tag:theconversation.com,2011:/id/topics/bikes-38107/articles
Bikes – The Conversation
2023-08-27T13:32:46Z
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/210506
2023-08-27T13:32:46Z
2023-08-27T13:32:46Z
Bike and EV charging infrastructure are urgently needed for a green transition
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<p>The green transition is happening too slowly. We are in a climate emergency and it is clear that we need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by transitioning to more sustainable transportation.</p>
<p>However, without sufficient infrastructure to enable electric vehicles (EVs) or cycling for <a href="https://www.burnhamnationwide.com/final-review-blog/bike-infrastructure-key-to-healthier-cities-reduced-emissions">commuting</a>, these options will remain too inconvenient or unsafe for most. Canada’s <a href="https://unfccc.int/news/climate-plans-remain-insufficient-more-ambitious-action-needed-now">climate obligations</a> will not be met without these infrastructure changes.</p>
<p>We just experienced the hottest July <a href="https://public.wmo.int/en/media/press-release/july-2023-set-be-hottest-month-record">on record</a>. We cannot burn more carbon, no matter the remaining <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/chapter/chapter-2/">carbon budget</a>. Climate <a href="https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/photos-extreme-weather-events-2023-climate-change/">disasters around the world today</a> are dictating timelines now. Meanwhile, gas cars are needlessly on city streets, adding to traffic congestion and pollution while urban sprawl means gas <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/bike-blog/2022/aug/31/how-car-culture-colonised-our-thinking-and-our-language">car driving habits</a> expand.</p>
<p>Canada requires urgent investment in transport infrastructure and incentives to reverse this trend.</p>
<h2>Policy breakdowns</h2>
<p>Here in Toronto, a recent mayoral election provided a platform for two candidates who made election promises to close down <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/traffic-congestion-byelection-campaign-trail-1.6883005">cycling lanes</a>. Meanwhile, a lack of high-quality cycling infrastructure in the city incentivizes travel by car to the <a href="https://worldhappiness.report/ed/2020/cities-and-happiness-a-global-ranking-and-analysis/">detriment of the city’s happiness</a> and carbon budget.</p>
<p>This stands in stark contrast to a city like Copenhagen, Denmark where <a href="https://cyclingmagazine.ca/advocacy/over-60-per-cent-of-people-in-copenhagen-commute-to-work-or-school/">62 per cent of people commute by cycling</a>. A city which, by some metrics, <a href="https://www.earthtrekkers.com/copenhagen-happiest-destination-europe">may also be the happiest in the world</a>. </p>
<p>Closer to home, <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-canadas-first-national-cycling-map-will-benefit-both-riders-and-public-planners-208347">cycling infrastructure remains poor</a> and bike theft rose by <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/bicycle-thefts-in-canada-soar-by-429-per-cent-during-summer-months-report-1.6467265">429 per cent in Canada this summer</a>. However, the solutions to this problem, such as bicycle lockers, are not widely enough installed and where they do exist, they are only for regular users and require a <a href="https://www.toronto.ca/services-payments/streets-parking-transportaon/cycling-in-toronto/bicycle-parking/bicycle-lockers/">reservation and monthly payments</a>. </p>
<p>Solutions such as an <a href="https://www.translink.ca/news/2021/june/translink%20launches%20new%20on-demand%20bike%20lockers">on-demand bicycle storage system</a> being piloted in Vancouver and the <a href="https://thebicyclevalet.ca/our-locations">Vancouver City Centre Bike Valet</a> show promise for nation-wide implementation but will require effort to implement at scale.</p>
<h2>Nowhere to charge</h2>
<p>Likewise, a recent survey says that <a href="https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/two-thirds-of-canadian-drivers-unlikely-to-buy-an-electric-vehicle-1.6462200">Canadians are not switching</a> to cleaner EVs partly because of a lack of charging infrastructure. In a climate emergency, bike and electric vehicle infrastructure should have been installed long ago. </p>
<p>Toronto’s mandate is to reach <a href="https://www.toronto.ca/musservices-payments/water-environment/environmentally-friendly-city-initiatives/transformto/">net zero by 2040</a>, but its efforts pale in comparison to the actions of other cities in Canada and around the world.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-far-to-the-next-electric-vehicle-charging-station-and-will-i-be-able-to-use-it-heres-how-to-create-a-reliable-network-209222">How far to the next electric vehicle charging station – and will I be able to use it? Here's how to create a reliable network</a>
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<p>A variety of <a href="https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-tools/global-ev-policy-explorer">incentives and legislation</a> are accelerating an EV transition including fee exemptions, grants and mandated targets. Brazil is proposing that all gas stations offer EV charging. </p>
<p>Ireland’s <a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/oireachtas/2022/07/13/all-car-sales-will-have-to-be-electric-by-2030-to-reach-climate-targets-oireachtas-committee-told/">zero emissions office</a> is aiming for 100 per cent of new car sales to be EVs by 2030. France supports EV purchases with funding and bonuses for low income individuals. Ecuador’s public transport will be 100 per cent electric by 2025 and Sweden’s government fleet will be electrified by 2035. Colombia and South Africa are setting EV charging infrastructure minimums.</p>
<p>There are notable Canadian EV initiatives in <a href="https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-tools/global-ev-policy-explorer">Québec and British Columbia</a>. Québec has ambitious electrification plans including expanding EV charging, funding further vehicle electrification across the province. B.C. is improving upon the Canadian national mandate by installing more EV charging stations and planning a changeover to clean vehicles. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/right-to-charge-laws-bring-the-promise-of-evs-to-apartments-condos-and-rentals-206721">Right-to-charge laws bring the promise of EVs to apartments, condos and rentals</a>
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<p>In contrast, Ontario and Toronto are without any unique innovations in electric vehicle infrastructure or policy.</p>
<h2>An electric future</h2>
<p>EVs are already addressing local air pollution around the world and reducing <a href="https://aafa.org/asthma/asthma-triggers-causes/air-pollution-smog-asthma/">health issues such as asthma</a>. Higher EV sales are also associated with higher <a href="https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/human-development-index#/indicies/HDI">human development indexes</a> (HDI). An HDI is a national measure of wealth, and a good reflection of standard of living, including health and education. Countries with higher EV sales also tend to lead worldwide in the development of environmental inventions. Healthier inventions make a <a href="https://hdr.undp.org/">better life</a>.</p>
<p>Perhaps in Sweden, France, The Netherlands, Germany, Japan, Norway and certain Canadian provinces such as Québec and B.C., the connection is clearer between switching to cleaner technologies and increasing levels of personal health and <a href="https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/happiest-countries-in-the-world">happiness</a>. Improving <a href="https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/climate-solutions/education-key-addressing-climate-change">education</a> is a catalyst for change. </p>
<p>If Canada is to meet its climate commitments, it has to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation. Infrastructure investments, such as for EVs and cycling, improve our quality of life and the <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/articles/markets/080816/can-infrastructure-spending-really-stimulate-economy.asp">economy</a> at the same time. Building infrastructure is a classic approach to boosting an economy. It is also a green economic opportunity if the right choices are made.</p>
<p>Canada can start by applying well-known policy solutions and rapidly installing infrastructure nationwide. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2020.114961">Studies have validated this recommendation</a> and additional phased-in electrical grid capacity is neither controversial nor impractical. Emissions reductions with EVs as compared to gas cars, no matter the energy fuel source, ultimately validate EVs green utility over gas powered cars. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/batteries-in-electric-vehicles-have-more-mileage-in-city-driving-rather-than-highway-driving-206564">Batteries in electric vehicles have more mileage in city driving rather than highway driving</a>
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<p>Around the world, such as in <a href="https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.8b05264">China</a> where they have energy mix variations <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10098-021-02209-6">across regions</a> including coal, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seppur.2022.122063">EVs make sense</a>. Emissions reductions for Ontario have been calculated at <a href="https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.9b01519">around 80 per cent</a> when EVs are driven. </p>
<p>The International Energy Agency offers a <a href="https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-tools/global-ev-policy-explorer">comprehensive policy database of worldwide examples</a> for places like Toronto that are lagging on clean transportation transition policy and change. Beyond benchmarking, Canada could strive for leadership on the world stage by investing in university research and applying ambitious initiatives across the country. </p>
<p>Canada has an opportunity that should not be missed to stimulate its economy by investing in sustainable transportation infrastructure to accelerate the green transition.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210506/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Deborah de Lange receives funding from SSHRC and ESRC. </span></em></p>
Canada should invest in sustainable transportation infrastructure to accelerate the green transition.
Deborah de Lange, Associate Professor, Global Management Studies, Toronto Metropolitan University
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/207928
2023-08-07T04:10:53Z
2023-08-07T04:10:53Z
Do I have the right bicycle helmet and how can I tell if it’s any good? A bike helmet researcher explains
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532339/original/file-20230616-27-f1f5xs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C21%2C7200%2C5065&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/group-of-cyclist-on-road-2373200/">Pexels/Nishant Aneja</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>If you ride a bike and want to cut your risk of traumatic head injury, you should wear a helmet. A major Australian <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyw153">review</a> of 40 different studies and 64,000 injured cyclists worldwide showed wearing a bicycle helmet reduces the risk of serious head injury by nearly 70%.</p>
<p>But there’s a bewildering array of designs out there. How do you know if yours is up to scratch or when it’s time to replace it?</p>
<p>I’m a head injury biomechanics researcher who has researched on bicycle helmet designs. Here’s what you need to know about choosing a bike helmet.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539875/original/file-20230728-21-sabxi0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A man sitting next to his bike, wearing a helmet." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539875/original/file-20230728-21-sabxi0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539875/original/file-20230728-21-sabxi0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539875/original/file-20230728-21-sabxi0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539875/original/file-20230728-21-sabxi0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539875/original/file-20230728-21-sabxi0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539875/original/file-20230728-21-sabxi0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539875/original/file-20230728-21-sabxi0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Pick a helmet that fits comfortably yet firmly on your head and can’t be tilted for more than an inch in any direction.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-sitting-beside-bicycle-2270328/">Pexels/Dó Castle:</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/over-the-top-policing-of-bike-helmet-laws-targets-vulnerable-riders-125228">Over-the-top policing of bike helmet laws targets vulnerable riders</a>
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<h2>The parts of the helmet</h2>
<p>A typical bicycle helmet consists of a plastic shell, foam-like liner and the straps that keep it on your head. </p>
<p>The shell prevents any sharp penetration. The liner – usually made of expanded polystyrene foam or expanded polypropylene – absorbs the impact energy that would otherwise be colliding dangerously with your head.</p>
<p>In Australia, bicycle helmets must be certified to the mandatory Australian and New Zealand standard (the technical name for this standard is “<a href="https://www.productsafety.gov.au/product-safety-laws/safety-standards-bans/mandatory-standards/bicycle-helmets">AS/NZS 2063 — Bicycle helmets</a>”).</p>
<p>This is a very robust safety regulation, and means the helmet has to be tested for:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>impact attenuation (how well it absorbs impact),</p></li>
<li><p>load distribution (how well force is spread out over a larger area, so as to reduce the risk),</p></li>
<li><p>strength, and</p></li>
<li><p>effectiveness of the strap retention system (how well the helmet stays on your head).</p></li>
</ul>
<p>So check your helmet to see if it says “AS/NZS 2063” on it somewhere (usually on a sticker inside it).</p>
<p>However, it’s worth noting these tests mostly look at the helmet’s ability to reduce the translational force (a force which causes an object to move in a single direction) of a direct impact. </p>
<p>They don’t properly consider the damage done by what’s called “rotational forces” – when the head is hit at an angle, causing it to shift abruptly.</p>
<p>This can cause the brain to rotate inside the skull, leading to severe and irreversible <a href="https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/traumatic-brain-injury#:%7E:text=Diffuse%20axonal%20injury%20is%20the,different%20parts%20of%20the%20brain.">brain damage</a>.</p>
<h2>Bike helmet technology is always changing</h2>
<p>A <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijimpeng.2022.104317">recent review</a> by colleagues and I at Swinburne University of Technology looked at bicycle helmet design technologies that may reduce the risk caused by rotational forces.</p>
<p>The best known one is called a “multi-directional impact protection system” (sometimes abbreviated as MIPS). This design allows the helmet shell to rotate around the inner liner, so the helmet absorbs some of the angular forces that would otherwise be transmitted to your head. </p>
<p>You can tell whether a helmet is MIPS-equipped by looking for a small yellow MIPS logo from the outside or a thin yellow liner beneath the pads on the inside. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539877/original/file-20230728-25-vxf17x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539877/original/file-20230728-25-vxf17x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539877/original/file-20230728-25-vxf17x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539877/original/file-20230728-25-vxf17x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539877/original/file-20230728-25-vxf17x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539877/original/file-20230728-25-vxf17x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539877/original/file-20230728-25-vxf17x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539877/original/file-20230728-25-vxf17x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">A MIPs-equipped helmet will usually be labelled as such.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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<p>Another fancy helmet technology is called an “omni-directional suspension system” (ODS), which has double liner layers connected by special rubbery materials. If you want this feature, look for a white, red and black ODS logo on the helmet shell.</p>
<p>Then there are “shearing pads inside” helmets (also known as SPIN helmets), which features silicone-injected pads in a structure that moves inside the shell.</p>
<p>These help redirect rotational forces when the rider’s head is hit in an accident. Helmets with this feature usually have a SPIN logo on the helmet shell or blue strips on the inside.</p>
<p>A few bicycle helmets use special collapsible liners to reduce the stiffness of shearing in the helmet. Helmets that feature this technology may have words like AIM (which stands for angular impact mitigation), WaveCel and HEXR on them.</p>
<p>My team at Swinburne is developing a bio-inspired flexible structure which can potentially be used as a bicycle helmet liner, and we are currently conducting tests in our Impact Engineering Laboratory. We’re also working on a <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/bioengineering8110173">helmet design</a> featuring an inflatable airbag in a traditional bike helmet.</p>
<h2>How to pick a helmet</h2>
<p>When choosing a helmet in the shop, pick one that fits comfortably yet firmly on your head and can’t be tilted for more than an inch in any direction. </p>
<p>It should be snug but not annoyingly tight; you’re less likely to wear it if it’s uncomfortable.</p>
<p>Ensure the helmet complies with the national or international bicycle helmet standards, which should be stated on the label inside the helmet.</p>
<p>You may consider buying a helmet featuring one of the advanced protection technologies mentioned earlier (things like AIM, MIPS, SPIN or ODS), as these can help mitigate rotation-induced traumatic brain injury if your head gets hit at an angle.</p>
<p>Pick a helmet with a thicker liner, as long as it’s still comfortable enough to wear properly when riding. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-019-02328-8">Thicker liners</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S0924-0136(02)00047-X">tend</a> to absorb more impact energy because they have a longer crushing zone (a bit like how a car with a longer hood in the front has a longer crush zone before the impact hits the driver).</p>
<p>Ideally, choose one just firm enough to minimise impact forces without “bottoming out” (where the impact crushes and flattens the liner). </p>
<p>Denser foams resist very hard impacts better before crushing to their ultimate limit. Once a foam reaches its crush limit, the remaining impact energy is transmitted to your head. Softer foams compress or crush more easily in lighter impacts, giving better protection against milder injuries. </p>
<p>You never know what kind of accident you will have, so it’s better to choose a helmet with both dense and soft foam layers in the liner.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539878/original/file-20230728-17-moflih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman tried on a helmet in a bike shop." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539878/original/file-20230728-17-moflih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/539878/original/file-20230728-17-moflih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539878/original/file-20230728-17-moflih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539878/original/file-20230728-17-moflih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539878/original/file-20230728-17-moflih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539878/original/file-20230728-17-moflih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/539878/original/file-20230728-17-moflih.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Your helmet should be snug but not annoyingly tight.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Should you replace your helmet every few years anyway?</h2>
<p>The US Consumer Product Safety Commission says it might be prudent replace your bike helmet between <a href="https://www.cpsc.gov/safety-education/safety-guides/sports-fitness-and-recreation-bicycles/which-helmet-which-activity">five and ten years</a> after you bought it. </p>
<p>But an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) spokesperson told The Conversation the lifespan of a bicycle helmet is not set by time alone; it depends on its use pattern. </p>
<p>The ACCC suggests a bicycle helmet should be replaced if:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>it’s showing obvious signs of wear and tear (a helmet that is used more often is likely to show more wear and tear sooner)</p></li>
<li><p>it’s showing sign of damage (cracks, pieces missing, compression of the foam, frayed straps)</p></li>
<li><p>it has been involved in an accident and has received a severe blow (even if it appears undamaged, you should destroy and replace it).</p></li>
</ul>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/heres-what-bike-sharing-programs-need-to-succeed-85969">Here's what bike-sharing programs need to succeed</a>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/207928/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kwong Ming Tse receives funding from the Australian government and from the Australian Research Council.</span></em></p>
Ensure your helmet complies with the national or international bicycle helmet standards, which should be stated on the label inside the helmet.
Kwong Ming (KM) Tse, Senior lecturer in Department of Mechanical Engineering and Product Design Engineering, Swinburne University of Technology
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/198349
2023-04-24T16:18:12Z
2023-04-24T16:18:12Z
From horseback to motorbike: inside the motorcycle boom in Indigenous South America
<p>With their tropical climate, flowing rivers and dense forests, the vast plains and basins that make up <a href="https://www.berose.fr/article2131.html?lang=fr#:%7E:text=Since%20the%20first%20contacts%2C%20the,Patagonia%20and%20the%20Atlantic%20coast.">South America’s lowlands</a> cover a significant portion of the continent’s surface. Indeed, the Amazon rainforest covers approximately seven million square kilometres or around 40% of the total land area of South America.</p>
<p>These lowlands are primarily located in the eastern part of South America, stretching from the Andes mountains to the Atlantic Ocean. Two of the main lowland regions are the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Amazon-Basin">Amazon basin</a> and the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Gran-Chaco">Gran Chaco</a> – both diverse landscapes that are home to a wide variety of Indigenous cultures and communities.</p>
<p>As varied as the region is, much of its exuberant landscape has been drastically changed over the past 150 years by the arrival of mechanical machinery. And this is especially the case in territories inhabited by Indigenous people, who have been forced to adapt to new ways of living, with their traditional life transformed or disrupted. </p>
<p>Steamships, railways and trucks used for transportation arrived over the last century – followed by guns, used for both hunting and warfare. The arrival of bulldozers and chainsaws, used by the logging industry, has changed the rainforest forever. Meanwhile, electric generators hum constantly in the background. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521710/original/file-20230418-14-2kcsd7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521710/original/file-20230418-14-2kcsd7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=296&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521710/original/file-20230418-14-2kcsd7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=296&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521710/original/file-20230418-14-2kcsd7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=296&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521710/original/file-20230418-14-2kcsd7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521710/original/file-20230418-14-2kcsd7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521710/original/file-20230418-14-2kcsd7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">A Chacobo man works on his motorbike.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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<p><a href="https://www.isrf.org/fellows-projects/motoboom/">Motorbikes</a> are one of the latest machines to hit the lowlands. Over the last two decades, there has been a huge motorbike boom in Indigenous South America, with more and more people buying bikes from the money they make trading rubber, <a href="https://www.thespruceeats.com/what-are-hearts-of-palm-4777298">palm hearts</a> (the pale white inner core from the palm tree), and Brazil nuts. And I have seen firsthand how motorbikes have drastically changed Indigenous people’s lives.</p>
<p>I have spent the last 20 years working with the Chacobo – an Indigenous group from Bolivia – and have seen how for them, having a motorcycle is more than just a way to get around. It represents a sense of belonging and citizenship. </p>
<p>Owning a motorcycle is a symbol of how Indigenous people have adapted successfully to the changing world around them. The motorbike is considered such an icon of development and progress that in the Bolivian city of Riberalta, you can even find a monument of a motorbike. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521390/original/file-20230417-24-e4vvi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521390/original/file-20230417-24-e4vvi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521390/original/file-20230417-24-e4vvi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=270&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521390/original/file-20230417-24-e4vvi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=270&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521390/original/file-20230417-24-e4vvi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=270&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521390/original/file-20230417-24-e4vvi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=340&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521390/original/file-20230417-24-e4vvi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=340&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521390/original/file-20230417-24-e4vvi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=340&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The Monument to the Motorbike, Riberalta, Bolivia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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<p>For many people, motorbikes are more than just a way to travel. In South America, especially in regions like the Bolivian Amazon, motorcycles have become a way of life. </p>
<h2>Bikes and beliefs</h2>
<p>In the past, the Indigenous people of these regions spent hours decorating body ornaments, bows and arrows. Now they spend most of their free time polishing, dismantling or reassembling their motorcycles. </p>
<p>Most of these bikes are cheap Chinese brands (Dayun, Wanxin, TianMa, Haojue), while their Japanese equivalents (Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki) remain a lusted-after status symbol. </p>
<p>At the same time, the arrival of the motorbike has led to these local landscapes being littered with mechanical “ruins” or “fossils”. Wheels, handlebars, fuel tanks and exhaust pipes all line the villages, gathering dust. </p>
<p>With proper spare parts not easily available, the inevitable repairs and upgrades must rely on “cannibalization” – using parts of old vehicles or whatever items are at hand to sort the issue. This obviously changes the way the lowland motorbikes look.</p>
<p>Bikes are named and considered to have a gender. Indigenous people also believe their motorbikes can be influenced by spiritual or supernatural forces that can cause them to behave in unusual or unexpected ways. </p>
<p>For instance, according to these <a href="https://theconversation.com/shamanism-what-you-need-to-know-about-the-fastest-growing-religion-in-england-and-wales-196438">beliefs</a>, a motorbike may suddenly accelerate or stop working altogether without any physical or mechanical explanation. It’s thought that such episodes happen sometimes with the intent of causing harm or misfortune to the owner of the bike. </p>
<h2>Passion v safety</h2>
<p>The motorcycle boom has also led to a rise in traffic accidents. Road accidents involving motorbikes are now a leading cause of death among the Chacobo – even more so since Chinese companies began paving the road that runs across their territory. </p>
<p>Things that many of us take for granted, such as insurance, speed limits, regular MOTs or services alongside helmets and protective clothing, do not figure here. So, a lot of the <a href="https://velocidades.sciencesconf.org/">road accidents</a> that happen in this region end up being fatal. </p>
<p>This has led to a number of communities forming road blockades and burning commercial trucks that have run over motorcyclists. Local authorities are starting to demand legal compensation for the families of the dead or injured. Dealing with road accidents has become an increasingly important topic for Indigenous leaders and communities.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521389/original/file-20230417-22-3xjf9z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/521389/original/file-20230417-22-3xjf9z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=270&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521389/original/file-20230417-22-3xjf9z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=270&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521389/original/file-20230417-22-3xjf9z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=270&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521389/original/file-20230417-22-3xjf9z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=340&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521389/original/file-20230417-22-3xjf9z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=340&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/521389/original/file-20230417-22-3xjf9z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=340&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">A burnt-out truck that ran over an Indigenous motorcyclist in Bolivia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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<p>At the same time, motorbikes have significantly transformed the relationship Indigenous people have with nature and society. They have made hunting, fishing and horticultural work much easier and more productive. And it’s not just the men: many Indigenous women have become motorbike riders and are using their bikes to challenge traditional gender roles.</p>
<p>While the increasing amount of motorbike accidents is concerning, it’s clear that this passion for motorcycles has become an integral part of Indigenous people’s lives that will likely be passed down through generations. Indeed, it’s quite common to see whole Indigenous families on bikes – including pets and tiny children.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/198349/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Diego Villar has received funding for this article from Independent Social Research Foundation (Small Group Projects) and Horizon Europe programme (Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship).</span></em></p>
It’s quite common to see whole Indigenous families on bikes – including pets and tiny children.
