minutes, I sweat, and end up a stinky wet mess at my destination. Especially in the summer. My shoes and pants get dirty from the road and my hair gets wet and messed up especially if it’s raining. So if I’m going anywhere with even a moderate expectation of personal hygiene, I need to 1. Make sure there is a shower at my destination, 2. Haul a change of clothes with me (necessitating a backpack or bag), 3. Hang on to my dirty sweaty clothes in that bag the whole time. Fine if I’m commuting to work where they have a shower and storage. What about going to a restaurant or business meeting or a museum or an appointment with a professional? I honestly don’t know but there are so many cities where people bike everywhere so there must be a solution.

EDIT: ok, ok, I guess e-bikes it is. Still there are cities like Copenhagen and Amsterdam where everyone bikes everywhere and they don’t all have e-bikes. Do they just bring multiple changes of clothes everywhere?

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