Comments on: Weekend Reading

By: Rick

Rick — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 21:23:19 +0000

Regarding the Pungo article, I’d like to know what percentage of the repaving costs that $80,000/mile represents. I’d also be interested in seeing accident statistics for the roads in question–both bike related and vehicle-on-vehicle. Roadways with no shoulder or pull-off area are inherently more dangerous and widening them by 2 feet on either side is good idea, irrespective of bicycle use.

What amazed me about the comments was the extreme sense of entitlement to exclusive use of the roads so many respondents seemed to have, as exemplified by unclehomerr when he said, “We took the horse off the roads because they’re unsafe and interfere with vehicular traffic” (is horse traffic really illegal in VA Beach?) and “They have ‘the right’?? I don’t think so…”

If they’re representative of the general population there, I fear cyclist will have a long, hard battle.

By: miker

miker — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 19:24:09 +0000

This weekend, this article came up in nearby Newport News, Virginia. It seems the abusive-driver fees, that some bike blogs have defended, have now been levied against a bicyclist. From the article, it appears the bike commuter was charged over $1000 for crossing the street on a bicycle.

By: qian

qian — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 23:34:02 +0000

Same issue is being raised in Sydney viz. the cost of cycling infrastructure. To me in established car cultures like Australia & America, people will only cycle more if they drive less – tautologically speaking, and will only do so if there’re perceived advantages, material or otherwise. But without better cycling infrastructure, people will be less likely to cycle, as most will regard it a step backward in terms of comfort & convenience, even if only in the short term.

If the government is sincere in improving traffic situations by encouraging higher bicycle use, it will need to better inform & educate the public concerning the advantages involved in bikes compared with cars, in addition to just investing in physical infrastructure, as the ethos of road users are to me at least as important, if not more so, otherwise such projects will always be underused, and what is worse for democratically elected governments, unpopular.

By: Fritz

Fritz — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 21:58:22 +0000

Enrique, it might be interesting to look at the revenue from various automobile taxes and fees then compare that against the cost of paramedic/ambulance service for traffic accidents and police traffic patrols.

By: enrique

enrique — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 15:25:16 +0000

When you put the numbers to it like that, it sure does make for some compelling arguments for those who oppose the bike lanes. However, money is not a deterrent when the people want something bad enough. All the more reason for our continuing to promote bike commuting. Something to consider: Automobile ownership probably makes for a nice source of revenue for the county/state. In my community, you don’t pay anything to the government for owning a bike. Imagine what would happen if the number of automobile registrations declined drastically?

It’s all about the $$$.