Great Britain has a longer, and more continuous, cycling tradition than what the US has. Cyclists continued to ride for recreation as well as transportation, even as automotive traffic increased from the 1950's onward. So, one might expect more enlightened thinking in Albion when it comes to bikeways and bike safety.
Turns out, England has--at least to hear the Brits tell it--plenty of poorly-conceived, designed and constructed bike lanes. There are enough such asphalt atrocities, in fact, that a book of them has been published.
I haven't cycled in the UK in a long time, so I can't comment on the authors' contention that the the Queen's land is criscrossed by monuments to ineptitude in design. However, if what I noticed when I was there is representative of the state of cycling and cycling lanes, I'd have to say that England has a situation that's similar to what we find in the US: The people who design bike lanes aren't cyclists themselves and are acting on their fears and stereotypes. And many cyclists don't want to speak out about how dangerous sme lanes are, because they are afraid of alienating the authorities with whom they cultivated cordial working relationship
Now I can't help but to wonder what the situation is like in other countries.
Turns out, England has--at least to hear the Brits tell it--plenty of poorly-conceived, designed and constructed bike lanes. There are enough such asphalt atrocities, in fact, that a book of them has been published.
I haven't cycled in the UK in a long time, so I can't comment on the authors' contention that the the Queen's land is criscrossed by monuments to ineptitude in design. However, if what I noticed when I was there is representative of the state of cycling and cycling lanes, I'd have to say that England has a situation that's similar to what we find in the US: The people who design bike lanes aren't cyclists themselves and are acting on their fears and stereotypes. And many cyclists don't want to speak out about how dangerous sme lanes are, because they are afraid of alienating the authorities with whom they cultivated cordial working relationship
Now I can't help but to wonder what the situation is like in other countries.
Is that book from the collection of the Warrington Cycle Campaign?
ReplyDeleteNot just England. It's true in Scotland too!
ReplyDeleteSteve--I believe it is.
ReplyDeleteSara--I'm sorry to hear that.