Diego Villar, Marie-Skłodowska Curie Fellow in Anthropology, Ca' Foscari University of Venice
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/189383
2022-09-05T00:47:38Z
2022-09-05T00:47:38Z
NZ’s most walkable towns and cities ranked: see how your neighbourhood stacks up
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/482632/original/file-20220904-39859-3ilmlw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=7%2C15%2C5153%2C3391&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>If you live in a city or town, you have a mental map of the places you travel to most. But how accessible are those places, and how long does it take you to get there? Most of all, could you do everything you need to do without a car?</p>
<p>These are the kinds of questions advocates for more liveable urban areas are asking now with greater urgency. Climate change, rising fuel costs and social connectedness are driving the move towards “15-minute cities” – although the actual number of minutes can vary depending on a city’s ambition.</p>
<p>Copenhagen, for instance, is aiming to be a five-minute city, while Melbourne is opting for ten. New Zealand cities are also getting on board, with Christchurch and Wellington wanting to be 15-minute cities, and Hamilton a <a href="https://hamilton.govt.nz/environment-and-sustainability/climate-change/our-climate-change-response/">20-minute city</a>.</p>
<p>The idea is not that you can get across an entire city in that time, rather that your own neighbourhood has everything you need within reach by foot, bike or public transport. For simplicity, we just call it the “x-minute neighbourhood”.</p>
<p>Our <a href="https://authors.elsevier.com/c/1fg64y5jOnHws">recently published research</a> evaluates all of New Zealand’s urban areas and compares them with the largest 500 cities in the US for residents’ proximity to daily needs. So, how do they currently stack up and what are some of the key challenges? </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/482633/original/file-20220904-37832-uu9olo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/482633/original/file-20220904-37832-uu9olo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482633/original/file-20220904-37832-uu9olo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482633/original/file-20220904-37832-uu9olo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482633/original/file-20220904-37832-uu9olo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482633/original/file-20220904-37832-uu9olo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482633/original/file-20220904-37832-uu9olo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Everything within easy reach: Copenhagen aims to be a five-minute city.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Getty Images</span></span>
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<h2>How we measured accessibility</h2>
<p>New Zealand’s <a href="https://environment.govt.nz/what-government-is-doing/areas-of-work/climate-change/emissions-reduction-plan/">emission reduction plan</a> requires a 20% decrease in urban vehicle travel by 2035. This shift towards sustainable transport modes will also require changes to the form of our urban areas. </p>
<p>New transport strategies are beginning to reflect this. But how do cities evaluate urban change, measure the impact of proposed development, or effectively retrofit existing neighbourhoods?</p>
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<p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/12-best-ways-to-get-cars-out-of-cities-ranked-by-new-research-180642">12 best ways to get cars out of cities – ranked by new research</a>
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<p>By evaluating New Zealand’s 42 urban areas and the largest 500 US cities, our goal was to propose a consistent and transparent approach for reporting. We also wanted to help cities make the transition to sustainable urban design effectively and efficiently.</p>
<p>We developed a dashboard to show the proximity of neighbourhood blocks (the smallest geographical unit in the New Zealand census) to their nearest amenities. If you live in one of these urban areas you can check out your neighbourhood’s accessibility using our <a href="https://projects.urbanintelligence.co.nz/x-minute-city/">interactive guide</a>. </p>
<p>The dashboard enables councils to understand accessibility (and lack of it) in their towns and the neighbourhoods within them. Our ongoing research aims to identify the locations with the best accessibility, which should help with incentives and guidance for new development.</p>
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<p><iframe id="dnvKP" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/dnvKP/4/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
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<h2>Mixed messages</h2>
<p>So how do New Zealand cities rate? Wellington is the most accessible, with 61% of residents living within 15 minutes’ walk of the amenities we studied. But this pales next to New York (88%) and San Francisco (73%).</p>
<p>Auckland has only 43% of residents within 15 minutes of core amenities. Hamilton (with the goal of becoming a 20-minute city) scored 39%. And Christchurch (with an unofficial target of 15 minutes) also came in at 39%.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/10-images-show-just-how-attractive-australian-shopping-strips-can-be-without-cars-186460">10 images show just how attractive Australian shopping strips can be without cars</a>
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<p>Notably, it is access to the supermarket that is most detrimental to a city’s score. Accessible grocery stores are a key part of walkable neighbourhoods, and without them we’ll never achieve transport emission goals. </p>
<p>It’s disappointing, then, that this important factor was overlooked in the Commerce Commission’s <a href="https://comcom.govt.nz/news-and-media/media-releases/2022/grocery-market-study-recommends-changes-to-improve-competition-and-benefit-consumers">review of the supermarket sector</a>. This failure to factor in climate change to industry and competition policy was underscored by the <a href="https://www.1news.co.nz/2022/08/25/watch-ardern-given-tour-around-aucklands-costco-megastore/">prime ministerial visit</a> to US bulk retailer Costco on its arrival in New Zealand. </p>
<p>This type of car-dependent development is the antithesis of walkable, sustainable neighbourhoods, and of the government’s emissions reduction plan. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/482635/original/file-20220904-52062-gm8wvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/482635/original/file-20220904-52062-gm8wvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482635/original/file-20220904-52062-gm8wvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482635/original/file-20220904-52062-gm8wvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482635/original/file-20220904-52062-gm8wvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482635/original/file-20220904-52062-gm8wvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/482635/original/file-20220904-52062-gm8wvd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Wellington is NZ’s most accessible city: 61% of residents live within 15 minutes’ walk of the amenities we studied.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Getty Images</span></span>
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</figure>
<h2>The benefits of accessible neighbourhoods</h2>
<p>The primary motivation for better urban design is to encourage active transport modes and reduce reliance on cars. But the benefits far exceed transport emissions alone. </p>
<p>Increased social cohesion is one co-benefit. In Paris, they call this form of urbanism “neighbourhoods of proximities” because they’re increasing proximity between people and places, but also between people themselves. This improves social connection and has mental health benefits. </p>
<p>Public health is another benefit. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412019315223?via%3Dihub">Studies</a> have shown Barcelona’s approach (which also prioritises active transportation through urban design) has avoided around 700 premature deaths a year due to reductions in air pollution, noise and heat, and increases in physical activity. </p>
<p>There are also huge benefits for young, older and lower income families who become less reliant on cars. There are flow-on benefits in the form of economic vibrancy and urban safety, too.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/greening-the-greyfields-how-to-renew-our-suburbs-for-more-liveable-net-zero-cities-187261">Greening the greyfields: how to renew our suburbs for more liveable, net-zero cities</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Getting out of our cars</h2>
<p>Finally, we also need to ask whether 20-minute and 15-minute neighbourhoods can achieve the benefits they seek. In reality, how likely are people to walk 20 minutes carrying groceries? Studies from overseas suggest much shorter distances between homes and amenities might be needed. </p>
<p>This will vary depending on the person, their age and fitness. But it will also depend on the amenities themselves. We might be happy to bike or walk further to school, for example, than we would be to walk home from the grocery store. </p>
<p>So while the concept of the 15-minute or 20-minute city might be useful to communicate a broad vision and bring people together, it shouldn’t be taken too literally. </p>
<p>The greater aim should be to improve accessibility as much as possible to reduce our dependence on cars and reclaim our neighbourhoods for people. This will benefit our health, sustainability and communities.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/189383/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tom Logan is technical director of planning firm Urban Intelligence Ltd. He receives funding from MBIE and BRANZ. </span></em></p>
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.
Tom Logan, Lecturer of Civil Systems Engineering, University of Canterbury
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/185402
2022-06-29T19:55:40Z
2022-06-29T19:55:40Z
When driving near a cycle lane, do you speed up or slow down? Where you’re from may influence your answer
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469725/original/file-20220620-20-nvsrpo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4904%2C3257&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>There are clear <a href="https://theconversation.com/dont-believe-the-backlash-the-benefits-of-nz-investing-more-in-cycling-will-far-outweigh-the-costs-181053">economic</a>, <a href="https://academic.oup.com/eurpub/article/21/6/738/493197?login=true">environmental</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/road-safety-switch-to-cycling-to-keep-others-safe-131964">safety</a> and <a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/357/bmj.j1456">health benefits</a> to getting people cycling more, but <a href="https://theconversation.com/3-in-4-people-want-to-ride-a-bike-but-are-put-off-by-lack-of-safe-lanes-172868">research</a> shows would-be cyclists are reluctant to start without good cycle paths.</p>
<p>The problem for planners and policymakers is many Australians oppose cycle lanes, believing they’ll only force drivers to drive more slowly and extend travel times. </p>
<p>But our new <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0001457522001580">study</a>, published in the journal Accident Analysis and Prevention, suggests not everyone around the world sees cycle lanes this way.</p>
<p>We found people in the United Kingdom and Australia typically misunderstand the impact cycle lanes have on speed limits – wrongly believing the addition of a cycle lane means cars would inevitably need to go more slowly.</p>
<p>To be clear, nobody is suggesting you should hit the accelerator and drive aggressively fast near cyclists. But if there is a safe cycle path that affords good distance between cars and bikes, there’s no reason the addition of a cycle path should necessarily slow down traffic. </p>
<p>Misunderstanding around this issue may be fuelling avoidable opposition to cycling infrastructure.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470157/original/file-20220622-17-6gz9m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Aerial view of pedestarians crossing roaad and a bike lane next to pedestrian crossing" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470157/original/file-20220622-17-6gz9m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/470157/original/file-20220622-17-6gz9m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470157/original/file-20220622-17-6gz9m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470157/original/file-20220622-17-6gz9m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470157/original/file-20220622-17-6gz9m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470157/original/file-20220622-17-6gz9m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/470157/original/file-20220622-17-6gz9m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Misunderstanding around speed limits may be fuelling avoidable opposition to cycling infrastructure.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/melbourne-vicaustraliaapril-4th-2018-pedestrians-walking-1061752019">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/3-in-4-people-want-to-ride-a-bike-but-are-put-off-by-lack-of-safe-lanes-172868">3 in 4 people want to ride a bike but are put off by lack of safe lanes</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Speed limits: a matter of perception</h2>
<p>Our study involved 1,591 participants in the Netherlands, the UK and Australia. These three countries have similar speed limits in urban areas (50km/h), but the Netherlands has lower speed limits of 30km/h in residential areas.</p>
<p>First, we showed the study participants 15 pictures of streets without cycle lanes and asked them to estimate what the speed limit would be in these streets. </p>
<p>Interestingly, participants from the Netherlands always estimated much lower speeds for these pictures than their UK or Australian counterparts did.</p>
<p>This is important because <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0386111218300876">previous research</a> has shown that the higher speed limits are perceived, the faster drivers intend to drive. And higher speeds are the <a href="https://roadsafety.transport.nsw.gov.au/downloads/road_safety_strategy.pdf">main contributor</a> to road accidents (even more than drugs and fatigue). </p>
<p>Previous research has <a href="https://barrosdool.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/ACRS-journal-Vol28.3-e-edition-extract.pdf">also shown</a> 30km/h speed limits on local residential streets could reduce the Australian road death toll by 13%.</p>
<p>So, for our study, it was significant the Dutch participants always estimated the speed limit would be lower than the UK and Australian respondents did. It suggests Dutch drivers already view roads in a way that is safer for other road users (including cyclists).</p>
<h2>What about when cycle lanes are added into the picture?</h2>
<p>We then showed the participants pictures of the very same streets but after cycle lanes had been built on them (but showed them in a way that meant our participants wouldn’t realise these were the same streets). </p>
<p>In other words, we first showed them the streets <em>without</em> the cycle lanes and then the same street <em>with</em> cycle lanes (some of the cycle lanes were separated lanes, featuring a physical barrier dividing cyclists from cars; others were painted-on bike lanes with no physical barrier).</p>
<p>As we showed these new pictures, we asked the participants again to estimate the speed limit in these streets.</p>
<p>Study participants from Australia and the UK tended to believe cycle lanes would necessitate lower speed limits for drivers. In other words; they saw cycle lanes are a symbol of a slow commute, which would presumably therefore drive down support from drivers. </p>
<p>On the other hand, respondents in the Netherlands (where cycling is more common) perceived cycle lanes would not necessitate lower speed limits for drivers. </p>
<p>In fact, these participants tended to think cycle lanes might even suggest traffic could go faster because the cyclists are in a separate lane (and not mixed in with car traffic).</p>
<p>In short, our research found cycle lanes are usually misinterpreted as meaning “drivers, slow down!” in places where they are not common.</p>
<h2>Where to from here?</h2>
<p>Lower speed limits and cycle lanes are contested issues. Opposition usually comes from drivers who believe lower speed limits will significantly increase their journey times.</p>
<p>But this isn’t always the case. One <a href="https://trid.trb.org/view/1485212">2017 study</a> found “the generic impact of introducing 30km/h in urban residential streets is almost negligible in terms of travel time, ie. 48 seconds for a 27-minute trip, or less than 3%”.</p>
<p>In short, lower speed limits and cycle lanes will not necessarily make your driving time longer. Our study shows that people’s support of cycle lanes is influenced by familiarity with cycle lanes and perceptions of how driver speed limits will be affected by cycling infrastructure.</p>
<p>Australia can <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-australia-can-learn-from-bicycle-friendly-cities-overseas-144283">learn from other cities</a>. Support for the implementation of lower speed limits and cycle lanes will make travelling safer, faster and more sustainable.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/cycle-lanes-blamed-for-urban-congestion-heres-the-reality-173388">Cycle lanes blamed for urban congestion – here's the reality</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/185402/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>
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.
Miguel Loyola, PhD Candidate on the Implementation of Sustainable Policies, ITLS, University of Sydney
John Nelson, Professor of Public Transport, ITLS, University of Sydney
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/183074
2022-06-01T20:50:33Z
2022-06-01T20:50:33Z
Will the bicycle help us address pressing social issues?
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/466106/original/file-20220530-26-k52u9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C2991%2C1997&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">With the rising cost of gas, commuting via bicycle is a viable solution.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>World Bicycle Day is celebrated on June 3 in support <a href="https://www.un.org/en/observances/bicycle-day">of the idea</a> that bicycles “contribute to cleaner air and less congestion and makes education, health care and other social services more accessible to the most vulnerable populations.”</p>
<p>The bicycle <a href="https://theconversation.com/physical-distancing-is-here-for-a-while-over-100-experts-call-for-more-safe-walking-and-cycling-space-137374">plays a massive role</a> in physical activity. This was especially evident during the pandemic, as bicycle purchases <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/bicycle-boom-industry-turmoil-covid-19-1.5956400">skyrocketed</a>. Amid lockdown measures, cycling remained a crucial alternative to public transportation, while offering the benefit of <a href="https://theconversation.com/can-the-city-cycling-boom-survive-the-end-of-the-covid-19-pandemic-155913">outdoor and socially distanced physical activity</a>. <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/bespoke/made-on-earth/the-great-bicycle-boom-of-2020.html">But even before the pandemic started</a>, people’s interest in bikes was growing. </p>
<p>Cycling could be the answer to more than just our physical activity and pandemic woes. It could offer public officials a way to address convergent crises in public health, transportation and climate. At the same time, increased bicycle use can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/14413523.2021.1899721">generate new economic opportunities</a>, like offering low-cost bicycles for sustainable transport and mechanical training to local communities to create jobs.</p>
<p>And as gas prices continue to rise due to the ongoing invasion of Ukraine, <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/europe-prepared-for-russias-gas-blackmail-eu-chief-says-as-it-happened/a-61602729">governments are urging citizens to consider the bicycle</a>. What’s clear is that the bicycle’s capacity to respond to pressing social issues has inspired both intrigue and optimism, especially in the context of COVID-19.</p>
<h2>Bicycles for development</h2>
<p>We are a group of researchers interested in the social and environmental dimensions of sport, physical activity and health with a focus — for the work described here — on the perceived role of development in the emergent cycling boom. </p>
<p>So far our research has attempted to map out the <a href="https://bicyclesfordevelopment.ca/">bicycles for development</a> movement, which considers the bicycle a powerful technology that holds notable <a href="https://sdgs.un.org/goals">implications for social change and development objectives</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A dirt covered street with many cyclists." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/466107/original/file-20220530-16-sp8qe2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/466107/original/file-20220530-16-sp8qe2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466107/original/file-20220530-16-sp8qe2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466107/original/file-20220530-16-sp8qe2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466107/original/file-20220530-16-sp8qe2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466107/original/file-20220530-16-sp8qe2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466107/original/file-20220530-16-sp8qe2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A street is pictured in Soroti, Uganda.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1012690220904921">Our research</a> shows that this movement is driven largely by the work of non-governmental organizations delivering bicycles to communities across the globe. </p>
<p>These initiatives can be entirely local, although they often cross international lines — organizations collecting used bicycles in one place sometimes ship them elsewhere. Bicycles that are delivered to communities often come from donations, micro-financing initiatives or <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/01436597.2021.2020634">social entrepreneurial ventures, like those led by women in rural Uganda</a>.</p>
<p>Over the past six years our research in Canada, Nicaragua and Uganda has highlighted key ways that bicycles for development initiatives seem to have positive effects. For example, bicycle access can foster mobility, which can lead to various opportunities (like accessing educational opportunities and local markets to sell goods), and may help promote a sense of social inclusion or economic development.</p>
<h2>Creating a temporary solution</h2>
<p>In Canada, we conducted research with communities in Toronto and Vancouver. Our studies in Toronto showed how bicycles are being taken up by <a href="https://www.bikebrigade.ca/">mutual aid organizations</a> to respond to increasing food insecurity <a href="https://cyclingmagazine.ca/advocacy/this-group-of-volunteer-cyclists-delivers-food-to-vulnerable-communities/">during the pandemic</a>. Through focusing on the experiences of 2SLGBTQ+ and racialized cyclists, we highlighted the ways in which diverse cyclists challenge systems of racialized and gendered oppression using the bicycle to dismantle stereotypes about who can participate in cycling. </p>
<p>However, while the bicycle has positive potential, our research also demonstrated that providing bicycles to women and girls is, in some ways, filled with tensions and challenges. For example, in our most recent research in Uganda, some women explained that prior to receiving the bicycle, they were mainly responsible for caregiving and other domestic tasks like cooking. </p>
<p>Upon receiving the bicycle, they now also have to engage in economic activities — meaning more labour-focused expectations for women in rural communities. This often leads to an extension of existing inequalities between men and women.</p>
<p>There <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1012690220904921">was also a concern</a> over the quality of bicycles donated. For example some of the bicycles donated required specific unavailable spare parts meaning they were of little use once they broke down. But programs like <a href="https://worldbicyclerelief.org/the-bike/">World Bicycle Relief’s “Buffalo Bicycle”</a> are geared towards addressing this problem.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="People on bikes fill a street" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/466108/original/file-20220530-20-8tweyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/466108/original/file-20220530-20-8tweyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=373&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466108/original/file-20220530-20-8tweyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=373&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466108/original/file-20220530-20-8tweyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=373&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466108/original/file-20220530-20-8tweyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=469&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466108/original/file-20220530-20-8tweyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=469&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/466108/original/file-20220530-20-8tweyn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=469&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Crowds at Mercado la Terminal market in Leon, Nicaragua.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The fact that bicycle-driven aid may have unintended and sometimes negative consequences aligns with a wealth of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-83867-863-020211001">research in the sport for development field, and in development studies more broadly</a>.</p>
<p>We refer to these unintended negative outcomes of development-focused interventions as forms of “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.26.1.155">ironic activism</a>.”</p>
<p>While our research revealed the positive potential of bicycle access, our findings also steered us in other directions: bicycles might empower people and communities but they may also reflect or exacerbate existing problems and inequalities. Bicycle-based development programs can have both intended and unintended consequences. </p>
<p>While the optimism for World Bicycle Day is welcome, it is important to remember that with all of their potential, bicycles cannot solve our overlapping contemporary crises on their own.</p>
<p><em>Janet Otte, Patrick Eyul and Lidieth del Soccorro Cruz Centeno co-authored this article. Janet has experience managing development projects on refugees, women’s rights and clinical research in Uganda. Patrick is a social scientist who works with development and research organizations in Uganda. Lidieth is the director of the Asociación Movimiento de Jóvenes de Ometepe in Nicaragua.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/183074/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lyndsay Hayhurst receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Canadian Heritage and the Canadian Foundation for Innovation.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brad Millington receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brian Wilson receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeanette Steinmann receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and MITACS.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jessica Nachman receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Ontario Graduate Scholarship program, and MITACS.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mitchell McSweeney receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.</span></em></p>
The bicycle’s capacity to respond to pressing social issues has inspired both intrigue and optimism, especially in the context of COVID-19.
