Why they don't cycle:

GeoffC wrote:
Reason Percentage
No safe route for cycling to work 61%
Traffic levels are too high 52%
No changing/showering facilities at work 32%
Not fit enough 25%
No secure bike parking at work 13%
Too rainy/windy/cold 10%
It's too far 6%
Takes too long 3%


So if safe routes were to be provided, traffic would be reduced by 60%, thus
enabling the remaining 40% to venture out on two wheels. A potential traffic
redution of 100%.

If you removed the first two you'd still have 89% - worth of excuses

On Thursday 14 December 2006 14:14, PhilD ] wrote in
message . com


Andy Leighton wrote:
These will be the people who may well have little idea
of distance and think that some super-human effort is required to ride
three or four miles into work.


Well, be fair, some of the lumps of metal that the public calls "bikes"
*DO* require some super-human effort to move on the level, let alone up
any kind of gradient at all.

These can usually be identified by the nearly flat rear tyres obviously
being squashed by the massive weight of such machines. :-)

In article 4581be7d.0@entanet
PDannyD wrote:
On Thursday 14 December 2006 14:14, PhilD ] wrote in
message . com


Andy Leighton wrote:
These will be the people who may well have little idea
of distance and think that some super-human effort is required to ride
three or four miles into work.


Well, be fair, some of the lumps of metal that the public calls "bikes"
*DO* require some super-human effort to move on the level, let alone up
any kind of gradient at all.

These can usually be identified by the nearly flat rear tyres obviously
being squashed by the massive weight of such machines. :-)

And the characteristic squeaky-crunchy noises that they make when
moving.

A couple more reasones I've thought of:-

Houses aren't always designed very well to store bikes, especially if
you don't have a garage or garden shed and you live mid terrace or in a
flat. Carrying the bike in and out can be hassle and you get oil on
your clothes.

Also, some people expect cycling to be almost free, so they buy the
cheapest bike and lights they can find. The experience isn't great, so
after 2 months when something goes wrong (usualy spokes, wheels,
lights), they leave it in the garden to rust away rather than spend any
money on fixing it, which would probably cost nearly as much as the
bike did in the first place, and they get in the car instead - which
they're happy to spend thousands on. One problem might be that a lot of
bike shops don't stock top quality commuting bikes, so customers can't
even consider buying quality.

"Bob"
[...] Carrying the bike in and out can be hassle and you get oil on
your clothes.

Stand the non-chain side when lifting the bike, for crying out loud!

If you still manage to hit an oily part with any regularity, then
congratulations: you have a good career as a contortionist ahead
(or maybe your pivot brakes are the other way round to mine).
--
MJR/slef

MJ Ray wrote:
"Bob"
[...] Carrying the bike in and out can be hassle and you get oil on
your clothes.

Stand the non-chain side when lifting the bike, for crying out loud!

If you still manage to hit an oily part with any regularity, then
congratulations: you have a good career as a contortionist ahead
(or maybe your pivot brakes are the other way round to mine).
--
MJR/slef

Good idea, but I would probably get oil on the curtains (that cover the
door) then instead. Actually I wouldn't, because I'm end terrace and
I've built a bike shed outside, so I wouldn't need to pick my bike up
at all - I was just thinking about what might put some other people off
cycling.

"GeoffC" of Wanadoo wrote:

Earl Purple wrote:
GeoffC wrote:
Also surprised there is no "too hilly" option.

A lot of gradients would not be noticed by a car driver. I suspect that that
one might climb a bit in the ratings once the respondents had actually
started cycling to work.

Probably not. The survey was done in Manchester, which is very flat. So
flat that driving test examiners have to take candidates to bridges over
railways to find somewhere to do a hill start.
--
Steph Peters
Chorlton Wanderers Cycling Group
Monthly slow and easy rides from South Manchester
http://www.sandbenders.demon.co.uk/cycling/chwan.htm

Ikea reportetly gave away 9,000? folding bikes to their staff today.
Steve (R2 DJ) Wright's "assistant" enquired if you had to assemble them.
Should see some excuses soon. Strange timing though for an apparently
serious positive move.

John Clayton
www.calder-clarion.co.uk


"Mark Thompson"
pleasegivegenerously@warmmail*_turn_up_the_heat_t o_reply*.com wrote in
message . 1.4...
Continued failure to drop off to sleep[1] led me to this interesting
snippit on why peeps don't cycle to work:

www.manchesterfoe.org.uk/lyb/dontcycle_results.php

6 out of 10 respondents don't cycle to work because of the lack of safe
routes for cycling, and half reckon that there's too much traffic on the
roads. This means that Greater Manchester's councils still have a lot to
do
if they want to encourage cycling.

Employers can also do more to encourage cycling, as one in three complain
about the lack of facilities for refreshening up in the workplace, and 13%
say there's no secure place to park their bike at work.

If you thought that Manchester's weather had a lot to do with discouraging
cycling, it's interesting to see that only 1 in 10 cited bad weather as
the
reason why they don't cycle.

Our respondents gave the following reasons for not cycling to work:


Reason Percentage
No safe route for cycling to work 61%
Traffic levels are too high 52%
No changing/showering facilities at work 32%
Not fit enough 25%
No secure bike parking at work 13%
Too rainy/windy/cold 10%
It's too far 6%
Takes too long 3%



[1] If it were a sensible time of year it'd be light by now. Gnargh.

In article k
John Clayton wrote:
Ikea reportetly gave away 9,000? folding bikes to their staff today.
Steve (R2 DJ) Wright's "assistant" enquired if you had to assemble them.
Should see some excuses soon. Strange timing though for an apparently
serious positive move.

When would you give a Christmas present other than at Christmas?

"Rob Morley" wrote in message
t...
In article k
John Clayton wrote:
Ikea reportetly gave away 9,000? folding bikes to their staff today.
Steve (R2 DJ) Wright's "assistant" enquired if you had to assemble them.
Should see some excuses soon. Strange timing though for an apparently
serious positive move.

When would you give a Christmas present other than at Christmas?

Correct, but if you want them to actually use the bikes - any time of year
is better than the "shortest day.

ohn