An occasional update on items from the Velo-city.
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INFO PIECE OF THE YEAR
European focus – but lots of useful graphics:
More here. Other nominations welcome.
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THE ONE PERCENT
For those ranting about the city clearing bike lanes during snow storms, this might be helpful:
Researchers from UC Berkeley and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have found that when it comes to traffic, some drivers are making you later than others.
How much later? The central finding of the the paper, published today in Scientific Reports, is that while keeping one percent of all drivers off the road cuts traffic congestion by three percent ...
In other words, if cyclists can pedal during some of the worst driving weather, it makes life very much better for those in cars. And it doesn’t take many to make a difference:
… eliminating the same number of drivers from particular neighborhoods can reduce travel time for everyone else by a whopping 18 percent.
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THE ONE PERCENT: CHINESE VERSION
Rich Chinese are buying bicycles that cost more than the average citizen makes in three years, motivated by nostalgia for the days when two wheels were the primary means of transport. …
“Demand for mainstream luxury items such
as premium cars, watches has come to a point of saturation. High-income groups now turn to high-end bikes to show off the uniqueness in taste and healthy lifestyle,” said Zhou Jiannong, general manager of Rbike Networks in China. …
It can cost up to HK$300,000 ($38,700) for an imported limited edition of expensive brands such as Italy’s Colnago or France’s Look, nearly 100 times the price of a Flying Pigeon, China’s official bike since it was born in 1950.
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LEADERSHIP IN MEMPHIS
City planners are using bike lanes as an economic development tool, setting the stage for new stores and enhanced urban vibrancy, said Kyle Wagenschutz, the city of Memphis’s bike-pedestrian coordinator, a position the mayor created.
“The cycling advocates have been vocal the past 10 years, but nothing ever happened,” Mr. Wagenschutz said. “It took a change of political will to catalyze the movement.”
Memphis, with a population of 650,000, is often cited among the unhealthiest, most crime-ridden and most auto-centric cities in the country. Investments in bicycling are being viewed here as a way to promote healthy habits, community bonds and greater environmental stewardship.
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