if [more cycling infrastructure] is what it takes to get more people riding then I'm all for it.
Fair enough, but I don't think that is really what it'll take. London didn't have to do much, after all. If you've never been down there recently it really is incredible how many cyclists there now are.
Fair enough, but I don't think that is really what it'll take. London didn't have to do much
The explosion of cycling has many drivers but a lot of them are temporary (its very fashionable right now to cycle, people do not have much money, we had a dry summer etc) and therefore it is fragile. Also the low hanging fruit have already been "got", every additional cyclist will be harder to persuade than the last.
A few negative impacts and numbers could start to decline. The biggest negative impact will be people getting killed and the best way to stop that is infastructure and segregation. It is what takes cycling away from being a niche activity for people up for a battle with the cars and turns it into the best way to get about.
JFletch. I know it's anecdote but London was rammed with cyclists this morning - as many as I've seen.
Coldest day of the winter so far and only a couple of weeks after we lost 6 riders...
London has lots of people moving into it. I think some of them are including cycling in their plans when they choose a place to live.
However London's not that great of an example in many ways, thinking about it. Driving's so impractical for so many people, so it's bike vs tube vs bus which is a much more level playing field!
Brilliant, lets hope it lasts.
But lets hope that it speads to other cities. In Nottingham this morning I saw very few and was sat in traffic which is primarily caused by people doing short journeys.
was sat in traffic which is primarily caused by people doing short journeys.
How do you know, though?
How do you know, though?
I don't have any stats but it is a reasonable assumption since there are few viable alternatives, it's school run time and there is no eveidence of large numbers of people either walking or cycling, and they are local roads rather than trunk roads.
Fair to assume that most local trips are being made by car, but you don't know how many of the cars on the road are on local trips. They could be going further afield.
But anyway I agree with your sentiment.
The DfT do a National Traffic survey:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/national-travel-survey-statistics
Okay so it's not going to be specific to Nottingham's local road network, but it should give an idea as to likley proportions.
the majority of trips are short (over half of car trips are less than 5 miles, over three quarters are less than 10), so it's a fair assumption to make
You're missing the point. I'm no different to any other able bodied healthy 30-something. I'm alright, so there's no reason millions of other people shouldn't also be alright.
I rode my bike to work before my town had a bunch of money spent on cycle infrastructure and, at that point, I was a firm believer in vehicular cycling, helmet use, training, MingTFU, etc.
Post-cycle demonstration town funding, I still ride my bike to work, but almost entirely on off-road paths. It's a hell of a lot nicer and I see a lot more other cyclists now. I'm now a firm believer in infrastructure being the main thing we need, and this belief is backed up by a lot more knowledge and understanding of the issues than my old belief.
The main difference post-CDT funding: my mam rides her bike into town. Pre-infrastructure, almost every cyclist was a relatively young man, but now we get women in their 50s riding their bikes.
What they did here wasn't perfect, and they wasted a lot of cash on promotion and training before there was infrastructure in place, and the infrastructure's only there for some trips, but it's a huge improvement on what we had before.
I think it probably depends on the city to an extent.
Yep - Cycling (as a means of transport) is never going to catch on in Sheffield to a great extent due to all the hills.
[i]The only barrier to getting 1 in 3 cars off the road are cultural and safety issues.[/i]
There's masses of folk who live in this country who will only view bicycle riding through the prism of "that's what poor people have to do" . Straw poll of the people in my dental practice right now " no way. it's all up hill" and "I live 10 miles away" ( weirdly she will go to the gym though....)
These are young healthy folk how spend a good deal if their time telling patients about healthy lifestyles...go figure as they say across the pond.
It's mostly young people in London. The question that hasn't been answered is what will these young people do when they get older?
I think cars are a tyranny. To me they are certainly a luxury and not a right. I do own one but think very carefully before using it - always walk / use the bike locally. But in doing so it is clear that I am relegated to an absolutely subordinated position to those far less vulnerable than me.
To me they are certainly a luxury and not a right.
You don't live in the countryside then.
I've lived and worked and cycled in west London for just under 20 years.
I know a whole range of people who cycle, its not just young people - actually in my office, most of the people who cycle are in the 40s or above - our oldest cyclist is 66. Almost none of the young group currently working here cycle - they all come from cultures that revere motor cars and revile cycling and public transport.
When I first starting commuting and cycling in London in 95, if I saw another cyclist it was a major event - even in town it was pretty much only couriers tooling around, almost no one else cycled. Nowadays, on my 5 mile commute that in 2000 I'd see maybe 1 other cyclist a week, I see about 6-10 each way. That's a big difference, and its good.
I cycle 10 miles a day, I don't wear funny clothing (well except that my normal clothing might be considered funny), when I go to meetings at other people's offices they expect me to turn up by bike and usually say something if I don't and these are people responsible for spending £100m's every year.
There is a sea change in London where people just get on bikes and cycle - there's still a lot of people for whom cycling seems to involve dressing up for a 2 miles ride (but then Brits love pretending to be professional at their hobby activities). Personally I leave the funny clothing for my riding at the weekend when I'll go out for 4-5 or more hours and the proper clothing works best.
Oh, read [url= http://www.mayerhillman.com/Cycling-walking.aspx ]Mayer Hillman[/url] for a sensible viewpoint on this, and his thoughts on how the giving over of our towns and cities to motor vehicles has proven to be disastrous for communities and individuals.
I only dress up to avoid getting my work clothes sweaty, as I am basically unable to cycle without getting at least a bit sweaty!