Yes, even in New York City, car culture is deeply rooted — so we are pleased that Khan and her team are trying to undo the damage of decades of automobile hegemony. Does Khan always succeed? Of course not. But she is fighting a battle that must be fought if we hope to regain control of our streets and neighborhoods.
Photojournal: Cycling Infrastructure in Portland, OR
It’s no secret that Portland leads the way for innovative bicycle infrastructure among US cities, but many cities still seem reluctant to take note of their successes. The above photographs were taken during a recent trip and begin to illustrate the prevalence of a deeply embedded cycling culture. The cost of such infrastructure is negligible and the dividends are endless.
A few notes:
- There are no gaps in designated bike routes, meaning that cyclists are not exposed out in the middle of a busy road after a mile or two of bike lanes or road demarcations. Continuity has been thoroughly designed.
- There is debate in Portland as to the value of their infamous green bike boxes. Whether or not the added safety is immediate, it does raise awareness and foster a culture of coexistence for motorists. There is immense value in this, as riding on a normal road feels much safer in Portland than other cities simply because one knows the motorist is much more likely to be courteous to cyclists. They’re used to it. Culture is important.
- Bike racks are more than niceties, they are vital for encouraging the average person to ride. I’d venture to guess there isn’t a single commercial block in Portland proper without bike parking of some type, and many have small shelters built to protect bikes from rain. Even better is the on-street bike parking that has become a desirable asset for local businesses, as so many more customers can be accommodated in a smaller space.
- The bike boulevard concept can’t be captured in a single photograph, but it is perhaps the greatest innovation to come out of Portland’s infrastructure. A bike boulevard is a road designed first and foremost for cyclists using a combination of traffic calming measures (low speed limits, shallow speed bumps, curb extensions, cyclist-only cut throughs) and markings (wayfinder signs, sharrows, lanes, brightly colored intersection markings). The end product is a marvelously peaceful bicycle route with the added benefit of quieter streets for those who live on them. This holistic street design can and should be replicated.
Note: I’ve turned on the photo reply option, please feel free to submit your own photographs of excellent bike infrastructure!
Portland’s ‘20 minute neighborhood’ was one of the major forces in my search for a new place to live. And a ‘bikeable’ neighborhood was essential. But Beacon has no bike lanes, just relatively slow and relaxed drivers. Except for the asshole who told me to get off the road when I was Xootring at 15 miles an hour on Main Street, which is way too fast for a sidewalk.
Women cycling is the holygrail of mode share and it may be that only cities with parity between male and female cyclists have any hope of a sustainable active transport mix. This report gives more background as to what are the keys to success.
“In fact, according to a 2010 Department of Planning study he cites, the gender gap “narrowed from about 1.9 men for every woman in 2002, to about 1.7 in 2008, with most of the change happening between 2006 and 2008.” In other words, the gap is narrowing at an accelerated pace, likely because of all the money put into making biking safer over the past few years.
So what’s working as far as getting female cyclists to hit the NYC streets? Separating bike lanes from traffic – an act that goes straight to the core of the safety issue. As Fried points out:
Researchers like Harvard’s Anne Lusk, and Portland State University’s Jennifer Dill have all come to the conclusion that the share of female cyclists is higher where separation from traffic is more pronounced. Their positions are consistent with DCP’s finding that the gender gap on NYC’s greenways is substantially smaller than it is on painted bike lanes.
When you are talking about bike lanes that are separated from traffic entirely (by a real partition, as opposed to a painted white line) then the gender divide lessens dramatically. Which leads one to conclude that if we increase the number of separated bike lanes, we will increase the number of women riders. Regardless of whether they get sweaty.”
(via Women and Biking in New York City: The Debate Continues | INFRASTRUCTURIST)
