Bike Friendly City?

The fingers said:
I don't think there is a bike friendly city within 100 miles of here!
:twisted:
Click to expand...

Sure there is: Avalon, on Santa Catalina Island. If you could drive to it, it would be a hellhole-- but you can't.

And you can't afford to live there, either.

Chalo
 
You're completely right, most of the vehicles there are golf carts and bicycles. Just knowing it's out there helps. Thanks Chalo! :D
Now to build myself an e boat with a 50 mile range. :lol:
 
Wouldn't it be nice if we could get highways for just bikes? Just a couple roads where cars are not allowed. If those existed, I would go out of my way to use them.
 
cal3thousand said:
Wouldn't it be nice if we could get highways for just bikes? Just a couple roads where cars are not allowed. If those existed, I would go out of my way to use them.
Click to expand...

The trouble with that is, if you have to go very much out of your way to get to a cycling facility, you won't use it much-- not for transportation anyway. That's the problem with the Circle C Veloway here in Austin. It sucked up years worth of cycling-specific funds in its construction, but it's just a loop trail out in the 'burbs that doesn't go anywhere. So while it does have a certain attraction for some weenies and rollerbladers, it does not get used a fraction as much as much cheaper bike facilities in town which actually serve a transportation purpose.

I say, close every tenth city street to motor vehicles, and watch those corridors flourish with street life, commerce, and other activity. Then you would not have to go very far out of your way to get to one of them.

For what it's worth, the first freeway in California started as a bicycle tollway that opened in 1900:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arroyo_Seco_Parkway

Chalo
 
Sydney has a Lord Mayor who has sustained electoral support because of all the same sex and Green inner city voters. As a consequence she has used her support to roll out extensive exclusive traffic lanes through the Sydney CBD, it has really upset the talk back radio and Daily Telegraph and its readers. You can see the Green lane in the photo in the link. I haven't used them (I don't live in Sydney), but from what I see they look awesome and so perfect for Ebikes because you could really crank on them and there would be (theoretically) no pedestrians or traffic to get upset.

http://blogs.news.com.au/dailyteleg...raph/comments/the_bike_lanes_that_ate_sydney/
 
Chalo said:
cal3thousand said:
Wouldn't it be nice if we could get highways for just bikes? Just a couple roads where cars are not allowed. If those existed, I would go out of my way to use them.
Click to expand...

The trouble with that is, if you have to go very much out of your way to get to a cycling facility, you won't use it much-- not for transportation anyway. That's the problem with the Circle C Veloway here in Austin. It sucked up years worth of cycling-specific funds in its construction, but it's just a loop trail out in the 'burbs that doesn't go anywhere. So while it does have a certain attraction for some weenies and rollerbladers, it does not get used a fraction as much as much cheaper bike facilities in town which actually serve a transportation purpose.

I say, close every tenth city street to motor vehicles, and watch those corridors flourish with street life, commerce, and other activity. Then you would not have to go very far out of your way to get to one of them.

For what it's worth, the first freeway in California started as a bicycle tollway that opened in 1900:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arroyo_Seco_Parkway

Chalo
Click to expand...

Closing every 10th street would be amazing... but that's not going to happen since everyone here (that votes) is a driver, so they won't help approve that.

I would settle for 4 major bikeways - 2 each going E-W and N-S that cut the area between the Pacific Ocean and DTLA into 9 sections. I wouldn't mind going 2 miles out of my way if that meant no cars there and with e-bikes allowed to do 40mph.

I could seriously consider not owning a car in that case.
 
The difficulty in getting car-free zones is just getting folks to try it. In Europe when some cities began to [close] their old central areas to cars, merchants and commercial interests have been strongly opposed to it-- and then when they saw the results, the ones outside those areas wanted the car-free zones expanded to include them.

Laziness and selfishness (car thinking) are common and very short-sighted, but quality of life is easy to see when it's there.
 
Chalo said:
The difficulty in getting car-free zones is just getting folks to try it. In Europe when some cities began to their old central areas to cars, merchants and commercial interests have been strongly opposed to it-- and then when they saw the results, the ones outside those areas wanted the car-free zones expanded to include them.

Laziness and selfishness (car thinking) are common and very short-sighted, but quality of life is easy to see when it's there.
Click to expand...

I can agree with that... I see so many a-holes drive their cars from one end of the parking lot to another spot because CVS is waaaaayy too far from Pavilions to walk. Might get lost :roll:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

e-beach
    • Like
L.A. Times Commentary: I rode 23 miles to work on an e-bike and saw the transportation promised land
Replies
9
Views
856
willstealthy
W
e-beach
‘A Dangerous Combination’: Teenagers’ Accidents Expose E-Bike Risks' A New York Times Article
2 3
Replies
72
Views
6,142
nicobie
nicobie
The Smart Ped`aleck
Know Your State Laws
Replies
19
Views
2,596
teklektik
teklektik
MitchJi
America’s Top 50 Bike-Friendly Cities - Link to Article
Replies
4
Views
811
amberwolf
amberwolf
TylerDurden
NYT: - The Secret to Solar Power
Replies
10
Views
4,106
arkmundi
arkmundi
Back
Top