Two years ago, Montréal embarked on an ambitious $134 million plan to revamp the city’s bike trails and create a more bicycle-friendly atmosphere. The plan included incorporating bicycle-friendly lock points into standard parking meters, which has greatly reduced the standard (albeit illegal) practice of chaining your ride to whatever immovable post might be available. The city currently boasts 2,400 miles of trails with plans to expand. Montréal also has the first urban bike-share infrastructure in North America, the Bixi program. The company has been so successful that rollouts in New York, Boston and London have followed the Montréal start-up.
Here's something I have not seen before. At least at protests.
Crowd control of protesters by police on bicycles:
[video=youtube;UHUJxbMnpcI]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHUJxbMnpcI[/video]
All that's needed now are the police to hand out flowers.
Make love not war.
Get a job you hippie!
Aren't the ex-hippies now cops, or at least, a higher ranking cop?
Mapping Your NYC Bike Commute
by Clarence Eckerson, Jr. on October 17, 2010 | 305 Plays
Regardless of age or ability, everyone deserves the right to a safe and convenient bike commute. In New York City, every day the DOT is making that more of a reality - thanks to an incredible diversity of bike facilities. The city has moved past simple, striped bike lanes and on to refreshing configurations like curbside, floating parking-protected, physically separated, two-way bike paths.
Bike riding is on the rise. Commutes that were unthinkable years ago, are becoming attainable. Riders are more confident in their knowledge of the street grid. One resource that helps is the NYC Cycling Map. Use this cycling freebie to not only link up to the best routes in your neighborhood, but also to find alternatives and experiment with your riding. You'll be amazed how easy - and safe - it can be.
So for inspiration and major cajoling, I decided to hop on my Batavus Dutch crusier and show you my new commute from Jackson Heights, Queens all the way to the Streetfilms offices in lower Manhattan via the Manhattan Bridge. It's a hardy 11 miles each way, and yet almost 90% of the journey is on some sort of bike facility or marked bike route. Furthermore, about 5 miles of it is on completely separate car-free bicycling paths, its no wonder that many days I arrive at work in a zen-like state.
With Rob Ford's anti-bike lane stance, will he actually build truly segregated bike paths? Or will he just say "no money available"?
Here's a video on the History of Cycle Paths in the Netherlands for something we should aim for.
[video=youtube;NrqG0DqkSlw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrqG0DqkSlw[/video]
No money available.
Book it!