The first ‘Bike Café,’ sponsored by SFU Philosopher’s Café and SFU City Program, was moderating by Richard Campbell, President of BC Cycling Coalition, at Musette Caffe (Chinatown) on January 13.
The topic: All weather cycling.
Fortunately, there was a volunteer note taker: Wing-Ka (with contributions from Amy). Below the cut, the comments.
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Next up: Building the Bicycle Culture We Want (Bike Café)
Moderator: Chris Bruntlett
While Vancouver has made important strides as a cycling city in the past few years, some argue these projects have been too modest to disrupt the hegemony the car still enjoys on our streets. What are the bold policy decisions needed to move cycling past a single-digit mode share, and into the same arena as cities like Amsterdam and Copenhagen?
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Thursday, January 29
6 pm
Tandem
Free
- There is $131 million for cycling improvements per year – make complaints to “311” – the city will take great initiative to correct pot holes – these are design flaws and not visible to cyclists during rain
- When complaining to city, be sure to include other stakeholders’ e-mail address, such as the mayor, the councilors, etc.
- Gear can be expensive
- Cars tend to pass closer in poor weather
- Charlotte – pace of cycling slower in Europe
- Odessa – issue of where to leave one’s (expensive) bike
- Luke – Cypress route & Lions Gate Bridge not safe due to poor lighting and/or road conditions
- Dunsmuir Viaduct bridge is not safe
- Edgewater Casino has a 90 degree turn which causes all kinds of accidents, weather related, etc.
- Translink model at Main station could be more utilized, but there’s no trail to seawall; therefore, isolated
- Cycling is currently marketed to a niche crowd
- Limitations for long distance commuters
- 828 w7th, next Tuesday Bike hub meeting
- Dawn: lack of street cleaning (No 2 Rd bridge, Richmond)
- Clark: started biking due to lack of better alternatives at 2am – 4x faster than commuting by transit
- Huge problem – people need to know how to report and give suggestions on how to improve urban design – “311” and hash tags
- Hash tags are easy to use – Twitter notification for everybody; even if it doesn’t get fixed right away, helps for safety in real time to bring awareness for other cyclists
- Schools during pick-up and drop-off times are danger zones to cyclists
- The more people cycle, the safer it becomes for everyone
- Signs on bike paths can be dangerous
- Montreal has architectural bike lanes; these physical barriers make many feel safer – Driveway considerations (Ontario and Langara College)- danger to cyclists. Nowhere to swerve if car coming out and one is going at high speed as the divider traps the cyclist
- Design analysis should be conducted before implementation
- Cypress, Cornwall 3000-4000 vehicles/day
- Streets for Everyone (Commercial drive campaign)
- 2-3 people have gotten “doored”
- Cycling in Vancouver or shopping for cycling gear in Vancouver can be intimidating
- (Stanley Park) gates: cant go through if bike has trailer
- Amsterdam: cyclists have 2 bike locks – theft is a problem
- Germany: average commute on electric bike is 9 km vs 6 km on average bike
- Vote “yes” on Referendum!
- In certain Municipalities ie. Maple Ridge, New West, one may be able to cycle on sidewalk. Depends on bylaw
- We all have a part to play in raising awareness – contact your city council
- Groups like Meetups encourage social gatherings through cycling, which may contribute to spike in fair weather/summer riding
- Bike shop north of Amsterdam had vending machine with bike parts – mishaps happen during cycling – make bike parts more accessible
- Helmets can be annoying – legal to ride without in Amsterdam and many parts of the world
Suggestions
- Covered bike lanes
o moving bike lanes under viaducts
o Scott – covered secure biking areas - Safety: better lighting on routes
- Windbreaks on certain (windier) sections of roads
- App that estimates how wet one may get on rainy days
o Difficult to predict, different routes - Route that avoid hills
- Expo line – evergreen trees (planting ahead of time for canopy purposes in the future)
- Making suggestions to Translink for more accessible bike routes
- Education for businesses to install proper, secure bike stands
- Ontario and Adanac streets – 1980s greenways
- Secure bike parking – Main St (see Resources section)
- Daniel : release street parking as bike parking
- Colin: average commute 8km
o Find out why people are cycling in summer and not winter; encourage more cycling as this distance is manageable - Clark: propose secure bike parking in park and rides- Tough Mudder is geared for bicycles – what about tricycles?
