The Livable Blog

And You Thought Vancouver Bicycle Culture Was Extreme

10/14/09

06:03:14 pm, by NicS, 297 words

Categories: Transportation, Lifestyle

And You Thought Vancouver Bicycle Culture Was Extreme

For the Danes, city planning is all about the bike

GARY MASON
From Wednesday's Globe and Mail

Copenhagen — From his second-floor office overlooking a Baltic-fed canal, Andreas Rohl ponders a daily question: How can he make life hell for the car drivers of this Scandinavian capital? Mr. Rohl, you see, is the bicycle program manager for the city government of Copenhagen..../snip

“We have reached the point where riding a bike is a far better mode of transportation than a car. You can get almost anywhere faster on a bike than in a car. We focus a lot on increasing bike speeds from point A to point B, and one way you can do that is slowing car speed over that same distance.”..../snip

Where cities in North America focus on easing car congestion, in Copenhagen it's bike jams people like Mr. Rohl are trying to solve. In some cases, that has meant taking space away from cars and handing it to cyclists. It's meant building bridges for bikes and pedestrians over busy thoroughfares..../snip

In the winter months, bike ridership drops off 20 per cent. Still, an armada of plows is ready to clear bike lanes when snow flies. They get priority over routes for cars..../snip

Surprisingly, few cyclists in Copenhagen wear a helmet, a matter that local politicians often debate. But there has been a general reluctance to make them mandatory because it might discourage people from riding. The benefits of cycling, both environmentally and healthwise, outweigh the risks of riding without a helmet, Mr. Rohl said...../snip

By the way, if you think the Danes are doing this to save the planet, you're wrong. Only 1 per cent of those recently surveyed by the city said they were riding a bike to help the environment.

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Our goal as the Livable Region Coalition (LRC) is to provide a voice for those who believe that efficient and sustainable transportation is a cornerstone for the future of the Lower Mainland. We believe that through creating attractive transportation choices, encouraging urban density, and preserving green space and agricultural land, we can make our communities better places to live and grow.

We believe that the provincial government's strategy to pursue excessive development through the Gateway project is detrimental to the well-being of Greater Vancouver. The Gateway project's stated goals of reducing pollution and congestion will not materialize. Evidence for this comes from many sources. Instead, we advocate real solutions that will actually work and will be less expensive.