Jean Chong sends in this article with details:
JAPAN’S NATIONAL BIKE TO WORK BAN
Strict government policies regarding employee travel insurance, and inflexible insurance company policies, have created a situation where cycling to work is effectively banned in Japan. That’s right, bureaucracy is preventing people from cycling to work in Japan.
Article here.
Plus this: TOKYO OLYMPIC CYCLING INFRASTRUCTURE. IS THAT IT?
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Why wouldn’t the Japanese auto industry be as manipulative as the U.S. one in discouraging alternatives? You just know that someone at Nissan greased a few palms to make sure that the cycling revolution doesn’t happen there.
On another note, I hope those pavers only appear to be bumpy and are actually smooth. Seem to have some grippy surface too which will be nice in the rain.
It could be that 1 metre each way is adequate for the Japanese – perhaps they, as a society, are not as reckless as North Americans. Is it still true that most cyclists in Japan do not even lock their bikes?
PS – note how the Japanese ride on the left (and drive on the left, and walk on the left).
Given the number of tourists in Vancouver – it would be a good reminder if the City of Vancouver also indicated “keep right” with its paths.
Illegal maybe, but that doesn’t stop millions from doing it, especially on the short trip from home to the train station.
When I lived there in the late 90s, there were more people biking to work in my small town than driving (or at least it seemed that way). Also, the only bike locks were little locks around the tires so that the wheels couldn’t move unless you had a key. These locks were flimsy enough that they could be broken by hand if you tried hard enough. So, I my thinking is that they are not around to prevent theft, but rather to prevent you from accidentally taking the wrong bike (most bikes looked the same there and there were hundreds lined up against most walls).