Jack Thurston of The Bike Show interviews Mikael Coville-Anderson of Copenhagenize about his blog, the growth of cycling as a way of getting around in Copenhagen and his work with other cities Well worth a listen!
Not sure I share Jack’s views on the principles being difficult to implement in London due to its narrow streets and historical development pattern…Amsterdam and Copenhagen also have many narrow streets where cars and people cycling co-exist beautifully - without sweat, fear and lycra!
A trip to the Danish capital of Copenhagen, city of stylish cyclists, where Jack Thurston meets Mikael Colville-Andersen, the force behind Cycle Chic and Copenhagenize. We talk about how a single street photograph set him on a new path of bicycle advocacy, fashion and city planning consulting. And lots and lots of blogging.
Jeremy Clarkson, the Top Gear presenter and one of Britain’s most outspoken motorists, has come out in praise of cycling, hailing Copenhagen’s cycling culture as “fan-bleeding-tastic” and comparing it to the streets of London where a state of “undeclared war” exists between cars and bicycles…
…“In Copenhagen, [cycling] is just a pleasant way to get about. Nobody wears a helmet. Nobody wears high-visibility clothing. You just wear what you need to be wearing at your destination.”
He adds: “The upshot is a city that works. It’s pleasing to look at. It’s astonishingly quiet. It’s safe. And no one wastes half their life looking for a parking space. I’d live there in a heartbeat.”
Conversely, Clarkson describes cycling in Britain as a “political statement”, where cyclists need to wear cameras on their helmets to document the motorists who “carve them up”.
In Copenhagen, he explains, most journeys are made by bicycle:
“Now I know that sounds like the ninth circle of hell, but that’s because you live in Britain, where cars and bikes share the road space. This cannot and does not work. It’s like putting a dog and a cat in a cage and expecting them to get along. They won’t, and as a result London is currently hosting an undeclared war. I am constantly irritated by cyclists and I’m sure they’re constantly irritated by me.
“City fathers have to choose. Cars or bicycles. And in Copenhagen they’ve gone for the bike.”
While the DOT under Janette Sadik-Khan has made incredibly important steps to improve safety and mobility for New Yorkers, the truth is that the overwhelming majority of New York City’s streets remain about the same. We did some back-of-the-envelope math to estimate just how much street space has been reallocated from drivers to pedestrians, cyclists and transit riders in recent years. The answer: not a whole lot.
In fact, we estimate that less than one half of one percent of NYC’s street space has changed in the past three and a half years.
The Guardian reports on the findings of a recent Sustrans report, Moving Towards Smarter Travel, which identified that the current government are not investing enough in promoting alternative travel change (surprise surprise). It also captures the views of some leading transport interest groups and ministers.
Investments in greener,more environmentally friendly modes of transport are a must! The pay back is immense…they improve our living environment, enhance our overall quality of life, reduce stressm, improve air quality and enhance accessibilty for people of alll demographics.
These smarter travel choices only receive a tiny fraction of funding from council local transport plans (LTPs), despite the government’s climate adviser – the committee on climate change – urging their widespread rollout.
A report by built environment consultancy Halcrow, commissioned by Friends of the Earth and Sustrans, the sustainable transport charity, revealed that just 70p-per-person would be spent annually on such schemes, compared with the £5.65 spent in the Department for Transport’s Sustainable Travel Towns, despite these projects boosting public transport patronage and reducing the number of journeys made by car.
An interesting report from the now defunct Sustainable Development Commission!