Lyndsay M.C. Hayhurst, Assistant Professor, School of Kinesiology and Health Science, York University, Canada
Brad Millington, Associate Professor, Sport Management, Brock University
Brian Wilson, Professor, School of Kinesiology, University of British Columbia
Jeanette Steinmann, PhD Student, Kinesiology, University of British Columbia
Jessica Nachman, Master's Student, School of Kinesiology and Health Science, York University, Canada
Mitchell McSweeney, Postdoctoral Fellow, Kinesiology, University of British Columbia
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/172868
2022-01-11T23:28:03Z
2022-01-11T23:28:03Z
3 in 4 people want to ride a bike but are put off by lack of safe lanes
<p>Cycling is healthy and sustainable, but only <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/78qgf/">1.7%</a> of trips in Melbourne are made by bike. Car use has <a href="https://covid19.apple.com/mobility">soared</a> since lockdowns were lifted. </p>
<p>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 off-road paths or protected bike lanes).</p>
<p>This proportion is far higher than previously thought, highlighting a huge opportunity to increase bike-riding rates by building separated bike lanes.</p>
<p>Our study, published in the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214140521003200">Journal of Transport and Health</a>, found high levels of interest in bike riding in groups with traditionally lower participation, including women and people living in outer-urban fringe areas. </p>
<p>However, these areas tend to have less access to safe, protective and supportive infrastructure than their higher socioeconomic counterparts. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/bike-kitchens-the-community-run-repair-workshops-that-help-build-a-culture-of-cycling-169687">Bike kitchens: the community-run repair workshops that help build a culture of cycling</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Infrastructure is key</h2>
<p><a href="https://ijbnpa.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1479-5868-9-106">Previous research</a> has shown that how unsafe someone feels when riding a bicycle – particularly in the presence of motor vehicle traffic – is the key barrier to cycling.</p>
<p>Too much existing bike infrastructure is simply a strip of white paint; <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/78qgf/">99% of existing on-ride bike infrastructure in Melbourne</a> is made up of painted bike lanes, which result in closer motor vehicle passes and do not protect cyclists from <a href="https://theconversation.com/more-cyclists-are-ending-up-in-hospital-with-serious-injuries-so-we-need-to-act-now-83569">potential injury</a>. </p>
<p>Providing high quality, connected and protected bike lanes or paths that separate people on bikes from motor vehicle traffic would greatly increase cycling rates in Melbourne.</p>
<h2>Bike infrastructure must work for women, as well as men</h2>
<p>For every woman that rides a bike in Melbourne, there are <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/78qgf/">two men</a> doing the same. </p>
<p>Despite lower participation, our study showed two-thirds of women are interested in riding a bike, and over half own a bike. Research suggests women are more likely than men to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S096669231730529X?via%3Dihub">feel vulnerable to harassment by drivers</a> when riding, may need more <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953611000785?via%3Dihub">storage</a> space than a bike usually provides, and may have more care-giving <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953611000785?via%3Dihub">responsibilities</a> than men. Differing <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01441647.2016.1200156">perceptions</a> of risk are also a factor.</p>
<p>Women have different infrastructure preferences to men, with a high preference for bike paths or lanes <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0091743507003039">physically separated from motor vehicle traffic</a>. </p>
<p>Taken together, these factors contribute to a pattern where many city bike paths and lanes are designed for the needs and confidence levels of <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/78qgf/">male cyclists</a>. </p>
<p>Common to many cities in Australia and around the world is what’s known as the “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3FC2JVBMJ8">radial planning fallacy</a>”, where transport systems are designed to optimise trips from outer-urban areas to city centres or businesses – rather than to facilitate local trips. </p>
<p>The majority of protected bike paths or lanes in Melbourne are radial in design, with a lack of connectivity between existing paths. </p>
<p>This kind of planning does not support the needs of many actual or aspiring cyclists, particularly women who tend to have <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965856419309048?via%3Dihub">more varied trips</a> around places such as school, local shops and other locations close to home.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/439288/original/file-20220104-15-6fzwgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman cycles on the street." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/439288/original/file-20220104-15-6fzwgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/439288/original/file-20220104-15-6fzwgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439288/original/file-20220104-15-6fzwgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439288/original/file-20220104-15-6fzwgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439288/original/file-20220104-15-6fzwgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439288/original/file-20220104-15-6fzwgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439288/original/file-20220104-15-6fzwgq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">We must plan bike infrastructure that supports the needs of women, as well as men.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Outer suburbs are losing out</h2>
<p>Despite lower participation, we found that interest in bike riding is high in the outer urban fringe areas of Melbourne.</p>
<p>These areas also have the lowest level of access to safe and comfortable <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/8w7bg/">bike infrastructure</a>.</p>
<p>People who are inexperienced or new to bike riding <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.3141/2520-15">prefer</a> bike paths or lanes that are physically separated from motor vehicle traffic.</p>
<p>But a lack of infrastructure dedicated to active transport, coupled with longer distances to essential services, means people living in outer-suburbs are often required to drive long distances. </p>
<p>To address these health and transport inequities, it’s essential we plan and build protected and connected bike infrastructure across Melbourne, including new urban growth areas.</p>
<p>As well as boosting health outcomes, optimising social connection and reducing transport inequities, this would also contribute toward meeting Australia’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/cycling-is-ten-times-more-important-than-electric-cars-for-reaching-net-zero-cities-157163">net-zero emissions targets</a>. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-australia-can-learn-from-bicycle-friendly-cities-overseas-144283">What Australia can learn from bicycle-friendly cities overseas</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/172868/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lauren Pearson receives funding from the Australian Government Research Training Program.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ben Beck receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the National Health and Medical Research Council, the Federal Office of Road Safety, the Transport Accident Commission, the Victorian Department of Health, VicHealth, RACV, Transport for New South Wales, and the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control, Canada. He is President of the Australasian Injury Prevention Network (AIPN).</span></em></p>
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.
Lauren Pearson, PhD Candidate, Monash University
Ben Beck, Senior Research Fellow, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/169687
2022-01-04T02:35:02Z
2022-01-04T02:35:02Z
Bike kitchens: the community-run repair workshops that help build a culture of cycling
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429257/original/file-20211029-26-1nkvavl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=22%2C36%2C4904%2C3382&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">James Batterbury</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Cycling <a href="https://www.bikeradar.com/features/long-reads/cycling-environmental-impact/">reduces greenhouse gas emissions</a>, brings myriad <a href="https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2021/215/9/2021-report-mja-lancet-countdown-health-and-climate-change-australia?utm_source=carousel&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=homepage">health benefits</a> and reduces traffic. But urban planners and policymakers often struggle to get more people on bikes.</p>
<p>To increase urban cycling, we need more than extra cycling infrastructure; we need a culture change. A worldwide movement of community bike workshops, also known as bike kitchens, can help.</p>
<p>Bike kitchens offer tools, second hand parts and bikes, and convivial help with repairs. They are also hubs for community development. </p>
<p>Since 2014 we have <a href="https://bikeworkshopsresearch.wordpress.com/workshops-visited/">visited over 50</a> bike kitchens around the world – in the US, Australia, NZ, UK, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Portugal, Mexico and Belgium to research how they operate. We have also volunteered and led student projects at several workshops. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429242/original/file-20211029-25-1u7otmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman repairs a bike." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429242/original/file-20211029-25-1u7otmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429242/original/file-20211029-25-1u7otmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429242/original/file-20211029-25-1u7otmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429242/original/file-20211029-25-1u7otmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429242/original/file-20211029-25-1u7otmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429242/original/file-20211029-25-1u7otmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429242/original/file-20211029-25-1u7otmx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Bike kitchens offer tools, second hand parts and bikes, and convivial help with repairs.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Building a culture of cycling</h2>
<p>Dedicated bike lanes, road treatments and bike parking are relatively cheap to build and maintain compared to roads, car parks, and major public transport schemes. There is <a href="https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/cycling-sustainable-cities">some correlation</a> between better bike infrastructure and more riders. </p>
<p>But better infrastructure alone does not solve the problem. In Paris, with its pro-bike mayor and traffic calming initiatives, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/02/world/europe/paris-bicyles-france.html">a recent explosion in bike use</a> has led to accidents and clashes, suggesting other factors like social acceptance and up-skilling need attention. </p>
<p>In lockdown this year, Sydney experienced a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/oct/31/spike-in-cycling-accidents-during-sydney-lockdown-as-more-people-took-to-two-wheels">78% increase in cycling injuries</a> when more people took to their bikes. </p>
<p>Cycling in cities is a <a href="https://www.simonbatterbury.net/pubs/sociality%20of%20cycling%20preprint.pdf">social practice</a>, and building a <em>culture</em> of cycling is essential – especially where bike use has traditionally been low. </p>
<p>It’s essential to cycling culture that a critical mass of people have riding and bike maintenance skills, and the activity is more socially accepted.</p>
<p>That’s where bike kitchens come in.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429258/original/file-20211029-23-1tkvrgk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429258/original/file-20211029-23-1tkvrgk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429258/original/file-20211029-23-1tkvrgk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=409&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429258/original/file-20211029-23-1tkvrgk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=409&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429258/original/file-20211029-23-1tkvrgk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=409&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429258/original/file-20211029-23-1tkvrgk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=514&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429258/original/file-20211029-23-1tkvrgk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=514&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429258/original/file-20211029-23-1tkvrgk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=514&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">WeCycle, a workshop in Gumbri Park, Melbourne gives free bikes to asylum seekers, refugees, and people in need.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Simon Batterbury</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Convivial places to build and repair a bike</h2>
<p>Bike kitchen workshops are initiated and run by activists and socially-minded cyclists. Most teach hands-on <a href="http://modularbikes.com.au/thecyclezoo.html">self-repair and maintenance</a> skills to people who want to learn. Others give away free bikes to those who need them.</p>
<p>Workshops extend the use life of bicycles and components. They are part of the <a href="https://www.communityeconomies.org/">community economy</a> and interrupt the waste stream; most parts come from donated or scavenged bikes and are re-used creatively and cheaply with a DIY ethos, avoiding new consumption. </p>
<p>Some bikes may be sold to support ongoing workshop costs, but rarely for high prices. </p>
<p>Workshops numbers have grown since the 1990s, and are widespread across Europe, the <a href="https://en.bikebike.org/">Americas</a>, Australasia and the rest of the world.</p>
<p>The largest concentration is in France. Most are networked through <a href="https://www.heureux-cyclage.org/?lang=en">l'Heureux Cyclage</a>, which coordinates events, logistics, and learning between 250 workshops, assisting well over 110,000 people yearly. </p>
<p>Brussels has at least 18, like <a href="https://cycloperativa.org/">Cycloperativa</a>, spread across the city’s <em>arrondissements</em>. </p>
<p>Ten bike workshops operate in Austria, with at least four in Vienna. They include <a href="http://flickerei.blogsport.at/">Flickerei</a> and <a href="http://fahrrad.wuk.at/">WUK</a> which, established in 1983, is probably the world’s oldest.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-analysed-100-million-bike-trips-to-reveal-where-in-the-world-cyclists-are-most-likely-to-brave-rain-and-cold-166894">We analysed 100 million bike trips to reveal where in the world cyclists are most likely to brave rain and cold</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429248/original/file-20211029-18-1f92h2a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman and a man work together on a bike." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429248/original/file-20211029-18-1f92h2a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429248/original/file-20211029-18-1f92h2a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429248/original/file-20211029-18-1f92h2a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429248/original/file-20211029-18-1f92h2a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429248/original/file-20211029-18-1f92h2a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429248/original/file-20211029-18-1f92h2a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429248/original/file-20211029-18-1f92h2a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Workshops extend the use life of bicycles and components.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How bike kitchens work</h2>
<p>There are two main types of bike kitchens: </p>
<p>1) places where tools, parts and bike stands are offered for anybody to use, assisted by workshop volunteers and sometimes by paid mechanics. Most are social enterprises or non-profits, promoting what’s known in French as <em>vélonomie</em>: the ability of a cyclist to maintain a bicycle and ride safely and with confidence. </p>
<p>2) those that fix bikes for others – often for the disadvantaged – such as <a href="http://www.wecycle-melbourne.com/">WeCycle</a> in <a href="https://www.racv.com.au/royalauto/transport/bike-repair-community-victoria.html">Melbourne</a> which offers bikes to refugees and asylum seekers. <a href="https://workingbikes.org">Working Bikes</a> in Chicago sends bikes to the Global South.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-australia-can-learn-from-bicycle-friendly-cities-overseas-144283">What Australia can learn from bicycle-friendly cities overseas</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/428122/original/file-20211024-21-m32uqd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/428122/original/file-20211024-21-m32uqd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/428122/original/file-20211024-21-m32uqd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/428122/original/file-20211024-21-m32uqd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/428122/original/file-20211024-21-m32uqd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/428122/original/file-20211024-21-m32uqd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/428122/original/file-20211024-21-m32uqd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/428122/original/file-20211024-21-m32uqd.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Récup'R in its former premises in Bordeaux, France.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Simon Batterbury</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There are often <a href="https://www.wildcat.arizona.edu/article/2019/02/n-bicas-wtf?fbclid=IwAR0HLBMrFnZpuI544-15XJWLesi_KDU86RRLgh4CcCixsGXuPsgg22lFtxU">fixing sessions</a> and other activities for specific ages, <a href="https://www.heureux-cyclage.org/panorama-2019-des-ateliers-velo-en.html?lang=fr">genders</a> and groups. At one of the oldest French bike workshops, <em><a href="http://www.ptitvelo.net/">Un p'tit vélo dans la tête</a></em> in Grenoble, one volunteer told us some fixing sessions are women-only. </p>
<p>For members of the public without money, earn-a-bike programs convert volunteer hours into eventual bike ownership. </p>
<p>Workshop rules vary, but almost all <a href="https://en.bikebike.org/policy/">forbid</a> racist and sexist behaviour and support <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3iMGC4A3L3I">conviviality</a>, diversity and respect. The main goal is “integrating a community”, the same volunteer told us.</p>
<p>Over time, a few diversify to become big social enterprises, like <a href="https://www.cyclo.org/en">Cyclo</a> in Brussels. Fees from memberships or workshop time, bike sales or government employment schemes allow some workshops to take on paid staff. </p>
<p>Others like <em><a href="http://velorution.org/paris/atelier/bastille/">Atelier Vélorutionaire</a></em> in Paris reject commercial or government support entirely, championing a more militant stance against cars and capitalism. </p>
<h2>Bike kitchens in Australia</h2>
<p>Australia has had many community bike projects dating back over 30 years, with <a href="https://thebikeshed.org.au/">The Bike Shed</a> in Melbourne being one of the first. Workshops come and go, but there are at least 18, with seven in Melbourne and four in Sydney. </p>
<p>Many smaller initiatives work in schools, churches, or at recycling centres. They are networked through <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/989483538572616">BiCANZ</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.wecycle-melbourne.com/">WeCycle</a> in Melbourne is a workshop focused on fixing bikes for others. Founders <a href="https://matildabowra.com/tag/gayle-potts/">Gayle Potts</a> and Craig Jackson have supplied refurbished bikes to asylum seekers, refugees and people in need since 2016.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429539/original/file-20211101-15-d4g21a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Bikes in an Australian community bike workshop." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429539/original/file-20211101-15-d4g21a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/429539/original/file-20211101-15-d4g21a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429539/original/file-20211101-15-d4g21a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429539/original/file-20211101-15-d4g21a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429539/original/file-20211101-15-d4g21a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429539/original/file-20211101-15-d4g21a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/429539/original/file-20211101-15-d4g21a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Donated bikes accumulate in a workshop, ready for repair and re-homing.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Simon Batterbury</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>A community approach to sustainable transport</h2>
<p>Workshops need volunteers and secure premises with power and light, on or off-grid. Limited budgets make this a challenge.</p>
<p>While workshops can be co-housed, secure premises is the key area where support from government and bike-friendly donors is welcome. Tools, racks and spares are also needed.</p>
<p>Community bike workshops extend bicycle lifespans and promote a community approach to sustainable transport – all while promoting <a href="https://arl.human.cornell.edu/linked%20docs/Illich_Tools_for_Conviviality.pdf">conviviality</a> and making our cities more liveable. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/do-the-sums-bicycle-friendly-changes-are-good-business-58213">Do the sums: bicycle-friendly changes are good business</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/169687/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Simon Batterbury received funding from the Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, University of Melbourne and Cosmopolis, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium. The assistance of Bernardita del Real, Stephen Nurse, Derlie Mateo-Babiano, Alexandre Rigal, Max Teppner and Carlos Uxo is appreciated. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alejandro Manga is a board member of L'Heureux Cyclage. He has a research grant from the Mobile Lives Forum that partly funds the European part of his PhD. He is a dual degree PhD Candidate in the program of Communication, Culture and Media (Drexel University, Philadelphia) and in Urban and Regional Planning at Université Gustave Eiffel LVMT.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthias Kowasch is affiliated with Chôros (<a href="https://www.choros.place/">https://www.choros.place/</a>).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ruth Lane has received funding from the ARC.</span></em></p>
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.