- Education in primary school lacking (cycling ed)
o Public health researcher suggests teaching active transportation in school
o Surrey has a cycling program for all kids, this needs to be applied in Vancouver schools - Arnold: bicycle education through Hub (see Resources section)
- Jesse: kiosks to wait in the rain
- Suzy: focus on making facilities better for people who are already cycling
- When encountering a big puddle, get into defensive position as it could be a pothole or there maybe other (sharp) objects in water
- ICBC needs to be a part of enforcing a law to drivers to watch out for opening car doors – many cyclists are hit by car doors
o UBC – cycling in the city – 25% of accidents from car doors have put cyclists in hospital – Collision - Poor visibility: Hornby south of Davie; removing elevated planters may increase driver visibility of cyclists
- Gamification
o After cycling and logging x miles, have a company (ie. Arcteryx) reward
the cyclist with a freebie item
o Rapha in London (high end clothing company)
– Lights- more and brighter
o Spoke lights are effective as it allows more visibility for drivers
– Safety: wear white, with a bright stripe for contrast
o Hard to find white clothing
– Potential online store
o With different options: low to high cost
o Solves issue of people who may feel uncomfortable in ‘elitist’ stores - Cycling venting machine
o greener cities goal - There should be tricycle parking in trains
- Collin: day time safety lights more important than having a helmet. Can install with hub/internal generator
- Referendum: need open communication with drivers
- Timberland waterproof shoes and jackets at Marks Work Warehouse
- In Portland, Oregon “Pit Stops” on trams are sponsored –companies could sponsor pit stops for one month, etc in Vancouver
- Kingsway needs cycle infrastructure – huge wide street – no excuses
Resources 311
- Call 311 for issues in Vancouver that can be fixed (relatively) quickly ie. Potholes, Bushes, icy spots, warn bike lane markings
- Lawsuits: www.rbs.ca (David Hey)
- Secure Bike Parking on Main Street:
http://www.translink.ca/en/Rider-Guide/Bikes-on-Transit/Bike-Parking/Secure-BikeParking.aspx - The Hub (Bike Education):
https://bikehub.ca/bike-education
One important aspect of cycling in the rain and/or dark is that in safer, separated bike lanes are needed. More people are ok with riding near traffic when it’s bright and sunny, but not when it rains and drivers are less likely to see you.
I thought it was a great event, even with a few digressions into off-topic discussions. Looking forward to the next one.
I had no idea what to expect, but thoroughly enjoyed it as well. Richard did a great job of moderating and there was lots of great discussion. I too am looking forward to the next one.
Someone wondered what it would take to get more people to ride in winter.
Wet feet are a big concern. I have appropriate clothing, take showers at the end of rides and change at the office so getting wet isn’t a bit deal, but wet shoes take ages to dry and boots don’t fit into toe clips.
I have agonized over shoes and pedals. Flat pedals would permit boots or duck shoes, but I fear slipping after decades with toe clips. Switching to “clip less” pedals would require investing in special cycling shoes and always carrying “normal” shoes with me. That would be OK for regular commuting with a change room and locker, but a pain for quick trips to the store or park.
But in the end that’s a secondary concern. What really keeps me from riding in the cold is fear of slipping on ice and what keeps me from riding in the rain and dark is lack of visibility.
1. Rain hitting me in the face causes me to take my eyes of the road (looking down frequently, blinking excessively). I don’t know how other cyclists manage to see where they’re going with rain hitting their eyes.
2. Rain and especially road spray make it difficult for drivers to see each other let alone anything smaller and less brightly lit.
3. Bright bike lights can have a blinding effect and it’s difficult to get a sense of distance when dealing with a single bright light versus the two widely spaced lights on a car or truck.
David,
I think the problems you list are most solvable.
Yes, wet feet are a concern. The no cost solution is to put bread bags over your socks, which isn’t stylish,but will keep your feet dry. I use booties over my shoe and they work great and they aren’t overly expensive and most are easy to put on.
Your concern about slipping on ice is a concern of mine. Anytime the outside temperature is less than 3C, I take extra caution and if I know it is icy, will walk to work, or take the bus. I don’t cycle in the snow for the same reason.
As one other poster said, a visor can help with rain and also clear or lightly tinted cycling glasses can help.
Yes, drivers seem to be less careful when it rains. I use two rear lights and am thinking about adding a 2nd front light. Also, those cheap turtle lights on a helmet are great, as you can turn your head to the motorist, so they see you better. Also, it is a good idea to use lights during the day as well.
Better lights don’t spray their light everywhere and have a more focussed beam, which is more effective. I point my lights slightly downward to lessen the blinding effect.
1. A visor on your helmet helps a lot. Also, going more slowly when visibility is poor is a good idea.
3. I agree, I like lights that have some shape to them instead of the tiny bright point source lights tend to have.
Janda & Colin:
By visor do you mean a brim like on a baseball cap or a clear piece of plastic like NHL hockey players sometimes have on their helmets?
My helmet has the former, but it doesn’t seem to do much, especially into the wind. I still find myself closing my eyes and looking down far more than I think is safe. I’m going to try wearing a cycling cap under my helmet. Going slower will change the angle of the rain, but it already takes me 40 minutes to get home so there’s a limit to how slowly I want to go. Realistically I will probably continue to ride the bus in bad weather.
I have two rear lights (seat post and pannier) and plan to add a second front light so I can have one on full time and one flashing. For side visibility I’ve seen a bike with some spectacular lights that appear to be along the spokes. I’d like to source something like that, but I’ve never seen anything like it in a bike store or advertised online.
David, I was referring to the visor most cycling helmets have. Some do a better job of shielding you from the rain than others. You can also buy cycling glasses from bike shops or MEC and many of them have interchangeable lenses, so you can use them with a sunglass lense on sunny days too.
I mean a visor like a baseball cap has. It’s mostly so rain drops don’t get in your eyes.
There are spoke lights and Monkey lights that make any design you want but what’s really good is retroreflective sidewall tires. Cost only about $10 more but you’re way more visible from the side when headlights are hitting you. A block away someone can see two bright circles and know there’s a bike there.
I used to bike on the heavy rainy days but now I just take the bus on those days. We live in a city of options. I’m taking them.