Once upon a time, I was (or at least fancied myself) a true-blue Libertarian. For me, the works of Ayn Rand, in spite of my misgivings about her as a writer, were as foundational as the Bible is for fundamentalist preachers.
While my politics, these days, align more with those of Elizabeth Warren than anyone else I can think of, I still think that government--and, urban planners in particular--can't solve everything.
One of the problems is that planners don't always understand what they're planning as well as they think they do. This is particularly true when they conceive and build "bicycle infrastructure." Sometimes I wonder whether those planners have been on bicycles since they were kids, if ever.
That phenomenon, apparently, isn't limited to planners in the US. According to one cyclist in England, boatloads of money were spent on an indoor bicycle parking facility that is no safer than streetside parking.
The Battersea Power Station bike parking facility, according to Jim Harris is accessible only by stairs or elevator. As unpromising as that is, it's not the worst thing about the parking station. There's a sign instructing users to press a button to open a door. But there's no button and...the door is open.
Once Jim entered, he found bike racks that were worse than useless. Some can't be used if the bike has fenders, as many commuters' bikes--especially in England--have. Worse yet, on some racks, only a wheel, but not the frame, can be locked. (I don't know how many wheels I've seen locked to lamp- and sign-posts.)
There are also double-decker racks--that can't be pulled down. If you can't reach the upper level--or can't lift your bike for whatever reason--you have "get on your hands and knees" to use the lower racks. And, Jim warns, "watch your head" because there are sharp edges on the upper racks.
So, he sums up, seven billion (!) pounds gets you "the biggest, fanciest, least easy to access, most ill-conceived bike storage facility in London."
If that makes you wish Ron Paul had been elected Preseident, I understand. I'm not ready to go back to being a Libertarian, but spending money on bad infrastructure helps anyone or makes anyone happy. If anything, it upsets cyclists like me or Jim who see how useless it is--and it creates anger and resentment in others who pay taxes.
8/ So what £7 billion+ gets you is the biggest, fanciest, least easy to access, most ill-conceived bike storage facility in London.
— Jim Harris is at work (@jimoutoffaf) December 24, 2022
Trebles all round! pic.twitter.com/lgn1iH267V
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