Simon Batterbury, Associate Professor, The University of Melbourne
Alejandro Manga, PhD candidate, Drexel University
Matthias Kowasch, Professor of Didactics in Geography, Pädagogische Hochschule Steiermark
Ruth Lane, Associate Professor in Human Geography, Monash University
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/166894
2021-10-06T02:22:39Z
2021-10-06T02:22:39Z
We analysed 100 million bike trips to reveal where in the world cyclists are most likely to brave rain and cold
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424891/original/file-20211006-17-tdtswq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5716%2C3819&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Hopping on your bike when it’s raining, or snowing, might seem unappealing. But our research has found inclement weather conditions deter some cyclists more than others. </p>
<p>In the first <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2021.103155">analysis</a> of its kind, we captured eight years of data from 40 bike-sharing schemes around the world, across a range of climate zones, totalling 100 million trips. We then linked this data to fine-grained historical weather information. </p>
<p>We found weather patterns affect people’s willingness to cycle in different ways. For example, people in Melbourne are more likely to avoid cycling in the rain or snow than people in Dublin. And female cyclists are more put off by rain and snow than male cyclists.</p>
<p>These differences are important. Personal decisions on how and when to travel can affect overall traffic congestion, environmental pollution and travel experience. So understanding how outdoor conditions affect cycling is crucial to effective transport planning and more sustainable cities.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="cyclist rides past row of cars" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424886/original/file-20211006-21-1o5v0e2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424886/original/file-20211006-21-1o5v0e2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424886/original/file-20211006-21-1o5v0e2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424886/original/file-20211006-21-1o5v0e2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424886/original/file-20211006-21-1o5v0e2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424886/original/file-20211006-21-1o5v0e2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424886/original/file-20211006-21-1o5v0e2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Cycling can ease traffic congestion.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Insights from ‘big data’</h2>
<p>Obviously, cycling behaviour is more affected by bad weather than most other forms of transport. Previous research has confirmed this; however, the data has been patchy and limited. Bike-share schemes, which digitally record every trip taken, mean excellent “big data” is now available. </p>
<p>We used data from 40 public bike sharing programs in 40 cities across 16 countries. The programs spanned five climate zones, ranging from hot to frosty. </p>
<p>The cycling habits of people who own their bike may differ from those who use bike-sharing schemes. But bad weather can cause all cyclists to delay trips or change transport modes, so most of our findings are likely to apply broadly.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australian-cycling-boom-nope-its-a-myth-8020">Australian cycling boom? Nope - it's a myth</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/418653/original/file-20210831-29-ke1jxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/418653/original/file-20210831-29-ke1jxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/418653/original/file-20210831-29-ke1jxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/418653/original/file-20210831-29-ke1jxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/418653/original/file-20210831-29-ke1jxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/418653/original/file-20210831-29-ke1jxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/418653/original/file-20210831-29-ke1jxs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Bad weather can cause all cyclists to delay trips.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Flickr</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What we found</h2>
<p>Prior studies have shown rain and snow are among the worst deterrents for cycling. But our analysis reveals a more nuanced picture. </p>
<p>In cities such as Melbourne (Australia), Chicago (the United States) and Vancouver (Canada), people are more likely to avoid cycling when it rains or snows.</p>
<p>In the top 5% rainiest hours of the year in Dublin (Ireland), people use bike share at 81% of the average usage rate. In Seville and Valencia these figures are 79% and 74%, respectively. </p>
<p>In Brisbane this figure drops to 68%, while in Melbourne it’s 46%. </p>
<p>Past research has assumed this trend is due to people in cooler cities being more accustomed to rain and snow, while people in hot climes are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/25741292.2019.1665857">accustomed to the sun</a>. But while Dublin is notoriously rainy, Seville and Valencia are rather dry.</p>
<p>Various factors may affect willingness to cycle in the rain. For example, high-quality <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rtbm.2020.100541">cycling infrastructure</a> may spur people to get on their bikes even in inclement weather. Seville and Valencia have large bike-share systems and safe cycling networks, whereas Melbourne’s was small and not particularly <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tra.2016.09.015">useful</a> for commuting.</p>
<p>Other factors can push bike-share use up or down. They include <a href="https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/citycycles-available-around-the-clock-20131023-2w1el.html">lengthening</a> opening hours, <a href="https://skift.com/2014/10/28/nyc-bike-share-program-to-expand-increase-prices-under-new-owner/">increasing prices</a> or changing public transport arrangements – for example, Melbourne’s <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/state-government-plans-overhaul-to-melbourne-public-transport-zones-ticketing-20140326-35h2o.html">free tram zone</a>.</p>
<p>We found female cyclists are put off by rain and snow more than male cyclists. Not all bike-share systems record the gender of subscribers, and so this effect could only be studied in New York City and Chicago.</p>
<p>This may suggest a greater risk aversion among women, often the product of <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/116/14/6713">socialisation</a> in patriarchal cultures where women are taught from childhood to take fewer risks.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/too-wet-too-cold-too-hot-this-is-how-weather-affects-the-trips-we-make-93724">Too wet? Too cold? Too hot? This is how weather affects the trips we make</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="woman rides bike near water" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424872/original/file-20211005-24-2j54nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424872/original/file-20211005-24-2j54nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424872/original/file-20211005-24-2j54nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424872/original/file-20211005-24-2j54nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424872/original/file-20211005-24-2j54nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424872/original/file-20211005-24-2j54nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424872/original/file-20211005-24-2j54nw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The research found female cyclists were more deterred by inclement weather than male cyclists.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">James Ross/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Goldilocks temperatures</h2>
<p>Unsurprisingly, people cycle when it’s not too hot or too cold. We found the sweet spot is around 27-28°C, and bike usage declines when it gets hotter or colder.</p>
<p>But what’s considered too hot or too cold to cycle is not closely connected to the climate zone. </p>
<p>For example, cyclists in Trondheim (Norway) and Ljubljana (Slovenia) are sensitive to lower temperatures even though the first is a cold city and the second is less so. And cyclists in chilly Dublin (Ireland) and tropical Kaohsiung (Taiwan) are less sensitive to lower temperatures, even though these two cities also have vastly different climates.</p>
<p>This finding is surprising because, as with rain and snow, it was previously assumed people in the tropics could <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/25741292.2019.1665857">tolerate more heat</a> while people in temperate climates were more tolerant of cooler temperatures. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/cycling-and-walking-are-short-changed-when-it-comes-to-transport-funding-in-australia-92574">Cycling and walking are short-changed when it comes to transport funding in Australia</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Silhouette of cyclists against sun and water" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424873/original/file-20211005-13-diuvw6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/424873/original/file-20211005-13-diuvw6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424873/original/file-20211005-13-diuvw6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424873/original/file-20211005-13-diuvw6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424873/original/file-20211005-13-diuvw6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424873/original/file-20211005-13-diuvw6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/424873/original/file-20211005-13-diuvw6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">What’s considered too hot or cold to cycle is not closely connected to the climate zone.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Steen Saphore/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>On your bike</h2>
<p>In Australia, bicycle travel accounts for only about 1% of journeys. Obviously, we can’t control the weather – but we can <a href="http://www.istiee.unict.it/europeantransport/papers/N69/P04_69_2018.pdf">transform</a> our institutional and political environments to remove barriers to cycling. </p>
<p>This includes creating safe, <a href="https://en.reset.org/blog/worlds-first-covered-bike-path-berlins-latest-arrival-12092015">weatherproof</a> infrastructure separated from high-speed motor vehicles. And cycling should become an integral part of transport planning and receive a fair share of funding.</p>
<p>Such changes will <a href="http://www.istiee.unict.it/europeantransport/papers/N69/P04_69_2018.pdf">require</a> public support to implement. Planning officials and cycling advocates must do better at motivating people to cycle. This might include positioning cycling as a “normal” pursuit, or framing it as a source of pleasure and well-being. </p>
<p>Improving cycling rates offers huge <a href="http://www.istiee.unict.it/europeantransport/papers/N69/P04_69_2018.pdf">potential benefits</a>. It would lower health-care costs, ease traffic congestion, lower greenhouse gas emissions and, importantly, make our cities more liveable places.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/166894/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>
Cyclists in Melbourne are less likely than those in Dublin or Seville to ride in the rain. Understanding why is crucial.
Richard Bean, Research Fellow, The University of Queensland
Dorina Pojani, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, The University of Queensland
Jonathan Corcoran, Professor, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Queensland
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/157163
2021-03-29T14:59:04Z
2021-03-29T14:59:04Z
Cycling is ten times more important than electric cars for reaching net-zero cities
<p>Globally, only <a href="https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2020">one in 50 new cars</a> were fully electric in 2020, and <a href="https://www.nextgreencar.com/electric-cars/statistics/">one in 14</a> in the UK. Sounds impressive, but even if all new cars were electric now, it would still take <a href="https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/aaf4d2">15-20 years</a> to replace the world’s fossil fuel car fleet. </p>
<iframe id="noa-web-audio-player" style="border: none" src="https://embed-player.newsoveraudio.com/v4?key=x84olp&id=https://theconversation.com/cycling-is-ten-times-more-important-than-electric-cars-for-reaching-net-zero-cities-157163&bgColor=F5F5F5&color=D8352A&playColor=D8352A" width="100%" height="110px"></iframe>
<p>The emission savings from replacing all those internal combustion engines with zero-carbon alternatives will <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-018-0121-1">not feed in fast enough</a> to make the necessary difference in the time we can spare: the <a href="https://theconversation.com/for-a-carbon-neutral-uk-the-next-five-years-are-critical-heres-what-must-happen-151708">next five years</a>. Tackling the climate and air pollution crises requires curbing all motorised transport, particularly private cars, as quickly as possible. Focusing solely on electric vehicles is slowing down the <a href="https://unfccc.int/climate-action/race-to-zero-campaign">race to zero emissions</a>. </p>
<p>This is partly because electric cars aren’t <a href="https://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/transport-and-environment-report-2020">truly zero-carbon</a> – mining the raw materials for their batteries, manufacturing them and generating the electricity they run on produces emissions. </p>
<p>Transport is one of the most challenging sectors to decarbonise due to its <a href="https://www.eea.europa.eu/themes/transport/term/increasing-oil-consumption-and-ghg">heavy fossil fuel use</a> and reliance on <a href="https://www.transportforqualityoflife.com/u/files/The%20carbon%20impact%20of%20the%20national%20roads%20programme%20FINAL.pdf">carbon-intensive infrastructure</a> – such as roads, airports and the vehicles themselves – and the way it embeds <a href="https://www.itf-oecd.org/reversing-car-dependency">car-dependent lifestyles</a>. One way to reduce transport emissions relatively quickly, and potentially <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2010.07.017">globally</a>, is to swap cars for cycling, e-biking and walking – active travel, as it’s called. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Cyclists pass cars on the left in a temporary cycle lane in Hammersmith, London, UK." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392241/original/file-20210329-23-i1hixg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4632%2C3515&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392241/original/file-20210329-23-i1hixg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392241/original/file-20210329-23-i1hixg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392241/original/file-20210329-23-i1hixg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=455&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392241/original/file-20210329-23-i1hixg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=572&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392241/original/file-20210329-23-i1hixg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=572&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392241/original/file-20210329-23-i1hixg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=572&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Temporary bike lanes have popped up in cities around the world during the pandemic.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cyclists-using-temporary-cycle-lanes-hammersmith-1754227781">Texturemaster/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Active travel is cheaper, healthier, better for the environment, and no slower on congested urban streets. So how much carbon can it save on a daily basis? And what is its role in reducing emissions from transport overall? </p>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trd.2021.102764">In new research</a>, colleagues and I reveal that people who walk or cycle have lower carbon footprints from daily travel, including in cities where lots of people are already doing this. Despite the fact that some walking and cycling happens on top of motorised journeys instead of replacing them, more people switching to active travel would equate to lower carbon emissions from transport on a daily and trip-by-trip basis.</p>
<h2>What a difference a trip makes</h2>
<p>We observed around 4,000 people living in London, Antwerp, Barcelona, Vienna, Orebro, Rome and Zurich. Over a two-year period, our participants completed 10,000 travel diary entries which served as records of all the trips they made each day, whether going to work by train, taking the kids to school by car or riding the bus into town. For each trip, we calculated the carbon footprint.</p>
<p>Strikingly, people who cycled on a daily basis had 84% lower carbon emissions from all their daily travel than those who didn’t. </p>
<p>We also found that the average person who shifted from car to bike for just one day a week cut their carbon footprint by 3.2kg of CO₂ – equivalent to the emissions from driving a car for 10km, eating a <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-46459714">serving of lamb or chocolate</a>, or <a href="https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200305-why-your-internet-habits-are-not-as-clean-as-you-think">sending 800 emails</a>. </p>
<p>When we compared the life cycle of each travel mode, taking into account the carbon generated by making the vehicle, fuelling it and disposing of it, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trd.2021.102764">we found</a> that emissions from cycling can be more than 30 times lower for each trip than driving a fossil fuel car, and about ten times lower than driving an electric one. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A row of three electric vehicle charging points beside a road in London." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392245/original/file-20210329-15-w3n6ph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/392245/original/file-20210329-15-w3n6ph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392245/original/file-20210329-15-w3n6ph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392245/original/file-20210329-15-w3n6ph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392245/original/file-20210329-15-w3n6ph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392245/original/file-20210329-15-w3n6ph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/392245/original/file-20210329-15-w3n6ph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Driving an electric vehicle is only as green as the energy supply.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/electric-car-charging-station-around-crouch-1545245249">I Wei Huang/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2021.102224">We also estimate</a> that urban residents who switched from driving to cycling for just one trip per day reduced their carbon footprint by about half a tonne of CO₂ over the course of a year, and save the equivalent emissions of a <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-46459714">one-way flight</a> from London to New York. If just one in five urban residents permanently changed their travel behaviour in this way over the next few years, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2021.102224">we estimate</a> it would cut emissions from all car travel in Europe by about 8%. </p>
<p>Nearly half of the fall in <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-020-0797-x">daily carbon emissions</a> during global lockdowns in 2020 came from reductions in transport emissions. The pandemic forced countries around the world to adapt to reduce the spread of the virus. In the UK, walking and cycling have been the big winners, with a <a href="https://www.creds.ac.uk/publications/at-a-crossroads-travel-adaptations-during-covid-19-restrictions-and-where-next/">20% rise</a> in people walking regularly, and cycling levels increasing by <a href="https://www.creds.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/covid-transport-report.pdf">9% on weekdays and 58% on weekends</a> compared to pre-pandemic levels. This is despite cycle commuters being <a href="https://www.creds.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/covid-transport-report.pdf">very likely to work from home</a>.</p>
<p>Active travel has offered an alternative to cars that keeps social distancing intact. It has helped people to stay safe during the pandemic and it could help reduce emissions as confinement is eased, particularly as the high prices of some electric vehicles are likely to put many potential buyers off for now.</p>
<p>So the race is on. Active travel can contribute to tackling the climate emergency earlier than electric vehicles while also providing affordable, reliable, clean, healthy and congestion-busting transportation.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/157163/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christian Brand received funding for this work from the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme via the 'Physical Activity through Sustainable Transport Approaches' project and UK Research and Innovation via the Centre for Research on Energy Demand Solutions and the UK Energy Research Centre. </span></em></p>
Active travel can help tackle the climate crisis earlier than electric vehicles – even if you swap the car for a bike for just one trip a day.
Christian Brand, Associate Professor in Transport, Energy & Environment, Transport Studies Unit, University of Oxford
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/152895
2021-03-16T18:52:19Z
2021-03-16T18:52:19Z
When 1 in 3 users are tourists, that changes the bike-share equation for cities
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/389485/original/file-20210315-19-ung95o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C877%2C4689%2C3221&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/redcliffe-queensland-australia-08-26-2020-1802939449">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Bike-share programs have in the past been designed and operated with residents as the main focus. These shared bikes have mainly been <a href="https://transportist.org/2016/10/06/what-do-we-know-about-the-first-milelast-mile-problem-for-transit/">regarded as a way to solve</a> the “<a href="https://medium.com/the-stigo-blog/the-last-mile-the-term-the-problem-and-the-odd-solutions-28b6969d5af8">last mile problem</a>” – the distance between the final destination and the closest public transport stop that’s seen as too far to walk and too close to drive. </p>
<p>My <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09669582.2020.1825456">new research</a> published in the Journal of Sustainable Tourism challenges this position. The <a href="https://scholarworks.iupui.edu/bitstream/handle/1805/24006/2020_Buning_Lulla_Visitor%20bikeshare%20usage.pdf;jsessionid=CFC01392D26976A89BDB433B321386A9?sequence=1">study findings</a> from the <a href="https://www.pacersbikeshare.org/">Pacers Bikeshare</a> program in the US city of Indianapolis demonstrate the incredible demand tourists can provide for bike-share programs. In turn, the community gains extra value from tourism and the overall enriched visitor experience. Visitors incurred more than twice the user fees of residents. </p>
<p>This all adds up to substantial revenue for the program and an economic benefit for the city. It changes the calculations about the viability and value of bike-share schemes, which provide <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2210670716303080">wide economic benefits to cities</a>. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/billions-are-pouring-into-mobility-technology-will-the-transport-revolution-live-up-to-the-hype-131154">Billions are pouring into mobility technology – will the transport revolution live up to the hype?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>A COVID-driven bike boom</h2>
<p>Share bikes and other forms of micromobility such <a href="https://theconversation.com/limes-not-lemons-lessons-from-australias-first-e-scooter-sharing-trial-108924">electric scooters</a> (e-scooters) and <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-e-bikes-can-succeed-where-earlier-bike-share-schemes-failed-151844">e-bikes</a> have emerged as an ideal means of transport and outdoor recreation for both residents and visitors in a COVID (and post-COVID) world. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-e-bikes-can-succeed-where-earlier-bike-share-schemes-failed-151844">Why e-bikes can succeed where earlier bike-share schemes failed</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<p>People are <a href="https://theconversation.com/if-more-of-us-work-from-home-after-coronavirus-well-need-to-rethink-city-planning-136261">working from home</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/covid-has-proved-working-from-home-is-the-best-policy-to-beat-congestion-148926">travelling less</a> and have <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-avoid-cars-clogging-our-cities-during-coronavirus-recovery-140744">pandemic-related safety concerns</a>. Public transport patronage has generally <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0242476">declined</a> as a result.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/389491/original/file-20210315-16-nrzfbz.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Chart showing Apple routing requests for different transport modes" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/389491/original/file-20210315-16-nrzfbz.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/389491/original/file-20210315-16-nrzfbz.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=544&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389491/original/file-20210315-16-nrzfbz.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=544&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389491/original/file-20210315-16-nrzfbz.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=544&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389491/original/file-20210315-16-nrzfbz.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=683&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389491/original/file-20210315-16-nrzfbz.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=683&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389491/original/file-20210315-16-nrzfbz.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=683&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Public transport use (purple line) remains below pre-pandemic levels across Australia.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://covid19.apple.com/mobility">Apple Mobility Trends</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Amid COVID-19 lockdowns and outbreaks, communities across <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-17/coronavirus-brings-once-in-a-lifetime-opportunity-for-cycling/12247870">Australia</a> and <a href="https://www.bicycleretailer.com/industry-news/2020/08/10/pandemic-boosts-share-bike-and-scooter-business#.X860zcgzaUl">overseas</a> are experiencing a cycling boom. Bike shops everywhere are <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-25/bike-shops-cant-keep-up-with-demand/12689360">overwhelmed</a> and used bikes are hard to find. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/14/nyregion/coronavirus-nyc-bike-commute.html">Bike-share use</a> has risen as people look for affordable alternatives to public transport and ways to be active outdoors safely. </p>
<p>Bike-share programs have their time to shine, not just as transport for residents but for tourism purposes too. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-recovery-public-transport-is-key-to-avoid-repeating-old-and-unsustainable-mistakes-138415">Coronavirus recovery: public transport is key to avoid repeating old and unsustainable mistakes</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Tourists are an important user group</h2>
<p>This major shift in transport patterns includes tourists. We found they are a major and lucrative user group. In <a href="https://scholarworks.iupui.edu/bitstream/handle/1805/24006/2020_Buning_Lulla_Visitor%20bikeshare%20usage.pdf;jsessionid=CFC01392D26976A89BDB433B321386A9?sequence=1">our study</a>, tourists accounted for more than a third of all users of the bike-share system over more than four years. </p>
<p>Bike-share allows for freedom in exploring a city. Tourists use these programs to explore urban destinations in a leisurely way. They stop frequently at popular tourist attractions and at local retail outlets, restaurants and bars along the way.</p>
<p>This means the economic and social benefits of tourism activity can be distributed more widely throughout a community – into neighbourhoods and away from city centres and tourism hot spots – compared to cars and mass transit systems. </p>
<p>Further, when visitors use bike-share schemes, they get a more local, authentic and environmentally sustainable experience. The bikes allow for better access to local neighbourhoods, cultural areas, tourist sites and businesses than tour buses, ride-share operators and public transport can provide. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/to-bolster-our-fragile-road-and-rail-system-we-need-to-add-a-micro-mobility-network-124895">To bolster our fragile road and rail system we need to add a 'micro-mobility' network</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Ensuring a COVID-safe ride</h2>
<p>Share bikes provide a relatively contact-free and socially distanced alternative to buses, trains and ride-share cars. </p>
<p>Bike-share operators everywhere are responding to the increased concerns about the need for safe <a href="https://www.li.me/second-street/what-does-covid-19-mean-for-shared-mobility">alternative</a> transport. The range of strategies to ensure COVID safety include: </p>
<ul>
<li>increased cleaning and disinfection</li>
<li>distribution of bikes at docking stations to allow for social distancing </li>
<li>contact-free transactions</li>
<li>promotion of public health guidelines such as wearing masks and social distancing</li>
<li>even <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2020/03/27/wheels-is-deploying-e-bikes-with-self-cleaning-handlebars-and-brake-levers/">anti-viral handlebars</a>. </li>
</ul>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/389494/original/file-20210315-17-waojrp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="disinfectant stand next to a row of share bikes" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/389494/original/file-20210315-17-waojrp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/389494/original/file-20210315-17-waojrp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389494/original/file-20210315-17-waojrp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389494/original/file-20210315-17-waojrp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389494/original/file-20210315-17-waojrp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389494/original/file-20210315-17-waojrp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389494/original/file-20210315-17-waojrp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Bike-share operators have had to respond to public concerns about being COVID-safe.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/disinfection-hands-on-street-during-coronavirus-1868700535">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Some programs have actually adapted to the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590198220300774">shift from public tranport to bike sharing</a> by offering essential workers and healthcare workers free or discounted memberships. In New York, as subway use has dropped, the city has constructed <a href="https://ny.curbed.com/2020/4/14/21220752/citi-bike-coronavirus-healthcare-workers-commute">bike-share stations near hospitals</a>. </p>
<h2>The future of micromobility</h2>
<p>Bike-share schemes offer diverse community-wide benefits for city residents throughout the world. They are a flexible, convenient, cheap, active and sustainable transport option for both residents and visitors. These <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01441647.2013.775612">schemes</a> help <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014362281300132X?via%3Dihub">cut travel times</a>, reduce carbon emissions, increase physical activity and <a href="https://escholarship.org/uc/item/79v822k5">connect people to their community</a>.</p>
<p>Micromobility options including bike-share programs will continue to gain popularity well into the future as communities look to improve urban mobility in a sustainable and active manner. The rise of e-scooters and <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-problem-isnt-dockless-share-bikes-its-the-lack-of-bike-parking-102985">dockless bike</a> programs marks a transition from government-based bike-share initiatives to <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jeffmcmahon/2019/03/10/why-dockless-bike-share-doesnt-threaten-its-docked-ancestor/?sh=69a52ae45c0c">entrepreneurial ventures</a>. It has fuelled rapid growth in the industry worldwide. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/limes-not-lemons-lessons-from-australias-first-e-scooter-sharing-trial-108924">Limes not lemons: lessons from Australia’s first e-scooter sharing trial</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The challenge now is for cities to keep up with this upward trend by developing the necessary <a href="https://theconversation.com/cycling-and-walking-can-help-drive-australias-recovery-but-not-with-less-than-2-of-transport-budgets-142176">physical infrastructure</a> such as bike lanes, bike paths and so on. </p>
<p>Reaping the full benefits of bike-share programs and tourism depends on encouraging visitors to use these bikes. Ways to do this include developing aids to increase ease of use, such as digital cycling guides, maps, apps and companion programs with local businesses.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/152895/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard Buning does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>
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.
