copenhagen

Streetfilms interviewed North American attendees at the Velo-City 2010 conference in Copenhagen to capture their view of Copenhagen and the differences with North American cities. Yvonne Bambrick of the Toronto Cyclists Union was also interviewed.

Mayor Miller got the chance to spin around on a "Copenhagen wheel" while at the global climate change negotiations. The Mayor is reported as saying he'd like to make biking and walking a priority for Toronto. What that means: bike lanes, snow clearing for cyclists, and priority green lights for bikes:

Most of the other mayors are nearly unrecognizable, hidden as they are behind scarves and hats and tightly wrapped coats. But he even wears his Toronto Football Club scarf loosely. “I feel at home in this weather,” he said.

And so do the bikers of Copenhagen. Because the local government clears the bike paths of snow before or at the same time that they clear the roads. Just like they get a green light in crossings before the cars do.

“In Copenhagen, biking and walking has priority, and I would like to take that back to Toronto,” David Miller said. Another thing he wants to take home is the windmills.

In the Globe and Mail today: A two-wheel solution to a more livable city

Vancouver receives sage advice from Copenhagen via urbanist Jan Gehl.

If the arguments for increasing urban bicycle use are this powerful, why are so many cities having such a hard time setting aside guaranteed bike routes and lanes - making them the transport mode of choice, for work and leisure? ...

Unlike the Burrard Bridge test, "You have do things gradually, so that motorists don't realize what has been taken away from them," said Mr. Gehl...

Not that I would risk telling Toronto to slow down.

Copenhagen compliments its pro-bike policies with some hand-in-glove land use rules. New development zones need to have a 50-50 balance of work and living spaces, which makes for more lively streets, and makes the possibility of bicycle-based commuting much more of a reality. To do what Copenhagen has done, Vancouver would have to ban all further condo construction for the relatively few remaining large sites...

It's nice advice for a city that's infilling, like Toronto. Why not growing cities too, like Aurora, Milton, Whitby and Brampton? I'll keep dreaming.