Fairness in a Car Dependent Society, finds that vulnerable groups not only travel less than other people, they carry a greater burden of the costs of other people’s travel, including air pollution, noise, traffic danger, injury and crime. Other findings include:
• The richest 10 per cent of the population benefit from receive four times as much public spending on transport as the poorest 10 per cent • Children of the lowest socioeconomic groups are up to 28 times more likely to be killed on the roads than those of the top socioeconomic group • The most common cause of death for children aged 5-14 years is being hit by a vehicle • Those in the top income quintile travel two and half times as far as those in the bottom income quintile and three times as far by car • In the lowest income quintile, less than half of adults hold a driving licence and less than half of households have a car whilst half of all households in the highest income quintile have two or more cars. For those claiming income support or jobseeker’s allowance, car access figures are even lower – almost two thirds do not have access to a car and a licence to drive it • Car owners in the lowest income quintile spend 25 per cent of total household expenditure on motoring (by comparison spending 10 per cent of income on household energy bills is defined as ‘fuel poverty) People living in rural areas now see car ownership as a necessity and around 90 per cent of households have at least one car. The cost of motoring was found to account for 60 to 100 per cent of the additional income calculated as being required for rural dwellers to meet a minimum socially acceptable standard of living commensurate with urban dwellers • SDC estimate that the total cost of our level of car dependency significantly exceeds the £48 billion per annum in taxes and charges on UK road users.
The report is recommending a new approach to transport policy in line with the Coalition Government’s commitment to fairness as one of its three guiding principles. The Commission’s recommendations centre on its Transport Hierarchy for policy makers, calling on policy-makers to prioritise reducing the demand for transport; encouraging more sustainable modes of transport and improving the efficiency of existing modes of transport over increasing the capacity of the transport system.
Copenhagen is really leading the way with cycling in cities and putting liveable cities first…it puts the UK and particularly London, one of the “worlds capitals” to shame. Forget about high speed trains and a fourth airport. Use those funds to invest in and enhance the technology we have already!
Interesting opinion piece on bicycles in the New York Times written by an American living in Amsterdam!
As an American who has been living here for several years, I am struck, every time I go home, by the way American cities remain manacled to the car. While Europe is dealing with congestion and greenhouse gas buildup by turning urban centers into pedestrian zones and finding innovative ways to combine driving with public transportation, many American cities are carving out more parking spaces. It’s all the more bewildering because America’s collapsing infrastructure would seem to cry out for new solutions.
Geography partly explains the difference: America is spread out, while European cities predate the car. But Boston and Philadelphia have old centers too, while the peripheral sprawl in London and Barcelona mirrors that of American cities.
More important, I think, is mind-set. Take bicycles. The advent of bike lanes in some American cities may seem like a big step, but merely marking a strip of the road for recreational cycling spectacularly misses the point. In Amsterdam, nearly everyone cycles, and cars, bikes and trams coexist in a complex flow, with dedicated bicycle lanes, traffic lights and parking garages. But this is thanks to a different way of thinking about transportation.
The Telegraph reports on the outcome of a recent trial relating to a cyclist who was assaulted by a motorist in Kent.
The attack had been captured on camera by another cyclist and posted on YouTube in a bid to identify the perpetrator. Through this the police were eventually able to identify and track down the attacker!
The judge fined the attacker £400 with £100 compensation to be paid to the cyclist. Whether or not this was adequate is debateable, but more importantly, when sentencing the District judge said:
“Cyclists are very vulnerable and they feel exposed and feel threatened when a car comes too close to them.
“Car drivers need to respect cyclists and understand that.”
A fear of traffic is frequently reported as one of the primary reasons why people dont want to cycle. Here in London (and the UK) - it is clear that drivers for the most part fail to recognise that cyclists are more vulnerable road users. If you go to Copenhagen or Amsterdam, drivers are courteous to cyclists in areas where they share the road, slowing down and giving them right of way. In the UK it can feel on many occasions that drivers are making a direct effort to stay as close to you as possible and make you fearful.
Disappointingly legislators and highway teams in London condone this attitude through policy and highway design, failing to provide segregated cycle facilities, narrowing cycling paths or obliterating them altogether and by refusing to adopt a road user hierarchy, as is the case with the current conservative led London Assembly.
Without a significant change of emphasis, more education and active, committed campaigning by the government, a notable shift to bike use is unlikely to take place.
I was interested to read the comments made by jahnnasbrain on this post, who has firsthand experience of cycling in Omaha as a former resident of the city! However, despite the signs arising out of laziness, they are visible form of cycling endorsement by the city and offer a clear reminder to drivers that they should expect cyclists to take the lane when required.
