A rant!
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20 Comments
To me, the saddest part is that I lead a ghost bike ride every year, and in all but one of the ghost bike locations I've visited, the intersection is identical to how it was when the cyclist was killed.
As a cyclist I respectfully disagree, its ok to want more bike lanes for yourself just like horse owners probably wish there were more horse trails, but to think " we deserve it" is both entitled and myopic. Bicycling for the majority is just an occasional hobby and the demand for millions of dollars to go to creating more bike lanes is just not there so its not fair to ask everyone to pay for your hobby. I live outside of Atlanta and im so thankful for all of the amazing places we have here to ride, beltline, silver comet, countless mtb trail systems etc.
“Transit infrastructure is social justice.” (6:57) I love that.
Sad to say, but this will only happen sporadically in certain cities, widespread adoption across the US would take too much collaboration and administrative effort…but we can dream! Lol
Just finished reading Bicycle /Race by Adonia Lugo who did her dissertation on bicycling and culture " Transit infrastructure is social justice" So true. She mentioned human infrastructure as well as lanes , routes and trails . Bicyclists are not absticles they are people. In the US we are very autocentric. Widen the avenue but the attitudes need to be broadened. Great rant. take care of the cold Rest Ride repeat.
Please do not apologize for ranting. You are 100% correct in everything you said. Feel better soon!
The US is basically addicted to the car. (Present company excepted, obviously) The UK and Europe, on the other hand, are far more forward-thinking. Plus we have many historic buildings, narrow streets and lanes and ancient sites which require preservation which in turn means that the internal combustion engine has to be strictly limited or even banned from certain areas.
When we moved to North Carolina a couple years ago we had no idea there was a massive bike/pedestrian trail system literally a block away from where we live now. It has benefited both my spouse and myself and offered us the freedom to go outdoors relatively carefree. I love cycling on the trail and it has benefited my health greatly in weight loss, as well as, helping me to deal with the PTSD I suffer with having been hit by a careless driver back in 2016. If you build trails people will come, it's a given. IMHO it brings a little joy into life while humanity suffers through the distressing state of affairs that is this country currently. Health and happiness are human rights and should be encouraged.
The reality is that those of us who want decent non-motorized infrastructure are a group dwarfed by the groups who don't give a frog's fat ass about me or you being able to cycle around towns safely. Americans are generally selfish, so asking someone who drives everywhere to give up widening a road so bike lanes can be built is going to be jet with a loud, "Hell no!" Elected officials want to stay in power and typically follow the path of least resistance. And I had to laugh when you talked of fairness and equity. The US is built on a platform diametrically opposed to that, "The majority rules" is the watchword, sunshine. If fairness existed you and your partner could marry and enjoy all the financial and cultural advantages my wife and I have. If fairness was valued, the single mom would have access to affordable healthcare and we wouldn't worship and idolize trillionaires. Let's face it, we don't live in a country where values like these matter. Billy-MAGA in his coal rolling, oversized pickup isn't going to stand for this woke, communist, sissy agenda. He gets out to shot his AR-15 just fine thank you, and doesn't need our sorry asses slowing him down.
As someone who bikes around Vienna daily for practically all transportation needs, I understand what you mean. Just that you know, there are parts of the city where cycling infrastructure is not so great, where you share the lane with the cars in a 30km/h zone,etc. However, there is a lot to building up culture and setting up a strong control and penalty system for bad behaviour in traffic, and Vienna has that in my opinion. Actually, if you ask me, protection of cyclists has gone to such levels, that a minority of them has started feeling entitled and acting like a£&holes, putting a bit of a bad name to all of us, especially in the eyes of the pedestrians. I am talking about roadies bitching and acting aggressively towards pedestrians on shared paths, because they absolutely need to keep their 35 km/h tempo. Or cutting off pedestrians on the crossings and such. So yeah, Vienna is a heaven for cycling in a lot of ways, as long as all of the people are remembering to be nice and kind to each other.
So cool to hear you were in Vienna recently! I might have cycled past you and your partner on one of those cycle lanes you are raving about. 😄
Rest up and get well soon!
When you prioritize all human movement over making money and car lobbies, you get beautiful cities and safe places for humans rather than speedways and safe places for chunks of metal.
Can you imagine the uproar if it was suggested Americans walk 200’ to a train station?😂. The problem is our people.
This is the country that decided to redirect all bike lanes and pedestrian projects funding because it’s “DEI bike lanes” 🙄😤
I'm Eurotrash. I live in NYC and the infrastructure there is pretty darn good. BUT, those E bikes and delivery bikes are making it scary to ride a bicycle in the bike lane. I'm not a wimp – I raced for 10 years and rode to Timbuktu. Those E bikes piss me off!
I grew up in a Seattle and now live in Portland. Both are considered some of the best pedestrian and bike infrastructure in the US. I thought we had it good and compared to most North American cities we do. Then we went to the Netherlands for a week. We didn’t even ride bikes, just took transit and walked everywhere. I came back so disappointed in our infrastructure policies that I was actually depressed, now it just makes me mad at the injustice of it all. We have it so backwards.
The sad truth is that this change is so far from our own lifetimes.
yes you do deserve better but cars will always come first it should not be that ways
My daughter just got her masters in planning and transportation and feels the same way. We need to deprioritize motor vehicles and focus on livable spaces for people. It's all about social justice and always has been.
I know those fears as worries all to well. I don't want to get hit again, Did you ever read Katelyn Bruns' article "Cities Are Designed By Men – and it Shows"? If not, it's a real good article, I think you might find it informative. Hopefully, you recover speedily.