Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Protecting Cyclists on Urban Roads

Inventory of Protected Green Lanes(Green Lane Project)  

Also discussed here: Memphis to Add 15 Miles of Protected Bike Lanes(Angie Schmitt , StreetsBlogNetwork, May 23, 2013)

And here: Why Are Some Cities Safer for Cycling?(Pollution Free Cities, Jul. 19, 2011)  

And here: Segregated Bike Lanes(Pollution Free Cities, Oct. 12, 2009)

And here: Who owns the road in Montreal?(Pollution Free Cities, Oct. 3, 2009)

Today we review the progress being made in cities in the US and Canada of protection of cyclists on busy city roads through the addition of “protected” or “segregated” bike lanes which often separate cars from bikes by a raised curb. While Canada’s capital probably has the most and longest segregated bike parks (at 541 km, planned to increase to 2,500 km), many US cities are planning to double the number of protected lanes from the current 103 in the next year. The “Green Lane Project” provides a spreadsheet detailing the location and length of these lanes in each city which can be found by following the links above. The hoped for result would be to reduce the number of injuries and deaths caused by the merging of fast-moving vehicle
 traffic with cyclists.
  seg bike path  

Key Quotes:

“a “green lane,” adds physical separation between moving cars and bikes, such as a curb, parked cars or plastic posts. Between 1874 and 2011, only 62 of these facilities were built nationwide… this number will nearly double to 102 protected green lanes on the ground in 32 U.S. cities by the end of 2012.. by the end of 2013, more than 200 green lanes will be on the ground”

“Memphis embarked on an ambitious campaign to add 55 miles of bike infrastructure.”

 “We’re working hard to make sure we’re not just building quantity, but that we’re building quality bike lanes. We want all our citizens, young and old, to be able to make the choice to bicycle and feel safe and comfortable when doing so. Green lanes are how we’re going to take the next step to make Memphis the most bike-friendly city in Tennessee.”

Ottawa currently (2008) has 541 km of bike paths, including 258 km off-road paths and is planning on over 2,500 km”

“With 560 kilometres of designated bike lanes built or under construction on the island, Montreal is ahead of the pack among North American cities”
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