research

Photo by James Schwartz of The Urban Country.

In North America and the UK bike lanes and cycle tracks (separated bike lanes) have a history of being controversial, though less so now, thanks in part to more experience with installation and better research. In the rest of Europe they have been more or less a non-issue. Some countries like The Netherlands and Denmark have a long history of cycle tracks. In North America motorists tend to swing on either side of the issue: many motorists refuse to give up any asphalt for bike lanes, or even sidewalks. Other motorists just can't conceive of dealing with bikes in front or alongside them so hope for some separation. A minority of cyclists (who've usually called themselves vehicular cyclists) have adamantly opposed to most bike infrastructure. Their primary reason for opposing is that in the past municipalities have created particularly poor bike paths and have legislated cyclists to use them. Some of their concerns of the dangers are warranted but appear to apply mostly to poor implementations. New research has shown that cycle tracks may in fact reduce the risk of injury over either the road or the sidewalk. Most everyone else on bike likes the idea of getting some dedicated space, and won't really feel comfortable unless they have some separation where car speeds are high, or other calming measures where our society is willing to allow limitations on motorists.

I had the pleasure of meeting a graduate student from York this week who is researching Critical Mass, and he wants to know: Have YOU ever participated in critical mass Toronto?

He is conducting a survey and would like your input. The survey is part of a case study and is completely anonymous and confidential. If you can spare three to five minutes, just go to:

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=_2bd637nc23HQRvIBtW...

If you would like more information about the research, please contact Andrew Bieler at bielerandrew@yahoo.com.

See you this Friday! Spadina and Bloor, 6pm.

Photo by Martin Reis

Cyclists fare best if they can treat themselves to a road without motor vehicles. This is the message cyclists gave researchers at the University of British Columbia working on a study called Cycling in Cities, led by Professor Kay Teschke.

Top 5 Preferred Routes

The multiphase study includes a survey of the public, asking which road and path types they prefer to cycle on, and the road and path type they actually use. The type they use is heavily influenced by what's available in the city. Looking at preferences helps city planners decide how bicycle routes can be designed to attract the most cyclists.

The study ranks routes according to preference. The highest preference was for fully separate paths, like park paths or rail trails. This isn't surprising, but there will always be the problem that not many people live at one end of a park and work at the other. For streets, if the street is a major arterial, people want a physical barrier separating them from the motor traffic. If it's a residential street, people want traffic calming and bike markings.

The researchers classified cyclists based on factors like gender, cycling frequency and parenthood.