A comparison of 42 urban areas in New Zealand with 500 towns and cities in the US shows how much better local urban design has to be if we’re serious about reducing reliance on cars.
We found people from the UK and Australia usually misunderstand the impact cycle lanes have on speed limits – wrongly believing addition of a cycle lane means cars would inevitably need to go slower.
We surveyed over 4,000 Victorians and found more than three-quarters are interested in riding a bike, but only in infrastructure that separates people from cars – such as protected bike lanes.
Building a culture of cycling is essential, especially where bike use is low. A global movement of community bike workshops, also known as bike kitchens, can help.
Bike-share programs don’t just cater for residents. When tourists use them too, that greatly increases the value the whole community gets from these bikes.
Bike shops have seen record sales during the pandemic as people try to avoid crowded transportation. But governments must do more to keep new cyclists in the saddle.
The Trump administration has moved to allow electric bikes on all federally owned trails where normal bikes are allowed. A public lands scholar weighs in on the issues this could cause.
If cities had backed their active transport goals with investment in adequate cycling infrastructure we might not be having the arguments about dockless bikes ‘littering’ public space.
Many short-term bike-hiring programs have been launched amid much fanfare, only for their popularity to decline soon after. Several key factors need to be in place for a program to work.
Australians can see the impact of dockless bike sharing on the streets of their cities. The huge store of data collected about user journeys is less visible, but just as important.
Professor of Equality and Diversity in Sport, Leisure and Education, Head of Research Centre for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Leeds Beckett University