Richard Buning, Lecturer in Tourism, School of Business, The University of Queensland
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/151844
2021-02-01T18:58:05Z
2021-02-01T18:58:05Z
Why e-bikes can succeed where earlier bike-share schemes failed
<p>Shared mobility devices such as bicycles and electric scooters have experienced <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/carltonreid/2020/10/09/bikes-and-buses-will-be-futures-dominant-modes-of-urban-mobility-predict-346-transport-experts/?sh=f6eda011b03f">significant growth</a> across the globe and Australia is no exception. In cities with such offerings, users are able to get around in more convenient and flexible ways.</p>
<p>The recent emergence of dockless shared e-scooters (i.e. <a href="http://v1.li.me/locations/australia">Lime</a> and <a href="https://techau.com.au/neuron-mobility-is-launching-electric-scooters-in-adelaide-brisbane-darwin-canberra-and-townsville/">Neuron</a>) heralded a new-age of <a href="https://theconversation.com/to-bolster-our-fragile-road-and-rail-system-we-need-to-add-a-micro-mobility-network-124895">micromobility</a>. In Brisbane, it <a href="https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/brisbane-to-scrap-citycycle-scheme-as-rider-numbers-collapse-20201124-p56hfl.html">signalled the end</a> for the ten-year-old <a href="http://www.citycycle.com.au/">CityCycle</a> bike-share scheme.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/limes-not-lemons-lessons-from-australias-first-e-scooter-sharing-trial-108924">Limes not lemons: lessons from Australia’s first e-scooter sharing trial</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Not long after announcing CityCycle’s demise in late 2020, Brisbane City Council <a href="https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/things-to-see-and-do/outdoor-activities/riding-in-brisbane/citycycle-bike-hire">proposed</a> its replacement with shared dockless e-bikes and the topic <a href="https://www.racq.com.au/Live/Articles/241120-CityCycle-scrapped-in-favour-of-e-bikes-RACQ-approves">started</a> <a href="https://vickihoward.com/ebikescoming/">trending</a>. The question is: why will the e-bike scheme succeed where its predecessors in Brisbane and other Australian cities failed? (See below for a summary of the evolution of shared mobility schemes in Australia.)</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381314/original/file-20210129-23-1903dll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Table showing previous, current and planned shared micromobility sharing services (as of Jan 2021)" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381314/original/file-20210129-23-1903dll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381314/original/file-20210129-23-1903dll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=616&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381314/original/file-20210129-23-1903dll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=616&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381314/original/file-20210129-23-1903dll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=616&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381314/original/file-20210129-23-1903dll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=775&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381314/original/file-20210129-23-1903dll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=775&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381314/original/file-20210129-23-1903dll.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=775&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Evolution of micromobility sharing services in major Australian cities.*</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Compiled by Dr Abraham Leung and Madison Bland, Griffith University</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Mobility is being offered more and more as a service. The uptake of share travel across Australian cities has undergone a transition from docked bikes to dockless e-mobility, aided largely by advances in technology and the proliferation of mobile devices. Sharing is being considered as an attractive alternative to owning a bike or car thanks to new ways to bundle mobility services into packages, in much the same way as we use entertainment streaming services instead of buying movies or records. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-subscribe-to-movies-and-music-why-not-transport-119538">We subscribe to movies and music, why not transport?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What can we expect from e-bikes?</h2>
<p>E-bikes are pedal-assisted bicycles offering users electric motor assistance up to speeds of 25km/h. A shared bike scheme with self-locking and smartphone connectivity offers an extremely flexible riding experience. </p>
<p>It isn’t yet clear how e-bikes will be deployed in Brisbane. What we do know is the scheme will be privately operated under a short-term tender. As with CityCycle, <a href="https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/brisbane-to-scrap-citycycle-scheme-as-rider-numbers-collapse-20201124-p56hfl.html">2,000 bikes</a> will be provided across Brisbane, similar to how e-scooters are managed.</p>
<p>The e-bikes can improve on both e-scooters and CityCycle’s docked bikes in several ways. </p>
<p><strong>Trip flexibility:</strong> GPS tracking and smart lock technology remove the need to locate set docking stations. Users can start and end trips at places of their own choosing. This means they avoid the frustrations caused by docking stations reaching maximum capacity, especially in popular destinations such as the CBD.</p>
<p><strong>Wider appeal:</strong> <a href="https://theconversation.com/can-e-scooters-solve-the-last-mile-problem-theyll-need-to-avoid-the-fate-of-dockless-bikes-102633">unlike e-scooters and their younger target market</a>, e-bikes can attract a wider demographic more familiar with riding bikes. They also offer greater load-carrying capacity and are permitted for use on roads whereas e-scooters are <a href="https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/council-wants-e-scooters-in-bike-lanes-to-protect-pedestrians-20200904-p55siq.html">restricted to footpaths or bikeways</a> in Brisbane. In New South Wales and Victoria, e-scooters are banned altogether - though <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/could-e-scooters-be-the-answer-to-impending-covid-19-gridlock-20201005-p56257.html">changes</a> could be on the way for Victoria.</p>
<p><strong>Assisted riding:</strong> electrically assisted bikes can make cycling easier and accessible for more people. For those who struggle to ride at the best of times, e-bikes can help overcome fitness issues, especially in <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965856415301531">Brisbane’s hot climate and hilly terrain</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/billions-are-pouring-into-mobility-technology-will-the-transport-revolution-live-up-to-the-hype-131154">Billions are pouring into mobility technology – will the transport revolution live up to the hype?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>So, what punctured CityCycle?</h2>
<p>CityCycle was launched in 2010 under a 20-year single-operator contract. The scheme failed to achieve ambitious patronage targets and the goal of paying for itself. Despite usage growing until 2018, a <a href="https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/citycycle-to-go-but-outdoor-advertising-designed-to-fund-bike-scheme-to-stay-20201124-p56hiv.html">shifting market</a> has since resulted in significant declines. </p>
<p>The reasons for the lack of use are clear: </p>
<ol>
<li><p>CityCycle was delivered through a monopolised model lacking market competition, with the shared bike scheme a secondary focus for operator JCDecaux Group’s advertising juggernaut, and this once-novel model became dated when dockless bikes emerged.</p></li>
<li><p>a cumbersome payment system made renting bikes difficult, with only smartcards accepted at first, and while uptake increased once credit card payments were introduced, e-scooters’ mobile-based payment options are more convenient for walk-up users.</p></li>
<li><p>the arrival of e-scooter schemes in 2018 attracted many CityCycle users, as the chart below shows (click to enlarge), and the 2020 coronavirus pandemic wrote off the scheme when the city became deserted during the lockdown.</p></li>
</ol>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/380150/original/file-20210122-15-w07kna.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/380150/original/file-20210122-15-w07kna.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/380150/original/file-20210122-15-w07kna.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/380150/original/file-20210122-15-w07kna.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/380150/original/file-20210122-15-w07kna.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/380150/original/file-20210122-15-w07kna.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/380150/original/file-20210122-15-w07kna.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/380150/original/file-20210122-15-w07kna.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Patronage of Brisbane’s CityCycle scheme from 2010 to 2020.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Data: Brisbane City Council, JCDecaux. Adapted by Dr A. Leung</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-coronavirus-made-2020-the-year-of-the-electric-bike-143158">How coronavirus made 2020 the year of the electric bike</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The path to success</h2>
<p>As Brisbane moves towards a dockless e-bike scheme, its ability to outperform its predecessor will ultimately rest with decision-makers delivering a safe and convenient rider experience. This involves several key considerations.</p>
<p><strong>Pricing and payment:</strong> the scheme will have to be competitive with current modes (particularly e-scooters), where registration and payment are integrated with existing systems. The rise of <a href="https://theconversation.com/for-mobility-as-a-service-maas-to-solve-our-transport-woes-some-things-need-to-change-105119">mobility as a service</a> (MaaS) platforms can incorporate the service within shared mobility apps and bundle offers (packaging public transport and shared mobility services).</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/for-mobility-as-a-service-maas-to-solve-our-transport-woes-some-things-need-to-change-105119">For Mobility as a Service (MaaS) to solve our transport woes, some things need to change</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p><strong>Availability:</strong> the dockless model, while more flexible, will require operators to actively manage bike distribution and avoid cluttering. The blocking of access ways and even dumping of bikes have been sources of public opposition to other bike-share schemes. Though repositioning bikes (using service vehicles) will take up significant time and money, it is crucial in maintaining a balanced and orderly network that maximises bike availability.</p>
<p><strong>Initial launch:</strong> the scheme’s roll-out will be important, as positive perceptions are best achieved by people riding, rather than bikes sitting idle. Importantly, a winter launch should be avoided – <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/on-your-bike-public-hire-scheme-hits-cbd-20100531-wp4k.html">as Melbourne found</a> – when bike trips are at yearly lows.</p>
<p><strong>Cycle infrastructure:</strong> As with cycling in general, providing safe and connected bicycle networks is paramount for increasing participation rates. For Australian cities, the <a href="https://theconversation.com/cycling-and-walking-are-short-changed-when-it-comes-to-transport-funding-in-australia-92574">historic lack of funding for cycle infrastructure</a> has limited ridership growth. Much work remains to be done, though Brisbane City Council has committed to <a href="https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/traffic-and-transport/roads-infrastructure-and-bikeways/bikeway-and-pathway-projects/citylink-cycleway-trial">trial improvements</a> to its CBD on-road bike lanes.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/cycling-and-walking-are-short-changed-when-it-comes-to-transport-funding-in-australia-92574">Cycling and walking are short-changed when it comes to transport funding in Australia</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Ultimately, dockless shared e-bikes can deliver a more flexible mobility option as operators maximise user convenience and governments develop urban cycling infrastructure.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>* The regulatory environment for micromobility is rapidly evolving. There are many <a href="https://www.ntc.gov.au/sites/default/files/assets/files/NTC-Decision-RIS-PMDs.pdf">nuances across Australian jurisdictions</a>, and users should check with their own state or territory for up-to-date road rules and regulations.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/151844/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Madison Bland is affiliated with the Griffith Cities Research Institute where he is completing his PhD research in partnership with the City of Gold Coast. He is also an active member of PIA and PedBikeTrans industry groups</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Abraham Leung is affiliated with the Griffith Cities Research Institute where his research is funded by the Queensland Department of Transport. He is also an active member of AITPM and PedBikeTrans industry groups.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Benjamin Kaufman is affiliated with the Griffith Cities Research Institute where he is completing his PhD research in partnership with the Queensland Department of Transport. He is also an active member of AITPM and PedBikeTrans industry groups.</span></em></p>
And the winner is … e-bikes? A new entrant is set to overtake Brisbane’s CityCycle scheme in the race for the shared mobility market.
Madison Bland, PhD Candidate, Cities Research Institute, Griffith University
Abraham Leung, Transport Academic Partnership (TAP) Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Cities Research Institute, Griffith University
Benjamin Kaufman, PhD Candidate, Cities Research Institute, Griffith University
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/133441
2020-10-14T19:10:57Z
2020-10-14T19:10:57Z
Forget your fixie, we’re more likely to ride bikes if we can carry more on them
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363324/original/file-20201014-13-1ninkms.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=53%2C26%2C3545%2C2547&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Under COVID-19 lockdowns, bike sales have been <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-05-17/coronavirus-brings-once-in-a-lifetime-opportunity-for-cycling/12247870">booming</a>. Quiet streets and more time at home have opened a new opportunity for bicycles in our otherwise car-dominated culture. </p>
<p>Every day in <a href="https://public.tableau.com/profile/vista#!/vizhome/VISTA-Trips-timeseriesAccess/Trips-methodoftravel">Victoria</a>, more than 2.2 million trips under two kilometres are driven in cars. And in the 2016 census, more than half of households with fewer than five people owned more than one car.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/physical-distancing-is-here-for-a-while-over-100-experts-call-for-more-safe-walking-and-cycling-space-137374">Physical distancing is here for a while – over 100 experts call for more safe walking and cycling space</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>It’s no wonder the transport sector is Australia’s <a href="https://www.environment.gov.au/system/files/resources/6686d48f-3f9c-448d-a1b7-7e410fe4f376/files/nggi-quarterly-update-mar-2019.pdf">second-largest polluter</a>, making up almost a fifth of our greenhouse gas emissions.</p>
<p>Cutting our emissions could be as simple as walking or riding to the shops occasionally. But the Australian bicycle fleet is <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590198220301159">largely influenced by sport</a>, not utility, which makes short, easy trips unnecessarily difficult.</p>
<h2>Transport, not sport</h2>
<p>Unlike car trips, bicycle trips provide a measurable benefit to <a href="https://cyclingsolutions.info/cost-benefit-of-cycling-infrastructure/">individuals and society</a> through health, reduced emissions and less noise pollution. While many Australian adults <a href="https://austroads.com.au/publications/active-travel/ap-c91-19">can ride bikes</a>, however, few do so on a regular basis. The overwhelming majority of these trips are recreational. </p>
<p>In our <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590198220301159">recent analysis</a>, my colleagues and I looked at the bikes people ride for transport, and we found more than half of them aren’t well equipped for this purpose. </p>
<p>Few people actively engage in competitive “cycling”, yet this sporty image trickles down in bike design — from elite machines to cheaper simulations of them. These are the bicycles most people ride. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363334/original/file-20201014-21-dbwkdr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363334/original/file-20201014-21-dbwkdr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363334/original/file-20201014-21-dbwkdr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363334/original/file-20201014-21-dbwkdr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363334/original/file-20201014-21-dbwkdr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363334/original/file-20201014-21-dbwkdr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363334/original/file-20201014-21-dbwkdr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363334/original/file-20201014-21-dbwkdr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Most Australian cyclists use sports-like bikes. This is not practical.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But sports bikes are too valuable, have no carrying capacity and are delicate. Urban trips to the shops are short — as suggested by the millions of daily sub-2km car journeys — so a cheap, but useful, bike would be a good vehicle for this purpose. </p>
<p>The good news is a lot of sport bikes can be adapted for utility, for example, by adding a kickstand and a luggage rack or basket. </p>
<p>Given our willingness to pay annual registration costs for all those cars, I surmise there’s room in the market for utility bikes around the same price as a year’s rego.</p>
<h2>Utility bikes are an obvious solution</h2>
<p>Australians are utility bicycling laggards. We own plenty of bikes, but on average only <a href="https://www.bitre.gov.au/publications/2019/regional-yearbook-2019">1% of trips are cycled</a> — it’s higher in cities, lower outside them. </p>
<p>We can’t simply wish for more bicycle mobility with inadequate vehicles and infrastructure. Some changes are necessary.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/cycling-and-walking-to-work-lowers-risk-of-cancer-heart-disease-and-death-new-research-139075">Cycling and walking to work lowers risk of cancer, heart disease and death – new research</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>First, bikes need to be useful. Any bike, by definition, can provide transport for a person. Utility bikes add to this with lock, lights, and luggage and passenger capacity, just like a car. At their simplest, a utility bike can carry a carton of milk home from the shops. </p>
<p>At the other end of the scale, a cargo bike can carry larger loads and multiple passengers. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363318/original/file-20201014-18-1wgzlus.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="The author riding a cargo bike." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363318/original/file-20201014-18-1wgzlus.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363318/original/file-20201014-18-1wgzlus.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363318/original/file-20201014-18-1wgzlus.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363318/original/file-20201014-18-1wgzlus.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363318/original/file-20201014-18-1wgzlus.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363318/original/file-20201014-18-1wgzlus.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363318/original/file-20201014-18-1wgzlus.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The author riding a cargo bike. Cargo bikes can replace car trips.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Robbie Napper</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Both cargo and utility bikes can replace many motor vehicle trips. Those willing to pay more can have their bike as an electric assist ebike, increasing load capacity, range and effectively flattening hills. </p>
<p>Utility and cargo bikes are on the market in Australia. They’re also available to borrow in some cities through bikeshare schemes, which provide bikes with lights and luggage capacity designed to trade off some speed for more comfort and usefulness. </p>
<p>This is indicative of shift in Australia away from the prevailing <a href="http://www.modacitylife.com/building-the-cycling-city">sports and leisure cycling culture</a>. </p>
<p>So, useful bikes are readily available, they can be trialled as bikeshare, and Australians are in the midst of a mini bike-boom. But how can we replace car trips with bike trips?</p>
<h2>We need infrastructure to suit the vehicles</h2>
<p>Like any vehicle, a utility bike relies on suitable infrastructure. Yet our <a href="https://austroads.com.au/publications/road-design/agrd03">road design manuals</a> do not provide adequate detail on how much space a bicycle and rider needs. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/covid-19-has-created-more-cyclists-how-cities-can-keep-them-on-their-bikes-137545">COVID-19 has created more cyclists: How cities can keep them on their bikes</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>While Europe is forging ahead with utility and cargo bike use, we don’t even have the infrastructure yet in Australia to support riding them. </p>
<p>I rode a huge box trike through the centre of Copenhagen last year. It was a remarkable journey because it was completely normal, easy even, to ride this large bike on dedicated, smooth, wide paths built just for bikes.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363323/original/file-20201014-19-1gv7yku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A woman takes her two kids in a cargo bike, in Copenhagen." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363323/original/file-20201014-19-1gv7yku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/363323/original/file-20201014-19-1gv7yku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363323/original/file-20201014-19-1gv7yku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363323/original/file-20201014-19-1gv7yku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363323/original/file-20201014-19-1gv7yku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363323/original/file-20201014-19-1gv7yku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/363323/original/file-20201014-19-1gv7yku.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">In places like Copenhagen, it’s safe to cycle on the road with your kids.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But in Australia, when I ride my cargo bike with two kids on board, I’m too scared to ride on the road when there’s no bike infrastructure. This puts a 150kg vehicle on the footpath. <a href="https://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/safety-and-road-rules/road-rules/a-to-z-of-road-rules/bicycles">It’s legal</a>, but it’s not good, and I ride slowly to avoid crashes. </p>
<p>In the same way suburban streets are designed to accommodate garbage trucks, we need to design bike infrastructure that fits cargo bikes (and useful bike parking wouldn’t hurt, either).</p>
<p>In Australia, we’re at the beginning. During COVID, our bike-delivery businesses such as Easi and Deliveroo have flourished. We need the bikes, habits and infrastructure to take the step from white vans to cargo bikes in urban areas.</p>
<p>Utility bikes are comfortable, low effort and <em>useful</em> because they can carry something. We don’t all need to be “cyclists”, but to just get our stuff done on a bike. If that’s part of the new normal in Australia, we have something larger to gain.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/covid-19-has-created-more-cyclists-how-cities-can-keep-them-on-their-bikes-137545">COVID-19 has created more cyclists: How cities can keep them on their bikes</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133441/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robbie Napper receives funding from the Victorian Department of Transport. </span></em></p>
Australian bicycles are largely influenced by sport, not utility. We should embrace cargo bikes for their usefulness, over speed.