MAY USE FULL LANE: These signs are laced all along designated bike routes in Omaha, Nebraska (among other cities). A simple, effective reminder to motorists that cyclists have the right to safety via full visibility.
A collaborative report by Sustrans and the PTEG identifying changes that could be implemented to promote cycling in the UK. Report available here and technical annex here
There is enormous untapped potential for increasing cycling in the English city regions, given that nearly half all trips are under 5km. Chronic congestion, high population densities, the cost of parking and the high cost of alternatives further increase the potential for growth. Evidence shows that investing in cycling is highly cost effective, and supports local economies through reducing congestion and carbon emissions, increasing physical activity and improving access to employment, local facilities and public transport….
…..In the report, Sustrans recommends a step change in investment levels and the priority given to measures to increase cycling in the city regions. Although different circumstances in the city regions mean that it is difficult to generalise, broadly indicative examples of what might be delivered and achieved in an area over 5 years at three levels of investment are summarised below.
Step change (£10m/year). This would pay for a comprehensive area-wide programme of hard and soft measures to increase cycling and promote behaviour change. This could deliver a big shift away from car use towards cycling, walking and public transport, and substantial economic, carbon and health benefits.
Boost (£2m/year). This would enable a substantial programme of cycling measures targeted at major transport corridors and town/city centres. This could achieve substantial increases in cycling levels in these priority areas, improving access to public transport, employment and essential services.
Maintain (£0.5 million/year). This would enable continued investment in programmes targeted on increasing cycling where there is the greatest potential for change. For instance this could double levels of cycling to schools and workplaces, delivering substantial reductions in peak congestion.
This is a brilliant idea! It helps to market cycling as trendy, accessible and convenient and also serves as a hub to allow cyclists meet other cyclists!
The Bicycle Library is a new project that offers people the chance to borrow bicycles instead of books. The headquarter is a double-decker bus in London (UK) where there’s a variety of bicycles, each designed to adapt to all urban conditions. You can ask suggestions to the “Librarian”, test the bike for a few days and even buy it direct from the manufacturer.
Great idea! Springwise report that the city hall in Murcia, Spain has offered to give citizens of the city lifetime passes to its new tram system if they ditch their cars!
I love this campaign as it raises the profile of public transport developments in the city and openly and visibly challenges car dominance! Go Murcia!
Murcia’s initiative is part of a three-pronged campaign to reduce driving in the city. The first part of that effort was a program whereby citizens could register by the end of June to get a lifelong ticket for city travel on the tram in exchange for their car, which simply had to be debt-free and in working order. Since that part of the campaign ended, the next phase has involved the city displaying all the cars that were exchanged and gradually disassembling them so as to make them “disappear.” Specifically, for every comment submitted via Facebook or Twitter, Murcia’s mechanics have been removing one piece of the cars in the city’s new collection, even broadcasting the effort via webcam for all to see. The third and final piece of Murcia’s effort, meanwhile, was a humorous initiative in late June to demonstrate the difficulty of parking in the city. To do that, Murcia set up a series of cars parked in impossible places around town, such as atop other cars… It’s one thing for a city to advertise public transport and try to encourage its use, but Murcia’s effort is remarkable for the way it puts the city’s money where its proverbial mouth is and gives citizens a concrete alternative to driving. The drama and humor in its broadcast disassembly effort and parking displays, meanwhile, are icing on the cake. Other cities around the globe: be inspired!
Worth a watch on a sunday morning! A short, hugely creative video by BIG and Kollision called ‘Loop City’ also on show at “what makes a liveable city_”
It proposes that Copenhagens finger plan can be used as a inspiration for a new rail corridor linking Copenhagen with the Øresund Region.
Not only that…it also suggests that with some creative and brave thinking, the new line need not be restricted to becoming a spine for the development of new places. It could also serve as a spine for the flow of energy, waste, flora and fauna. In essence it could become “a line of dense urbanity pumping life into the development areas”…!
