On 5/12/2014 1:39 PM, jbeattie wrote:


Bike lanes increase ridership, at least based on my observations here in PDX.
A lot of people don't want to ride because they are afraid of mean old
cars.
Whether that behavior is reasonable or not, they will ride if you give
them a
lane or a bike boulevard, etc. Will it ever be Amsterdam . . . no. We
have
hills, long commuting distances for employment outside downtown, car love,
etc., etc. A huge amount of spending on separate bike avenues (and the
condemnation of a lot of private property) might increase modal share to
10%.
We can't afford to fill pot holes. Chances of building a bicycle
super-highway
are nill.

Just for the record, I agree with almost everything in that paragraph.

My only disagreement is this: Only a few people (percentage-wise) will
ride if you give them a bike lane or a bike boulevard, etc. The vast
majority will still be uninterested.

(And BTW, I personally like bike boulevards. I'd like to see more of them.)

If the government (or anybody) wants to get more than a few percent bike
mode share, they'll need to find ways to strongly discourage driving.
Gas at $10 a gallon will help, but it's only the first of many necessary
steps. And most of those necessary steps will be politically impossible
in the U.S. for the foreseeable future.


--
- Frank Krygowski