Robbie Napper, Senior Lecturer, Design, Monash University
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/137545
2020-06-24T18:37:45Z
2020-06-24T18:37:45Z
COVID-19 has created more cyclists: How cities can keep them on their bikes
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/343608/original/file-20200623-188896-1rcjyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=121%2C49%2C4242%2C2752&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Bike routes have been expanded in many major cities, including Bogata, Columbia, to encourage people to avoid crowded public transportation. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>As physical distancing measures to limit the spread of COVID-19 begin to relax in some countries and people return to work, the fears surrounding transportation and commuting continue to weigh on the minds of many. </p>
<p>Once popular options like public transit and ridesharing, such as Uber, now carry the <a href="https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/riders-concerned-some-uber-drivers-not-wearing-masks-during-pandemic-1.4951005">risk of potentially exposing riders to COVID-19</a>. The <a href="https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/university-ave-among-streets-getting-new-bike-lanes-this-summer-1.4958183">Toronto Transit Commission recently reported</a> that even if it operated at only 30 per cent of capacity, roughly 510,000 riders, passengers would not be able to keep a safe distance from each other. </p>
<p>Personal vehicles do allow for adequate distancing, but <a href="https://www.cp24.com/news/toronto-has-worst-commute-in-north-america-sixth-worst-in-world-study-1.3983200">many cities cannot support the shift of public transit riders to cars</a>. There is also a substantial <a href="https://www.moneyunder30.com/true-cost-of-owning-a-car">cost-barrier associated with car ownership</a>: parking, insurance, gas.</p>
<p>As a result, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/18/nyregion/bike-shortage-coronavirus.html">more people in North America are taking to cycling</a> — and bike shops across the United States and Canada are seeing record sales and facing supply shortages. </p>
<h2>The benefits of cycling</h2>
<p>This recent surge in cyclists is beneficial for several reasons. From a public health perspective, cycling is a form of physical activity that can improve physical and <a href="https://doi.org/10.2165/00007256-200029030-00003">mental health</a>, prevent a host of chronic diseases, such as <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1002%2Fcphy.c110025">heart disease and Type 2 diabetes</a>, and reduce burden on the health-care system. This translates into <a href="https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2012/hl/bgrd/backgroundfile-46520.pdf">hundreds of millions of dollars saved from annual health-care costs</a> for Canada. </p>
<p>But there is also a high return on investment from installing cycling networks. The increase in cyclists diverts cars from streets, resulting in <a href="https://www.sharetheroad.ca/what-are-the-financial-benefits-of-cycling--s16222">reduced traffic and pollution, while increasing pedestrian and cyclist safety and property values</a>. Overall, the benefits of investing in cycling infrastructure and increasing the number of cyclists on the road far outweigh its associated costs, with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tra.2004.04.003">one study estimating a 400 per cent to 500 per cent return</a>. </p>
<p>The room for growth in terms of new cyclists is enormous. Prior to the pandemic only a small proportion of people biked or walked to work: <a href="https://cyclingmagazine.ca/sections/news/more-canadians-commuting-bike-census-data/">6.7 per cent in Toronto, 7.2 per cent in Montréal and 9.1 per cent in Vancouver</a>, and in the U.S., <a href="https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2019/05/younger-workers-in-cities-more-likely-to-bike-to-work.html">five per cent to 10 per cent of people in the most bike-friendly cities, like Portland, Ore., ride to work</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/343605/original/file-20200623-14258-f1hig4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/343605/original/file-20200623-14258-f1hig4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343605/original/file-20200623-14258-f1hig4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343605/original/file-20200623-14258-f1hig4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343605/original/file-20200623-14258-f1hig4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343605/original/file-20200623-14258-f1hig4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343605/original/file-20200623-14258-f1hig4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A mother and her child wait to collect their lunch at the bike-through of a restaurant in Amsterdam, Netherlands.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Peter Dejong)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Compared to many European bike-friendly cities like <a href="https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2019-08-07/copenhagen-has-taken-bicycle-commuting-to-a-new-level">Copenhagen, which boasts a 62 per cent bicycle commuter rate</a>, North American cities fall far behind.</p>
<h2>Keeping new cyclists on the road</h2>
<p>Some cities, like <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/may/15/large-areas-of-london-to-be-made-car-free-as-lockdown-eased">London, U.K.,</a> and Toronto, have closed roads to cars to make streets safer for cyclists and pedestrians. Major metropolitan cities like <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/may/01/city-leaders-aim-to-shape-green-recovery-from-coronavirus-crisis">New York and Paris have passed bills to expand cycling infrastructure</a> as a means to promote and maintain the accessibility and safety of cycling.</p>
<p>These measures, however, have been put in place in response to COVID-19 and physical distancing regulations. As cities reopen — and if transportation-related fears lessen — new cyclists may return to traditional modes of transportation, especially as the seasons bring colder weather to some cities. </p>
<p>So how do we get new cyclists to continue biking?</p>
<p>As exercise behaviour scientists, our research focuses on the factors that affect people’s motivation and intention to exercise. We’re also avid cyclists — and know what influences cycling in our communities. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/343607/original/file-20200623-188886-sbla6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/343607/original/file-20200623-188886-sbla6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343607/original/file-20200623-188886-sbla6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343607/original/file-20200623-188886-sbla6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343607/original/file-20200623-188886-sbla6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343607/original/file-20200623-188886-sbla6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/343607/original/file-20200623-188886-sbla6u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Berlin created temporary bicycle lanes to encourage people to ride bikes during the pandemic.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Joerg Carstensen/dpa via AP)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Three key factors that can facilitate and maintain cycling are safety, efficiency and cost. To address these factors, we recommend the following strategies: </p>
<p><strong>Construct separated bike lanes</strong>: <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trf.2014.12.001">Safety is a paramount concern for all cyclists</a>. Separating vehicle and foot traffic from cyclists increases safety for all groups, and should be a priority. A multi-city study found <a href="https://usa.streetsblog.org/2019/05/29/protect-yourself-separated-bike-lanes-means-safer-streets-study-says/">cities with protected and separated bike lanes showed 44 per cent fewer deaths, compared to an average city</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Connect existing bike networks</strong>: Many cyclists feel the <a href="https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2012/hl/bgrd/backgroundfile-46520.pdf">connections from one bike route to another limit their cycling</a>. Cities should identify popular routes and extend existing networks to support those routes. This will help create a more safe and efficient means of transportation.</p>
<p><strong>Improve bike network maintenance during the winter</strong>: Snowy weather is a reality for cycling in Canada and parts of the U.S. Winter cyclists identify <a href="http://cip-icu.ca/Files/Awards/Plan-Canada/Cycling-Through-Winter">poor road surface maintenance as the primary deterrent to winter cycling — not the air temperature or weather</a>. Some snowy countries, <a href="https://torontoist.com/2017/02/what-toronto-can-learn-about-winter-cycling-from-oulu/">like Finland</a>, make road and bike network maintenance during the winter a priority. Doing this means there are fewer cyclists on main roads and arteries, leading to a safer, quicker commute for all. </p>
<p><strong>Incentivize cycling</strong>: We know cycling is hugely beneficial to health and well-being over the long term, yet people are rarely persuaded to start or continue a behaviour because of possible future rewards. Incentives, however, can help keep new cyclists on the road. Governments should offer tax deductions for bike-related purchases and services. Insurance companies should reduce premiums for bikers, <a href="https://www.sunlife.ca/en/tools-and-resources/money-and-finances/understanding-life-insurance/how-does-smoking-affect-your-life-insurance/">as they do for non-smokers</a>. Companies should make a bike purchase part of employee benefits, similar to the <a href="https://www.cyclescheme.co.uk/get-a-bike/how-it-works">Cycle-to-Work</a> and <a href="https://www.biketowork.ie/">BiketoWork</a> schemes popular in the U.K. and Ireland, respectively.</p>
<p>These strategies, taken together, will have the greatest impact on enhancing bike safety, optimizing travel time and making cycling more financially attractive than traditional modes of transportation. </p>
<p>Ultimately, these strategies also <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trf.2014.12.001">normalize cycling, further encouraging this new generation of cyclists to stick with it</a>. Enacting these strategies can transform cycling from an alternative mode of transportation to the safest, fastest and most cost-effective mode of transportation, well beyond the duration of COVID-19.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/137545/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Harry Prapavessis receives funding from Canadian Foundation for Innovation-CFI; Canadian Cancer Society-CCS; Canadian Institutes of Health Research-CIHR; Social Science of Humanities Research Council-SSHRC. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Wuyou Sui does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>
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.
Wuyou Sui, PhD Candidate, Exercise and Health Psychology Lab, Western University
Harry Prapavessis, Professor, Kinesiology, Western University
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/109367
2019-11-08T12:15:10Z
2019-11-08T12:15:10Z
E-bikes are coming to federally owned trails: 4 questions answered
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/300171/original/file-20191104-88419-12w9343.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A cyclist in San Bernadino National Forest, where e-bikes were previously banned.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/National-Parks-Electric-Bikes/23d97e5746254348ab41885329b0d12c/26/0">AP/Brian Melley</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>Editor’s note: In August, Interior Secretary David Bernhardt <a href="https://www.doi.gov/sites/doi.gov/files/elips/documents/so_3376_-_increasing_recreational_opportunities_through_the_use_of_electric_bikes_-508_0.pdf">announced an order</a> stating that electric bicycles will be allowed on all trails on federally owned land where normal bikes can ride. The move has led to some <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/the-energy-202/2019/10/16/the-energy-202-trump-administration-wants-to-open-up-more-public-trails-to-e-bikes-no-one-knows-exactly-what-that-means/5da6244c88e0fa3155a71155/">confusion and controversy</a>, as states and municipalities sort out how to comply with the order.</em></p>
<p><em>Parts of the <a href="https://www.bicycleretailer.com/industry-news/2019/08/30/policy-change-paving-way-e-bikes-national-parks#.XcBVDkVKhaE">bike industry</a> and the <a href="https://www.nps.gov/orgs/1207/ebikepolicy.htm">National Park Service</a> have argued that the move will make public lands accessible to more people. Others are concerned the arrival of e-bikes on federal trails will <a href="https://www.wilderness.org/articles/media-resources/letter-outdoor-groups-opposes-allowing-e-bikes-non-motorized-trails-public-lands">lead to broader use of motorized vehicles</a>.</em></p>
<p><em>John Freemuth, a researcher on public lands policy at Boise State University, weighs in on the rollout of the policy and how it might affect public lands like national parks.</em> </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0aHWC9JneTw?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<h2>1. Why do e-bikes on trails in federal lands raise concern?</h2>
<p>There’s nothing to stop people with those bikes from heading off the trails into areas that are sensitive. I’m not saying even two percent of those folks would do that. But it doesn’t take very many people to harm resources and get in all sorts of trouble. </p>
<p>Also, it’s clear that the secretary has given park superintendents some discretion about where to allow these bikes and where not to allow them. So there’s still a lot of ambiguity in the policy, which I think is concerning. </p>
<h2>2. Why would e-bikes cause more problems than normal bikes?</h2>
<p>Because they’re so fast, you could have a collision a lot more easily than somebody on a regular bike. </p>
<p>It’s <a href="https://americanhiking.org/press-release/national-trail-and-conservation-groups-blast-new-doi-e-bike-order/">alarming people</a> because it goes against why some of these places were set aside and protected. There’s obviously a place for e-bikes in a park unit. But there are places, perhaps, where they shouldn’t be allowed because other people go to national parks for experiences that don’t include whipping around on bikes at 20 miles an hour. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/300351/original/file-20191105-88394-1o0qnlt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/300351/original/file-20191105-88394-1o0qnlt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/300351/original/file-20191105-88394-1o0qnlt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/300351/original/file-20191105-88394-1o0qnlt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=449&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/300351/original/file-20191105-88394-1o0qnlt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/300351/original/file-20191105-88394-1o0qnlt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/300351/original/file-20191105-88394-1o0qnlt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Are electric bikes too fast for the trails on federally owned land?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/National-Parks-Electric-Bikes/fdf65cebe245478ebebe481e2fd8b92a/15/0">AP Photo/David Sharp</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>3. What about <a href="https://www.nps.gov/subjects/policy/upload/PM_19-01.pdf">the argument that allowing e-bikes makes these parks accessible to more people</a>?</h2>
<p>You could certainly have instances where people with an e-bike could allow someone to get a bit into the non-wilderness back country. Now, this may require the agencies to have to build different kinds of trails. And that’s always a cost, and a visitor safety issue.</p>
<p>This is public land, and there’s nothing wrong with some use. The question is, though, where is it appropriate and where is it inappropriate? That’s just the dialogue I think we all have to have with each other. </p>
<h2>4. What do you think is the best approach to regulate these bikes on public lands?</h2>
<p>I think we should go slowly. Let’s let our agencies experiment. They could try allowing e-bikes in one area for a while to see what happens. There should be places where they’re prohibited. But we should learn by doing and develop more effective policy by observation. </p>
<p>Again, the agencies do have discretion to decide what to do here. But it’s not clear from some of the policies how closely they are supposed to follow state and local rules and follow their own policies and procedures on federal lands. And their policies should come first, I would argue. So I’d urge them to go slow and begin to learn where these bikes are acceptable, and don’t cause problems, and places where they shouldn’t be allowed.</p>
<p>[ <em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=expertise">Expertise in your inbox. Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter and get a digest of academic takes on today’s news, every day.</a></em> ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/109367/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>John Freemuth receives funding from BLM and USGS. I am a professor but work closely with the Andrus Center for Public Policy at Boise State University. </span></em></p>
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.
John Freemuth, Cecil D. Andrus Endowed Chair for Environment and Public Lands and University Distinguished Professor, Boise State University
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/112264
2019-04-09T10:53:10Z
2019-04-09T10:53:10Z
Electric bikes can boost older people’s mental performance and their well-being
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/268353/original/file-20190409-2912-j0e8yo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Getting on your bicycle can give you an enormous sense of freedom and enjoyment. It can increase your independence and knowledge of the local area, and improve your access to the natural (or urban) environment. It can also be highly nostalgic – reminding you of your childhood cycle rides and the joy of being young.</p>
<p>But beyond the feel-good factor, can cycling actually make any difference to mental abilities and well-being? This was something <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0211779">our new study</a> aimed to investigate – specifically looking at cycling among older adults. </p>
<p>While most studies incorporate exercise in a gym situation, our study wanted to examine the impact of cycling in the real world – outside a controlled environment. So older adults, aged 50 and above, were asked to cycle for at least an hour and a half each week for an eight-week period. </p>
<p>Participants either cycled on a conventional pedal bike, on an electrically assisted “e-bike” or were instructed to maintain their regular non-cycling exercise routine as a comparison group. Mental abilities, mental health and well-being were measured before and after the eight-week cycling period. </p>
<h2>Mental boost</h2>
<p>Exercise is thought to improve mental functioning through increased blood flow to the brain – as well as encouraging regrowth of cells, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26654786">specifically in the hippocampus</a>. This is known to be an area associated with memory. So it was expected that the greater physical exertion required for pedal cycling, compared to cycling an e-bike with a motor, would result in greater benefits to mental functioning.</p>
<p>One of the tasks we used to measure mental ability is the “<a href="https://www.psytoolkit.org/experiment-library/stroop.html">Stroop test</a>”. The task involves participants being shown the name of a colour printed on a card in a different colour script – imagine the word “blue” printed in red ink. Participants are asked to saying the colour of the ink that the word is printed in, rather than reading the name of the colour. The Stroop test measures how accurately someone is able to minimise distraction from the written word when reporting the ink colour. </p>
<p>We found that after eight weeks of cycling, both pedal and e-bike cycling groups were better at ignoring the written word, indicating that their mental function had improved. This was not the case for non-cycling control participants. </p>
<h2>Pedal power</h2>
<p>Aside from the benefits found to some mental abilities, we also saw a trend for mental health improving for the e-bike cyclists, but pedal cyclists did not change on this measure. This could be because e-bikes may be more enjoyable and easier to ride than normal pedal bikes – helping to improve mental well-being. </p>
<p>We also found e-bike cyclists spent more time cycling on average each week than the pedal cyclists. Many of the participants commented that they felt they <a href="https://www.cycleboom.org/outputs/publications/">could go further on the e-bike</a> as they could rely on the motor to get them home if they could not manage it by themselves. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/267136/original/file-20190402-177199-pf2xyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/267136/original/file-20190402-177199-pf2xyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=295&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/267136/original/file-20190402-177199-pf2xyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=295&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/267136/original/file-20190402-177199-pf2xyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=295&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/267136/original/file-20190402-177199-pf2xyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/267136/original/file-20190402-177199-pf2xyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/267136/original/file-20190402-177199-pf2xyq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=370&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Having a bike can open up new places of adventure.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This research, to some extent, provides support for many bike-related motivation quotes, including the following from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work becomes monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road, without thought on anything but the ride you are taking. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>It seems then that e-bikes have the potential to re-engage older adults with cycling and provide a great opportunity to increase physical activity and engagement with the outdoor environment. So given that more than <a href="https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/health-wellbeing/loneliness/">three million older people in the UK live alone</a>, of whom more than two million are older than 75, it might just be that the use of an electric bicycle could help to improve older people’s lives by increasing independence and mobility – all of which can have a significant impact on their well-being.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/112264/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>This research was part of the ‘cycle BOOM’ project (<a href="http://www.cycleboom.org">www.cycleboom.org</a>), funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC; <a href="https://www.epsrc.ac.uk/">https://www.epsrc.ac.uk/</a>) under the UK Research Councils' Lifelong Health and Wellbeing Programme (Grant Number EP/K037242/1), received by TJ and CvR. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ben spencer is a member of Cycling UK. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tim Jones is an Expert Adviser for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) (March 2018 - March 2021) and Peer Review Group member for the Economic and Social Research Council's Global Challenges Research Fund.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Carien van Reekum does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>
The use of electric bikes can be tied to improved clarity of thought, faster reaction times and a boost in mental well-being.
Louise-Ann Leyland, Research Associate in the Faculty of Brain Sciences, UCL
Ben Spencer, Research fellow, Oxford Brookes University
Carien van Reekum, Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Reading
Tim Jones, Reader in Urban Mobility, Oxford Brookes University
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/102985
2018-09-30T20:04:30Z
2018-09-30T20:04:30Z
The problem isn’t dockless share bikes. It’s the lack of bike parking
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/238242/original/file-20180927-48665-ohsraq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">If cyclist-friendly cities like Copenhagen can offer abundant and conveniently sited parking space for bikes, why not Australian cities?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bicycle_Parking_Copenhagen.jpg">Grey Geezer/Wikimedia</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>It’s a local government truism that Australian city dwellers care about only three things – rates, rubbish and parking. They want lower rates, the freedom to turf out as much trash as they like, and convenient free car parking. The arrival of dockless share bikes set these attitudes towards parking and rubbish on a collision course. </p>
<p>Dockless bike sharing was quickly embraced as a neat solution to a complex urban transport problem and then just as quickly condemned as a blight on the landscape. Its key advantage over its docked competitor turned out to be its key weakness in the Australian market.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/oh-no-obikes-are-leaving-melbourne-but-this-doesnt-mean-bike-sharing-schemes-are-dead-98236">Oh no, oBikes are leaving Melbourne! But this doesn't mean bike sharing schemes are dead</a>
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</p>
<hr>
<p>Our ongoing <a href="https://www.canberra.edu.au/research/faculty-research-centres/nmrc/research/pedalling-for-change">research project</a> looks at the future of cycling in Australia. Dockless bikes are the most prominent recent re-imagining of how cycling functions in our cities. Our research indicates that culture isn’t the problem so much as infrastructure – namely, a lack of bike parking.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/238007/original/file-20180926-149973-lpz0c2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/238007/original/file-20180926-149973-lpz0c2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/238007/original/file-20180926-149973-lpz0c2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=296&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238007/original/file-20180926-149973-lpz0c2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=296&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238007/original/file-20180926-149973-lpz0c2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=296&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238007/original/file-20180926-149973-lpz0c2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238007/original/file-20180926-149973-lpz0c2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/238007/original/file-20180926-149973-lpz0c2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=372&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">
* <em>Excludes pay-for-access Parkiteer stations or private parking.
