From the Secretary of Transportation: What we know about bike infrastructure ...

[Jonathan Krall]

Hi All,

My understanding is that "bicycle infrastructure" is 
whatever makes the street grid look safe for riding.
People like Gabe Klein (DC DOT) and Ray La Hood (US DOT)
have repeatedly said that "safe" means safe for everyone 
from older children to retirees.  

Personally I'd like to see all manner of infrastructure,
from short connecting bike/ped paths between the suburban
dead-end streets of the West End to a cycletrack right 
down the center of Duke street.  I'd also like to see
Holmes Run upgraded from fair-weather crossings to 
bridges, so normal people can ride to work in normal clothes 
without getting them splashed with water.

As La Hood says, lots of people want to cycle, but are afraid 
to do so.  He wants to make it easier for them to ride.
As Mikael Colville-Andersen (Copenhagen Cycle Chic) often
says, this isn't about cyclists, it's about people who happen 
to ride bicycles when they find that it's the best way to get 
from point A to point B.

Jonathan

On Fri Apr 30  2:36 , Allen Muchnick  sent:

>What does "bike infrastructure" mean, and how does "bike infrastructure" differ
from bicycle facilities and/or accommodations?
>
>It seems to me that "bike infrastructure" is just the new code word for "cycle
tracks" and other problematic segregated bikeways.  Is a sharrow, a bike box, or
a BMUFL or STR sign "infrastructure"?  
>
>IMHO, a low-traffic local street grid and appropriately calmed traffic on
commercial streets provide the most fundamental and beneficial "bike
infrastructure" for urban core communities.  Much of Alexandria (except the West
End, of course) already has that, but many arterial streets should be redesigned
and operated to induce motorists to drive slower.
>
>America needs transformational culture change regarding personal transportation.
 A simple-minded quest for "bike infrastructure" is not a winning strategy. 
>
>Allen Muchnick
>Arlington VA
>
>
>--- On Thu, 4/29/10, Jonathan Krall jonathan at jonathankrall.net> wrote:
>
>> Another great statement on cycling
>> from our friend Ray La Hood.
>> 
>> From the Secretary of Transportation: What we know about
>> bike infrastructure ...
>> >
http://fastlane.dot.gov/2010/04/what-we-know-about-bike-infrastructure-people-want-it.html#more
>
>
>
>      
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