Underground bike parking: a creative solution for tight spaces

A Spanish company has created an interesting solution for tight urban spaces: the Biceberg, an automated, underground parking cube.

Via Copenhagenize and Fred S. (in Amsterdam):

It takes thirty seconds to drop off or retrieve your bike. The system works with a subscription card with a chip. As far as I can see it is for subscribers who will use it daily.

Last year we posted about automated bicycle parking in Tokyo in the same vein. In Toyko, however, it's a high-volume affair at train stations. These Bicebergs are meant for smaller volume but also for spaces that are tighter.

herb : 16 years 3 months ago
Tags: bike infrastructure, bike parking

2008 Bike Accidents Map

Just in time for the Spring cycling rush, the Toronto Star posted a new Map of the Week: Bike accidents. This map of "accidents" on the streets of Toronto gives a quick and handy guide to the cyclist-related carnage on Toronto's streets.

I haven't studied this map in great detail yet, but it doesn't look like things have changed that much from other similar maps I've seen in the past. Some typical observations on these maps:

  • The core east-west streets (Bloor, College, Queen, etc.) seem to have solid patterns and high concentrations of "accidents".
  • Some of the north-south streets like Bay and University look bad too.
  • The number of cycling "accidents" drops quickly once you get out of the core. Most likely because the number of cyclists drops too.
  • There are lots of "accidents" even when a bike lane is in place (e.g. Davenport).
  • This map also confirms that there are cyclists in Scarborough (unfortunately, they have "accidents" too).

According to The Star, who saved you plenty of time by not having to click on ALL of the dots, here are the worst intersections in Toronto:

110 intersections had more than one accident (the great majority with two). Here are the top nine:

  • 7 Bay and Dundas
  • 7 College and Crawford
  • 5 Queen and Broadview
  • 5 Yonge and Dundas
  • 4 Bloor and Bathurst
  • 4 Bloor and Keele
  • 4 Spadina and Dundas
  • 4 Islington and the Queensway
  • 4 King and John

Personally, for the vast majority of my riding, I actually feel pretty safe. But a map like this is a good reminder that bad things can happen. I just hope it doesn't end up scaring people away from riding.

vic : 16 years 3 months ago
Tags: collision, map, safety, Toronto Star

East Toronto = death for bike shops

This last January Cycle Therapy finally closed its doors, after months of speculation. Cycle Therapy was just one more east Toronto bike shop that couldn't. And now Velotique is also up for sale, though it appears to be for personal reasons not a bad market.

Why does it seem that so few bike shops can survive in the wilds of East York, Leslieville or Scarborough? Well, it makes sense for Scarborough, few people bike there and if they do they are likely to just get a crappy Canadian Tire bike, but Leslieville? Lots of people bike around there. It's a relatively bike-friendly area, much like Toronto's west end.

Things might be looking up somewhat. The other day I happened upon the sign "Hello Velo" on Carlaw, south of Dundas. Turns out that Hello Velo is a spacious bike shop tucked away inside the courtyard of a converted factory. The location, as comfortable as it looks, isn't all that retail friendly. There isn't a lot of foot traffic. That may explain Hello Velo pushing their bike mechanic workshops. From their website they seem to be focused on road racing and triathalons, not so much the average commuter.

So it seems that East York, eastern Toronto and Scarborough will continue to be mostly served by only a handful of bike shops, department stores and boutique-type shops.

herb : 16 years 3 months ago
Tags: bike shops