*</em>* <em>Light rail network has six ‘bike sheds’ with multiple parking hoops</em>
*** <em>Numbers based on news reports at time of introduction to each city and middle-of-the-road estimates where projected numbers may not have been met</em>
**** <em>Estimates of rates of cycling can be problematic as there is no standard or nationally applied method for determining these, and cycling is a shared concern between portfolios like transport, public health and sport/recreation</em>
</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>From go to whoa in a year</h2>
<p>Singaporean company oBike launched the first commercial dockless bike venture in Australia in June 2017. Mobike, Reddy Go and Ofo soon followed. At A$2-$2.50 for 30 minutes, the bikes offered an affordable alternative to carbon-based transport for short trips within cities. </p>
<p>Yet, by July 2018, oBike, Ofo and ReddyGo, after placing upwards of 10,000 bikes on Australia’s streets, <a href="https://www.news.com.au/finance/business/retail/bike-share-companies-ofo-obike-and-reddy-go-set-to-depart-australian-shores/news-story/1c8bc28498acb4521c584252f46a539b">had announced</a> they were leaving. The dream of enhanced city mobility was reduced to a luminous pile of unwanted bikes. </p>
<p>For the moment it looks like the experiment failed. The obvious reason, rarely mentioned, is the lack of bike parking in Australian cities. Dockless bikes exist in limbo between disposable and valuable, which makes them a target for abuse and abandonment.</p>
<p>The key attraction of dockless bikes is convenience – they can be left anywhere. However, this can be enraging for non-users who see parked bikes as rubbish, and not a standing reserve of cheap transport. They see bikes left in parks, against shop windows, in front gardens, hanging from fences and in building entrances as an unwelcome disordering of a highly ordered space.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/to-end-share-bike-dumping-focus-on-how-to-change-peoples-behaviour-90016">To end share-bike dumping, focus on how to change people's behaviour</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>More dockless bicycles were introduced to Sydney and Melbourne than there were parking spaces. But councils in both cities introduced guidelines that made operators responsible for bike parking and placement, requiring them to liaise with municipal authorities and public landholders to provide solutions.</p>
<p>In late 2017, <a href="http://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/explore/getting-around/cycling/dockless-bike-sharing">six Sydney councils introduced guidelines on dockless bikes</a>. Other jurisdictions followed. The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) in Victoria introduced rules that led to <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-06-12/obike-dockless-bicycle-scheme-to-leave-melbourne/9860314">oBike withdrawing from Melbourne</a>. </p>
<p>That the EPA, rather than a transport authority, made rules about dockless bikes says a great deal about their status. In the eyes of many Australians the bikes are rubbish first and transport second.</p>
<h2>A failure of infrastructure</h2>
<p>Secure bike parking is provided in both cities, generally around public transport networks. However, Sydney has <a href="http://www.sydneycycleways.net/resources/request-bike-parking/">fewer than 100 individual secure spaces</a> while greater Melbourne has <a href="https://www.bicyclenetwork.com.au/our-services/parkiteer/">around 70 secure “Parkiteer” sites</a>. </p>
<p>These facilities require users to pay a bond – $50 for Parkiteer – so serve a particular kind of bicycle commuter rather than the public at large. Sydney’s main train stations, Central and Redfern, have fewer than 100 public bicycles spaces between them. It’s common to see bikes chained to fences and railings around these stations.</p>
<p>The failure to find a dockless bike parking solution demonstrates the naivety of the operators. It also indicates that if Sydney and Melbourne were to miraculously achieve their mode-share goals, the failures of their infrastructure’s capacity would be made painfully apparent.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/cycling-and-walking-are-short-changed-when-it-comes-to-transport-funding-in-australia-92574">Cycling and walking are short-changed when it comes to transport funding in Australia</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>If dockless bikes failed because they were always “matter out of place”, as Mary Douglas famously put it, then who is responsible for providing places for dockless bikes? Blame has largely been placed on users, who are deemed irresponsible. Thus, it must be a social problem. </p>
<p>But Australian cities don’t provide enough bike parking. The City of Sydney says it has 2,500 spaces, but these are spread out over 25 square kilometres (inner-city Copenhagen is 8.8 square kilometres).</p>
<p>Our cities did little to lay the groundwork for dockless bike ventures. At first glance it might seem that the bike companies should have to provide parking spaces for their bikes. By that logic car rental companies ought to provide parking spaces for their cars.</p>
<p>Councils provide parking spaces for cars, regardless of who owns them, so why not for dockless bikes? </p>
<h2>Back active transport goals with investment</h2>
<p>All major cities in Australia aim to increase active transport such as cycling and walking. Bike parking should be seen as a necessary cost of achieving that goal.</p>
<p>Councils once welcomed dockless bikes as a cheap private solution to a public problem. Yet they now frame regulations to contain the unwanted problem of bike parking rather than promoting the highly desirable solution of fewer cars in the city.</p>
<p>The Active Travel Office of Transport Canberra announced a trial of the city’s first dockless bike share program concurrently with new <a href="https://www.transport.act.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/1132434/Dockless-Bike-Share-Guidlines-A4-v7.pdf">guidelines</a>. The first item on the list is bike parking. The guidelines insist on a collaborative response to “enable the ACT Government to determine and mark appropriate locations where dockless share bikes may be parked”.</p>
<p>Underlying these guidelines is the anxiety that dockless bikes are only ever a hair’s breadth away from ceasing to be convenient forms of transport and becoming inconvenient forms of rubbish. Maintaining an orderly streetscape has clear priority over cheap, non-carbon-based public transport. Dockless bikes are to be contained as litter rather than upscaled as convenient transport.</p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/measures-to-increase-cycling-in-australia-are-predicated-on-failure-89078">As we’ve argued previously</a>, Australia’s bike infrastructure won’t cope with even the smallest increase in bike trips. Policy on bike infrastructure is framed as demand-driven, but the infrastructure is already overwhelmed. </p>
<p>The only way we’ll see a step change in bikes replacing cars is if investment in bike infrastructure is greatly increased.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/heres-what-bike-sharing-programs-need-to-succeed-85969">Here's what bike-sharing programs need to succeed</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The City of Sydney’s <a href="https://www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0011/304796/Cycling_Strategy_and_Action_Plan_20182030.pdf">goal is for 10% of all trips</a> in the city to be made by bicycle. On 2013 numbers this equates to 1.6 million trips a day. The City of Melbourne’s <a href="https://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/SiteCollectionDocuments/transport-strategy-2012.pdf">target is 8%, or 68,305 weekday bicycle trips</a>. It has only about 2,700 bicycle parking hoops. </p>
<p>In both these cities, trips already made by bicycle greatly outnumber parking spaces. Despite their active transport ambitions, through lack of foresight Australian cities have laid bare the failures of their bicycle infrastructure. </p>
<p>What is the price of this failure? Hundreds of needless car trips every day that could easily be done by bike if adequate parking and lockers were available.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/102985/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gordon Waitt receives funding from the Australian Research Council.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ian Buchanan receives funding from Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Glen Fuller and Nicolas Ozolins do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>
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.
Glen Fuller, Associate Professor Communications and Media, University of Canberra
Gordon Waitt, Professor of Geography, University of Wollongong
Ian Buchanan, Professor of Cultural Studies, University of Wollongong
Nicolas Ozolins, PhD Candidate, Faculty of Law, Humanities, and the Arts, University of Wollongong
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/90312
2018-01-24T19:16:47Z
2018-01-24T19:16:47Z
Three reasons why share-bikes don’t fit Australian culture
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/202778/original/file-20180122-110100-6d0qcj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C266%2C717%2C468&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Share-bikes can litter our cities and be found in rivers, up trees, in gutters, and strewn around public places.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Obikes in unusual places/Facebook</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Many cities are keen on <a href="https://theconversation.com/to-end-share-bike-dumping-focus-on-how-to-change-peoples-behaviour-90016">dockless share-bike schemes</a> such as oBikes or Reddy Go, and for good reason. They promote greater physical movement, help solve transport problems in congested cities, and can be fun.</p>
<p>But there’s a downside. Share-bikes can litter our cities and be found in rivers, up trees, in gutters, and strewn around public places. One of the reasons for this is culture.</p>
<p>There are three factors influencing the use of share-bikes: </p>
<ul>
<li><p>There’s behaviour, or making choices about how to act.</p></li>
<li><p>There’s cognition, or how our brain works to process information.</p></li>
<li><p>And there’s context, or the environment we’re in at the time of the behaviour. National culture is a significant aspect of context.</p></li>
</ul>
<hr>
<p><em><strong>Further reading: <a href="https://theconversation.com/to-end-share-bike-dumping-focus-on-how-to-change-peoples-behaviour-90016">To end share-bike dumping, focus on how to change people’s behaviour</a></strong></em></p>
<hr>
<h2>Cultural differences</h2>
<p>To understand Australian culture and see why it’s problematic for share-bikes, let’s compare it to one of our neighbours – Singapore. </p>
<p>While there has been <a href="http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/ugly-side-of-bicycle-sharing-lta-moves-against-badly-parked-bikes">poor behaviour</a> with share-bikes in Singapore, there are three key cultural reasons why a business model that could be successful in Singapore is much less likely to be so in Australia: power distance, individualism, and uncertainty avoidance.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hofstede%27s_cultural_dimensions_theory">Hofstede model</a> describes national culture using six dimensions, three of which apply here. A comparison of Australian and Singaporean national culture is shown in the figure below.</p>
<p><iframe id="HE2JV" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/HE2JV/1/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>Power distance could be thought of as respect for authority, or as the likelihood to be influenced by an injunctive norm. </p>
<p>Australians are much more likely to consider an edict from someone in authority as a general guideline or the starting point for negotiation, whereas Singaporeans are much more likely to take such messages literally. This is reflected in the relative scores on the Hofstede model, showing much greater power distance for Singapore at 74 versus Australia at 36. </p>
<p>So, how might this impact share-bike use?</p>
<p>Australians and Singaporeans both know share-bikes should be returned to a designated parking space, but Singaporeans are more likely to be open to messages telling them to park appropriately than Australians. </p>
<p>Put together with injunctive norms in Australia having been quite faint and you can see why Australians are not as likely to do the right thing at the end of a trip.</p>
<p>The second major difference is individualism. Australians are reported to be much more individual than Singaporeans; Singapore is a more collectivist society than Australia. If you add in the other differences in indulgence and long-term orientation, you can see why Australians are more likely to do what feels good for the individual in the short term rather than what’s best for society in the long term. </p>
<p>So, at the end of a share-bike trip, an Australian is more likely to leave the bike in a non-designated area if it suits them than a Singaporean is. </p>
<p>Uncertainty avoidance, or worrying about the unknown, is the third major way the two countries differ. </p>
<p>Singapore has one of the lowest uncertainty avoidance scores in the Hofstede database. This means Singaporeans are much more likely to be open to change, for instance, than almost any other country in the world. As a result, Singaporeans are more open to being influenced by what they see their friends do than almost anyone else. </p>
<p>This openness helps the adoption of new business models such as share-bikes. And if the right social norms around behaviour can be engineered, Singaporeans are much more likely to behave in pro-social ways, such as leaving the share-bike in the right place.</p>
<h2>What Australia can do about share-bike littering</h2>
<p>Changing national culture to make Australians better users of share-bikes would be extremely difficult, if not downright impossible in the short term. It’s questionable whether that would be a good thing to do, anyway. </p>
<p>So, if we can’t or shouldn’t change our culture, then we should try to modify the share-bike business model to better fit Australian ways.</p>
<p>It’s highly unlikely that the dramatic examples of share-bike littering we see, such as bikes in rivers or up trees, are caused by share-bike users themselves, as they would pay a penalty under most business models. What’s much more likely is that share-bikes are left in awkward or undesignated places for the “free spirits” in society to take advantage of. </p>
<p>By their carelessness, known users are contributing to the problem. As such they are a priority target for behavioural change.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.behavioraleconomics.com/mini-encyclopedia-of-be/loss-aversion/">Loss-aversion theory</a> says we are much more likely to be motivated by the prospect of a loss than a gain. And the sense of being observed – for example, a visible police presence – can change our behaviour.</p>
<p>So, if it was made clear to a user that they were being watched when they were about to return a bike to a non-designated place – and that there would be immediate and certain consequences – they would be much more likely to do the right thing. </p>
<p>While most share-bike business models have deposits, incentives and penalties, they are too vague and uncertain when it matters. </p>
<p>The sense of being under scrutiny needs to be front of mind at the time of the behaviour. For some share-bike operators, <a href="http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/singapores-4th-bike-sharing-operator-targets-indiscriminate-parking-alarms-rfid-technology">such a solution</a> is either in development or close at hand. And much more precise geolocation capability could give users a sense of being watched.</p>
<p>If the share-bike business model is tweaked, Australians could embrace a clever and fun form of transportation.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/90312/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Conor Wynn does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>
There are three key cultural reasons why a share-bike business model that could be successful in Singapore is much less likely to be so in Australia.
Conor Wynn, PhD Candidate at BehaviourWorks, Monash Sustainable Development Institute, Monash University
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/85969
2017-12-21T19:04:36Z
2017-12-21T19:04:36Z
Here’s what bike-sharing programs need to succeed
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/198256/original/file-20171208-11318-1ewonai.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">After nearly a decade of operation, Brisbane's CityCycle scheme still needs to be subsidised.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ashkyd/8398181994/in/photolist-dN7SVh-dN7W8C-8FnprD-dMFYFY-8FpQDt-bkTPF8-iWL2Fc-9HVBaU-9HSJCz-8FqzUJ-9Jd8qV-8FqzXJ-9dwsdZ-aPYdCz-8upi63-8umbvK-8Vjh1y-9dzwpj-nEYDN7-8VjgTf-8VgcG2-aPYdQx-8umaSV-8FnpVR-8FqA5E-aPYdJD-8upgAm-8umb8p-8FqztN-ahpPHj-8upibj-8Fnzhz-8FqAr3-8HevuV-8umbCg-8upiHJ-8FqA3J-anoT9c-8FnoQD-8FqzBb-8FnqUr-8umci2-8FnqeD-8FnpMe-8FnHrp-8FqAkN-8vVQwc-8upghu-8Fnp4n-8uphuQ">Ash Kyd/flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="http://www.esb.bike/bikesharing_system/">Bike sharing</a> has become a <a href="http://trrjournalonline.trb.org/doi/abs/10.3141/2143-20">buzzword</a> in cities from Cape Town to Shanghai to Melbourne. Planners, politicians and media pundits keep <a href="http://tsrc.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/Bikesharing%20in%20Europe,%20the%20Americas,%20and%20Asia%20-%20Shaheen.pdf">touting their benefits</a>: reducing pollution, congestion, travel costs and oil dependence, while improving public health. Bike sharing also helps make cities appear hip, vibrant and cosmopolitan – qualities much sought after by the <a href="https://newrepublic.com/article/105746/gay-bars-bike-paths-ka-ching-creative-classs-10th-birthday">creative class</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p><em><strong>Further reading:</strong> <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-global-bike-sharing-boom-why-cities-love-a-cycling-scheme-53895">The global bike sharing boom – why cities love a cycling scheme</a></em></p>
<hr>
<p>But what makes for a successful public bike-sharing program? This is an important question because installing one requires significant public and/or private investment and modifications to the built environment.</p>
<p>While many programs have been launched amid much fanfare, often their popularity has soon declined. A number end up <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-07-05/citycycle-contracts-should-be-renegotiated-following-loss/7571192">operating at a financial loss</a> and depend on other profitable enterprises to cross-subsidise them. Some have resulted in <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/pranksters-cause-headaches-for-sydney-councils-wanting-to-control-share-bikes-20171013-gz0hvq.html">dumped</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/sep/27/scores-of-obikes-fished-out-of-melbournes-yarra-river">discarded</a> bikes becoming <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jan/17/chinese-discard-hundreds-of-cycles-for-hire-in-giant-pile">an eyesore</a>. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HG6o10H0-lo?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The dumping of share bikes is causing concerns in some cities.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Understanding which factors enhance or hinder public bike sharing is critical in helping cities decide whether such a program is viable, before contemplating what design and siting will work best.</p>
<p>Drawing on current knowledge, we discuss the importance of the local landscape, climate, cycling infrastructure and land use. We also touch on other factors, such as the legal environment and the characteristics of the bike-sharing program itself.</p>
<h2>Natural environment</h2>
<p>Two natural environment factors are known to affect participation: hilliness and weather. </p>
<p>A hilly terrain discourages balanced bike-sharing use, as users <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965856415301531">avoid returning bicycles to stations on hilltops</a>. Those stations (termed <em>sources</em>) end up being empty, while stations on flat terrain (termed <em>sinks</em>) are often full, so users cannot find a dock to return their bike.</p>
<p>Services offering <a href="http://en.velib.paris.fr/How-it-works/Stations">bonus minutes</a> to return a bike uphill, such as Parisian bike-share operator Vélib, or incorporating <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0968090X16000747">e-bikeshares</a>, like in China, can be vital to the program’s success.</p>
<p>As for weather, optimal temperature ranges vary by climate zone. In continental climates, the range is as broad as
<a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/met.6/full">4-40°C</a>. In subtropical climates, though, the range is as narrow as <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11116-014-9540-7">15-32°C</a>. </p>
<p>Case studies show warm and dry weather <a href="http://docs.trb.org/prp/15-2001.pdf">encourages public bike sharing</a> use. Humidity, rain and strong wind <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0966692314001951">reduce the frequency of trips</a>. </p>
<p>Again, the adoption of <a href="https://www.gizmodo.com.au/2014/07/why-dont-more-cities-have-e-bike-shares/">shared e-bikes</a> could <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0968090X16000747">reduce some of the adverse effects of bad weather</a>. Other approaches, such as providing sheltered, shaded, or even <a href="https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2012/10/invention-we-wish-we-had-heated-bike-lanes/3706/">heated</a> or <a href="https://mvsa-architects.com/project/projects-doha-corniche-cycle-path-transportation/">cooled</a> cycling infrastructure, could prove useful. Innovative concepts are being tested around the world. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nmmdjquL9Tc?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Qatar once proposed a 35km artificially cooled cycling path.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Built environment</h2>
<p>The presence of high-quality bicycle infrastructure is crucial to participation in bike-sharing programs – and to cycling more generally. The length of segregated bicycle paths near each docking station <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965856416307674">strongly affects use</a>.</p>
<p>Without high-quality cycling infrastructure, expanding the system size does not necessarily increase participation. No “<a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/n/network-effect.asp">network effect</a>” is evident, although station density does improve the performance of programs. </p>
<p>In addition to connecting stations, segregated bicycle paths must connect key land uses, such as central business districts, university and high-school campuses, high-density residential clusters and the like. The distances between these vital land uses must be “cyclable”.</p>
<p>Otherwise, bike sharing programs have little utilitarian value (riding to work and back, for example). They then end up being used mainly on weekends and for recreation in parks.</p>
<h2>Legal environment</h2>
<p>The legal environment in which public bike sharing programs operate must be factored in too. </p>
<p>For example, <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01441647.2015.1033036">laws that require cyclists to wear helmets</a>, which most Australian states adopted in the 1990s, discourage use. These laws added to the safety but also to the inconvenience for cyclists. </p>
<p>Such laws can lead to <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1539-6924.2011.01785.x/pdf">large declines in cycling rates</a>, from which there has been little recovery. Helmet laws are a typical example of how cyclists are forced to bear the responsibility for their own safety, regardless of who is at fault. </p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/cars-overwhelmingly-cause-bike-collisions-and-the-law-should-reflect-that-78922">Under current Australian laws</a>, if a car and bicycle collide, the cyclist must make a case against the motorist to claim on the motorist’s insurance. If the insurance company contests the claim, the injured cyclist must take the case to a civil court.</p>
<p>By contrast, the Netherlands and Denmark have <a href="http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2176&context=ealr">a law of “strict liability”</a> to protect vulnerable road users from <a href="https://theconversation.com/cars-bicycles-and-the-fatal-myth-of-equal-reciprocity-81034">“more powerful” road users</a>. Under this law, in crashes involving cars and bicycles, the driver is liable by default. This arguably makes Dutch and Danish drivers much more cautious than Australian drivers around cyclists.</p>
<hr>
<p><em><strong>Further reading:</strong> <a href="https://theconversation.com/cars-overwhelmingly-cause-bike-collisions-and-the-law-should-reflect-that-78922">Cars overwhelmingly cause bike collisions, and the law should reflect that</a></em></p>
<hr>
<h2>System design</h2>
<p>Public bike-sharing programs’ design and subscription can help or hinder performance.</p>
<p>For example, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2017/mar/22/bike-wars-dockless-china-millions-bicycles-hangzhou">dockless systems</a>, while more convenient for users, are at higher risk of problems such as <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-17/obike-responds-to-criticism-of-bike-sharing-scheme/8813574">vandalism</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/196413/original/file-20171127-14066-1cyducr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/196413/original/file-20171127-14066-1cyducr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196413/original/file-20171127-14066-1cyducr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196413/original/file-20171127-14066-1cyducr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196413/original/file-20171127-14066-1cyducr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196413/original/file-20171127-14066-1cyducr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/196413/original/file-20171127-14066-1cyducr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Dockless systems are more convenient for users, but it’s also harder to control where the bikes end up.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">James Ross/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Cheap subscription prices are crucial for success. Most users take short trips during the free initial periods provided under most schemes and do not incur any charges other than for membership. However, nonprofit operators tend to perform more poorly.</p>
<p>Technology, such as seamless payments via apps, is adding to the attraction of bike-sharing programs. </p>
<p>Clearly, many of the key ingredients for the success of bike-sharing programs are the same as the ingredients needed to <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01441640701806612">make cycling, in general, “irresistible”</a>. For these programs to work, cities must adopt aggressive pro-bicycle programs, while reining in longstanding pro-driving policies.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/85969/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Iderlina Mateo-Babiano receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dorina Pojani receives funding from the Australian Research Council (ARC). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jonathan Corcoran receives funding from the Australian Research Council (ARC). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard Bean is a co-convenor of the Brisbane CBD Bicycle User Group. </span></em></p>
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.
