What’s With all the Bike Lanes?

A shorter version of my book Bike Lanes with a bit of a different feel to it and in a form I can print at lower cost to give out at events… What’s with all the bike lanes? Bicycles are incredible machines, electric bicycles are even better, but people won’t ride if it isn’t safe, paint doesn’t work, we need physical separation to make it safe, safe for everyone, safe everywhere, safe at all times. We all just want to get home at the end of the day. Protected bike lanes aren’t even for cyclists, and it’s not even just bikes anymore. Riding a bicycle takes up less space, riding a bicycle is often the fastest option, delivery companies get it.

So how do we change our streets? We can repurpose parts of the street, we can rebuild the entire street, we can rebuild parts of the street. We need to build it so people can pass safely, we need to build it so that it drains. In most cases we’d build uni-directional protected bike lanes, but bi-directional protected bike lanes are sometimes more appropriate. Combined with neighbourhood bikeways, we can build a network, but explore other local streets too. Multi-use pathways can work where volumes are lower, trails are useful but not for everyone and not all the time, local street intersections should prioritize people, large intersections should have protected corners, bike signals are important. Separate pedestrians and cyclists whenever possible, and manage conflicts with pedestrians where unavoidable.

What else? Make life easier for people, make multi-modal trips simple, make it easier to get a bike, provide enough bike racks, but provide secure bicycle parking at key destinations, and somewhere to store bikes at home. Give people a reason to stop, invite people in. It requires priorities when making decisions, it’ll take political will, it’ll cost, but not that much, it’ll be worth it!

Want a Hard Copy?

Hard copies aren’t available for purchase like my other books, but I do usually have copies on hand should we meet in person, but you can read through it below… Just click to enlarge and scroll through…