Derlie Mateo-Babiano, Senior Lecturer in Urban Planning, The University of Melbourne
Dorina Pojani, Lecturer in Urban Planning, The University of Queensland
Jonathan Corcoran, Professor, School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Queensland
Richard Bean, Research Assistant, The University of Melbourne
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/88163
2017-12-06T19:17:40Z
2017-12-06T19:17:40Z
They know where you go: dockless bike sharing looms as the next disruptor – if key concerns are fixed
<p>Beyond the benefits of dockless bike sharing for people’s mobility and health, these services are producing an ever more useful byproduct: journey data. Mapped through global positioning system (GPS) devices on the bikes or via Bluetooth using GPS data from users’ smartphones, the journey data that operators collect could be a powerful tool for city planners and policymakers, possibly even a valuable commodity. </p>
<hr>
<p><em><strong>Further reading:</strong> <a href="https://theconversation.com/bike-sharing-schemes-might-seem-like-a-waste-of-space-but-the-economics-makes-sense-83964">Bike-sharing schemes might seem like a waste of space but the economics makes sense</a></em></p>
<hr>
<p>Each trip taken on a dockless bike is recorded in a database. At UNSW’s City Futures Research Centre, we have been working with <a href="https://www.bicyclenetwork.com.au/our-services/riderlog/">Bicycle Network’s Riderlog app</a> data. We have mapped more than 120,000 journeys and are exploring how the data can be both used and protected. </p>
<p>We have been able to create <a href="https://cityfutures.be.unsw.edu.au/cityviz/bicycle-trips-australian-cities-tableau/">Bicycling Dashboards</a> for all the capital cities of Australia, an example of which is shown below. The dashboard can show riders’ behaviours and movements across each city.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197905/original/file-20171206-31078-v48oxm.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197905/original/file-20171206-31078-v48oxm.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197905/original/file-20171206-31078-v48oxm.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=329&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197905/original/file-20171206-31078-v48oxm.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=329&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197905/original/file-20171206-31078-v48oxm.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=329&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197905/original/file-20171206-31078-v48oxm.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197905/original/file-20171206-31078-v48oxm.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197905/original/file-20171206-31078-v48oxm.PNG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Bicycling Dashboard: visualising cyclists’ behaviour across the city.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Created by Dr Simone Z. Leao, City Futures, UNSW</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Dockless, the next big disruption?</h2>
<p>Dockless sharing schemes use bikes that are self-locking and tracked through GPS. Using a smartphone app, riders can pick up a bike, use it, then essentially leave it at their destination. </p>
<p>In an era of smart cities and ubiquitous computing, dockless bike sharing adds another layer of connection through digital platforms and smartphone apps to navigate and interact with the built environment. Our dependency on these new and useful technologies is driving their disruptive impacts.</p>
<p>Technology-based services are reshaping how city residents and visitors access essential services such as transport and housing. <a href="https://hbr.org/1995/01/disruptive-technologies-catching-the-wave">Bower and Christensen</a> first coined the term disruptive technologies in 1995. </p>
<p>The two disruptive technology pinups are Uber and Airbnb. Uber has disrupted the business model of the taxi industry, while Airbnb has disrupted the short-term accommodation market. In the last 10 years both have exploded globally and now hold formidable market shares in more than 100 cities across the world.</p>
<p>The new kid on the block is dockless bikes. </p>
<h2>A key advantage in bike sharing</h2>
<p>An interesting point of difference to other city disruptors is that there is not one dominant dockless bike market leader. In Australia, over just a few months, we have seen the arrival of at least six operators: Reddy Go, OBike, ofo, mobike, Earth bike and Airbike.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197890/original/file-20171206-31114-u3hhbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197890/original/file-20171206-31114-u3hhbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197890/original/file-20171206-31114-u3hhbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197890/original/file-20171206-31114-u3hhbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197890/original/file-20171206-31114-u3hhbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197890/original/file-20171206-31114-u3hhbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197890/original/file-20171206-31114-u3hhbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197890/original/file-20171206-31114-u3hhbg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">To use the oBike, riders download the app and use it to scan the QR code on the back of the bike.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/selangor-malaysia-15-october-2017-obike-739854643?src=rMkkJFDhEJZPlpWFwhxvZQ-1-4">shahphoto/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197699/original/file-20171205-22986-1cymn5i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197699/original/file-20171205-22986-1cymn5i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197699/original/file-20171205-22986-1cymn5i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197699/original/file-20171205-22986-1cymn5i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197699/original/file-20171205-22986-1cymn5i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197699/original/file-20171205-22986-1cymn5i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197699/original/file-20171205-22986-1cymn5i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197699/original/file-20171205-22986-1cymn5i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Tyrone Siu/Reuters</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>All dockless bike schemes allow the rider to leave the bike in public spaces close to their destination. This is the key difference from docked bike-sharing systems, which required the rider to pick up and return the bike at dedicated docking stations. Having hired such bikes in Chicago and Glasgow, I can attest to the challenges of finding the elusive docking station and then returning the bike to a station that is not as close as I would like to my destination.</p>
<p>The dockless bike can provide an important link in the “mobility as a service” value chain, whether it’s used for the “last mile” commute or the tourist experience. Either way, having more bikes on our roads must encourage more cycling, which can only be a good thing, right?</p>
<hr>
<p><em><strong>Further reading:</strong> <a href="https://theconversation.com/disruption-ahead-personal-mobility-is-breaking-down-old-transport-divides-70338">Disruption ahead: personal mobility is breaking down old transport divides</a></em></p>
<hr>
<h2>Smart but revealing</h2>
<p>Our work at City Futures makes clear just how much the collected journey data can tell us about the users. Across Australian capital cities, we have mapped more than 120,000 cycle journeys by 7,600 users over three-and-half years.</p>
<p>Through <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/296671261_BIG_CYCLING_DATA_PROCESSING_FROM_PERSONAL_DATA_TO_URBAN_APPLICATIONS?ev=prf_pub">cleaning and visualising this data</a>, we can start to understand at a fine scale where and when people are riding through the city and where they are not, and what age and gender the cyclists are.</p>
<p>As the <a href="https://cityfutures.be.unsw.edu.au/cityviz/bicycle-trips-australian-cities-tableau/">Bicycling Dashboards</a> show, this is a rich source of information for city planners and policymakers. If linked to other data it could just as easily be a valuable commodity in its own right.</p>
<p>So one might speculate if collecting fine-scale mobility data is part of the dockless bike operators’ business model.</p>
<p>The collection of personal mobility data also raises questions about its security and anonymity. The data visualised in the Bicycling Dashboard has gone through a process of <a href="http://www.mdpi.com/2413-8851/1/3/23/htm">formatting, cleaning, validating and, importantly, anonymisation</a>.</p>
<p>Safeguarding personal data is essential. It should be of paramount concern to dockless bike operators as they collect detailed information about each individual’s movements. Other personal information typically collected includes the cyclist’s phone number and credit card details. </p>
<p>Aggregating this information to understand mobility patterns is valuable for city planners and policymakers. However, the individual traces of a person as they travel the city must be guarded for reasons of privacy and personal security.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197694/original/file-20171205-23047-yngu0q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197694/original/file-20171205-23047-yngu0q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/197694/original/file-20171205-23047-yngu0q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197694/original/file-20171205-23047-yngu0q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197694/original/file-20171205-23047-yngu0q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197694/original/file-20171205-23047-yngu0q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197694/original/file-20171205-23047-yngu0q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/197694/original/file-20171205-23047-yngu0q.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Every user of a docked bike leaves digital traces of their journey around the city.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/kuala-lumpur-malaysia-18-august-2017-698787457?irgwc=1&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=TinEye&utm_source=77643&utm_term=">Shahjehan/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p><em><strong>Further reading:</strong> <a href="https://theconversation.com/smart-cities-does-this-mean-more-transport-disruptions-63638">Smart cities: does this mean more transport disruptions?</a></em></p>
<h2>Guidelines to getting it right</h2>
<p>Data collection is but one of the opportunities and challenges facing dockless bike operators. Many also see visual clutter as a key drawback. China has <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/nov/25/chinas-bike-share-graveyard-a-monument-to-industrys-arrogance">bike graveyards filled with dockless bikes</a>; in Melbourne, dozens of <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/vermin-dozens-of-obikes-pulled-from-yarra-river-20170926-gyp1k1.html">dockless bikes have been dredged from the Yarra River</a>; and in Sydney, six inner-city councils (Inner West, City of Sydney, Randwick, Waverley, Woollahra and Canada Bay) developed <a href="https://www.innerwest.nsw.gov.au/news-hot-topics/media/media-releases/mayors-agree-on-bike-share-framework">bike-sharing provider guidelines</a>, giving operators three months to comply. </p>
<p>The guidelines are sensible and importantly include “data sharing” between bike-sharing operators and councils as one of seven key principles.</p>
<p>However, dockless bikes are still having a marked impact in Sydney. In the recently released <a href="https://future.transport.nsw.gov.au/">draft Future Transport Strategy 2056</a>, TransportNSW identified bike sharing as part of the solution to people’s transport needs.</p>
<p>We can see dockless bikes as the next link in the chain to mobility as a service. I hope the operators can get it right, so more Australians can get on a bike and realise the <a href="http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpub/article/PIIS2468-2667(16)30006-8/fulltext">health benefits of active transport</a>.</p>
<p><em><a href="https://cityfutures.be.unsw.edu.au/about-us/our-profiles/simone-zarpelon-leao/">Dr Simone Z. Leao</a> created the Bicycling Dashboard shown in this article.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/88163/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Christopher Pettit receives funding from the Australian Research Council (ARC), National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), NCRIS Facilities, Cooperative Research Centres, State and Local Government Authorities and the Heart Foundation.</span></em></p>
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.
Christopher Pettit, Professor of Urban Science, UNSW Sydney
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/83964
2017-09-18T20:04:33Z
2017-09-18T20:04:33Z
Bike-sharing schemes might seem like a waste of space but the economics makes sense
<p>Have you ever walked past (or tripped over) a shared bike and wondered how it’s possible for the business to survive with a ride costing as little as A$2 per half hour?</p>
<p>While bike-share schemes attract <a href="http://thenewdaily.com.au/news/national/2017/08/24/bike-sharing-services-litter-streets/">controversy</a> in some places, the economic models behind such schemes actually have more to do with data mining, advertising and turning a profit from interest on the deposits than from the bike rental itself.</p>
<p>The most recent Australian example is <a href="https://www.o.bike">Obikes</a>. <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/are-you-curious-orange-when-it-comes-to-shared-cycling-obike-is-the-new-blue-20170608-gwmz3u.html">Launched in Australia</a> in mid-June, there are currently over 1,250 dock-less Obikes in Melbourne and over 1,000 in Sydney. According to its marketing director, Obike’s Australian user numbers have <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-17/obike-responds-to-criticism-of-bike-sharing-scheme/8813574">increased rapidly</a> since its introduction. </p>
<hr>
<p><em><strong>Read more:</strong> <a href="https://theconversation.com/end-of-the-road-why-it-might-be-time-to-ditch-your-car-72097">End of the road? Why it might be time to ditch your car</a></em> </p>
<hr>
<p>However, despite the promise of cheap and convenient access to bikes, Obikes have faced a number of challenges since their very first few weeks of operation. There have been complaints about Obikes clogging footpaths and becoming hazards as a result of people failing to park them within designated spaces, as well as <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/are-yellow-obikes-taking-over-melbournes-footpaths-20170710-gx83r1.html">complaints</a> about Obikes hogging existing parking racks, leaving inadequate space for commuter cyclists to park their own bikes. </p>
<h2>The massive potential for bike share schemes expansion</h2>
<p>In theory, there are plenty of possible ways to make a profit from the shared-bike business. Its lucrative business models have proved attractive to entrepreneurs and investors.</p>
<p>The ride-and-pay model is the most straightforward profit-generating operation - but only one method of making the schemes profitable. For example, a half-hour ride of an Obike will <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-17/obike-responds-to-criticism-of-bike-sharing-scheme/8813574">cost</a> the user A$1.99. If a bike is used for 10 half-hour trips per day, the total daily return will be A$19.9. A three-month operation could collect A$1,791. This will cover the initial investment made on the bikes, as well as some operational costs such as lost bikes and repairs - depending on the frequency of bike usage per day. </p>
<p>Bike-share schemes can also cash in on the deposits they require from users. The majority of schemes require users to register and pay a refundable security deposit to use the shared bikes (Obike asks for a <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-17/obike-responds-to-criticism-of-bike-sharing-scheme/8813574">deposit of A$69</a>). Collectively, the amount of money held in the deposit pool is potentially enormous. </p>
<p>One Chinese bike-share company, <a href="http://www.hbspcar.com/1867.html">Mobike</a>, reportedly had over 100 million registered users in June this year. The Mobike deposit account therefore held over 30 billion yuan (about A$6 billion) paid by the 100 million users at 299 yuan per user. The interest earned from this sum alone is a huge income-generating asset, not to mention the scope to invest this money while it’s held in company coffers.</p>
<p>Data services present another significant potential income stream. The user database is huge – more than 100 million trackable users in the case of Mobike. This can be used for marketing and the analysis of consumer behaviour if combined with other data sets. </p>
<p>Users’ riding behaviour data, captured by apps and GPS, complement very well the data sets collected from taxi and public transport systems by focusing on smaller areas. This data has a high commercial value to businesses in retail, restaurants and even car sales, as well as to local governments seeking more detailed information for urban planning and management applications.</p>
<hr>
<p><em><strong>Read more:</strong> <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-global-bike-sharing-boom-why-cities-love-a-cycling-scheme-53895">The global bike sharing boom – why cities love a cycling scheme</a></em> </p>
<hr>
<p>Advertising is another means to generate profit by using both the physical body of the bikes to advertise as well as the app used to locate and unlock the bikes. However, the limited usable space on a bike and the short interaction time between the user and the app make it hard to generate significant income this way.</p>
<h2>Teething problems persist but bike-share schemes likely to keep growing</h2>
<p>In Beijing and Shanghai, where dockless shared bikes were first introduced, bikes have been thrown into rivers, garbage dumps and even into trees. Pedestrians are forced to push their way through swathes of parked dockless shared bikes, often leaving behind a trail of fallen bikes or bikes stacked on top of one another on footpaths. The Hangzhou government has seized tens of thousands of shared bikes in an attempt to reinforce bike parking laws. </p>
<p>Melbourne Lord Mayor Robert Doyle has complained that Obikes are the source of so much clutter that he has <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-17/obike-responds-to-criticism-of-bike-sharing-scheme/8813574">threatened</a> to ban them altogether.</p>
<p>In spite of these ongoing problems, bike-share schemes continue to grow into new markets globally, with new schemes in Florence and Milan the <a href="http://news.sina.com.cn/c/nd/2017-07-27/doc-ifyinwmp0340894.shtml">latest examples</a>. At the same time, <a href="http://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/2099293/chinese-bike-share-firm-closes-after-90-cent-cycles-stolen">withdrawals</a> from the market by less competitive or poorly executed models are occurring. </p>
<p>Local controversies over shared-bike schemes are expressions of how resident behaviour, municipal bylaws and cycling infrastructure are all too often proving to be unprepared to embrace and support a new mode of urban transport. </p>
<p>Public and local government criticisms and complaints may delay (or in extreme cases) even ban the bikes from particular cities. But as long as the interest for capital expansion and the broad social, environmental and health benefits are recognised, these schemes will continue to grow globally.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/83964/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sun Sheng Han does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>
There is more to bike-share schemes than first meets the eye. As they grow in global popularity, the economic models behind them become increasingly diversified.
Sun Sheng Han, Professor of Urban Planning, The University of Melbourne
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/83569
2017-09-10T19:44:08Z
2017-09-10T19:44:08Z
More cyclists are ending up in hospital with serious injuries, so we need to act now
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185200/original/file-20170908-9945-14aeavv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Serious injury rates are rising in cyclists, and are associated with significant disability and economic costs. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/confirm/573221677?src=ZUl0Yi1m8YYIQIdspWj5Gg-1-0&size=medium_jpg">from www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Cyclists are suffering more serious injuries in road crashes than ever before, leading to significant disability, our <a href="https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2017/207/6/road-safety-serious-injuries-remain-major-unsolved-problem">new study</a> shows.</p>
<p>But what is less clear is what’s behind these injuries, which are occurring as the number of people who died in road traffic crashes has fallen.</p>
<p>In our study published today in the <a href="https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2017/207/6/road-safety-serious-injuries-remain-major-unsolved-problem">Medical Journal of Australia</a>, we investigated deaths and serious injuries after traffic crashes in Victoria from 2007 to 2015.</p>
<p>We looked at whether deaths and serious injury rates for all road users changed over time. We also looked at the disability and economic costs of these injuries.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/people-take-to-their-bikes-when-we-make-it-safer-and-easier-for-them-82251">People take to their bikes when we make it safer and easier for them</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The total number of deaths from road traffic crashes fell over the study period. But rates of serious road traffic injuries did not.</p>
<p>There were 10,092 road traffic deaths and serious injuries over the course of our study. This led to over 77,000 disability-adjusted life years (a measure of overall disability burden, expressed as the number of years lost to disability or early death). </p>
<p>The estimated health costs associated with these road traffic injuries (known as “health loss” costs) was more than A$14 billion.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185197/original/file-20170907-9945-1vtpztn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185197/original/file-20170907-9945-1vtpztn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185197/original/file-20170907-9945-1vtpztn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185197/original/file-20170907-9945-1vtpztn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185197/original/file-20170907-9945-1vtpztn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185197/original/file-20170907-9945-1vtpztn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185197/original/file-20170907-9945-1vtpztn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/185197/original/file-20170907-9945-1vtpztn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The rates of crashes resulting in serious injury in cyclists rose 8% a year.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/confirm/399077320?src=KpKNqkCaCkQBh_w3M3u2jw-1-0&size=medium_jpg">from www.shutterstock.com</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Most concerning was the rise in serious injury rates in cyclists, which increased 8% a year. In fact, the absolute number of cases more than doubled over the nine-year study period. </p>
<p>These injuries are often severe, including head injuries, spine injuries and fractures of the pelvis and limbs. They often lead to significant disability.</p>
<p>Over the course of our study, a rise in such serious injuries led to a 56% increase in disability-adjusted life years; health costs for cyclists were more than A$700 million.</p>
<h2>Why are cyclists’ serious injuries rising?</h2>
<p>However, it is not clear what’s driving these increases in serious injuries.</p>
<p>In a <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001457516302950">previous study</a>, we interviewed cyclists admitted to hospital after a crash. Of the crashes that occurred on the road, 52% involved another road user, most commonly a motor vehicle.</p>
<p>A total of 22% of all on-road crashes also occurred while cyclists were riding in a marked bicycle lane, demonstrating they are not sufficient to completely protect cyclists. While these on-road bicycle lanes provide dedicated space for cyclists, riders remain close to motorists, and people in parked cars opening doors. </p>
<p>A total of 48% of on-road crashes only involved a single cyclist. While we need more research to better understand the single cyclist-only crashes, <a href="https://trid.trb.org/view.aspx?id=1343699">researchers have previously found</a> the condition of road surfaces, distraction, mechanical issues and speed are possible factors.</p>
<h2>Are more people cycling?</h2>
<p>One of the limitations of our study was that we couldn’t adjust for the amount of time or distance cyclists travel each year. Unfortunately, we have very limited data on this in Australia. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.bicyclecouncil.com.au/publication/national-cycling-participation-survey-2017">National Cycling Participation Survey</a> is a telephone survey that asks how many times people cycled in the past week, month or year. The 2017 results showed the proportion of people who had cycled in the past month declined from 27% in 2011 to 22% in 2017. </p>
<p>While cycling participation overall may have declined, there may be an increase in the overall time spent riding, or the number of cyclists riding on the road, compared to on bicycle paths, for example.</p>
<h2>So, what does this mean for cyclists?</h2>
<p>So, is the message from our study, “don’t cycle”? No, not at all. The health and economic benefits of cycling are well established. A <a href="http://www.bmj.com/content/357/bmj.j1456">recent UK study</a> demonstrated that cycling to work was associated with a 41% lower risk of early death compared to commuting by car or public transport.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/better-health-is-only-a-short-bike-ride-away-3613">Better health is only a short bike ride away</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>And while cycling-related injury rates are on the rise, they made up only 11% of serious road traffic injuries.</p>
<p>It is clear we need greater investment in cyclist safety. We know being concerned about safety is one of the <a href="https://www.heartfoundation.org.au/images/uploads/publications/Cycling-Survey-2011-Riding-a-Bike-for-Transport.pdf">biggest barriers</a> to people cycling. </p>
<p>Interactions with motor vehicles – not just collisions, but also being in the presence of and close proximity to motor vehicles – and the absence of appropriate cycling infrastructure are some of the most common barriers people mention.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/cars-bicycles-and-the-fatal-myth-of-equal-reciprocity-81034">Cars, bicycles and the fatal myth of equal reciprocity</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Dedicated bike lanes that are separated from traffic are <a href="http://injuryprevention.bmj.com/content/19/5/303">an effective way</a> to reduce serious injury. </p>
<p>While we need to invest more in cycling-specific infrastructure (like bike lanes and bike paths) it is often not feasible to have this across an entire road network. So, we need a multi-faceted approach to improving safety for cyclists. </p>
<p>Reducing the speed limit in residential streets to 30km/h has been proposed as a way to improve safety for vulnerable road users, and a <a href="https://www.yarracity.vic.gov.au/news/2017/09/05/yarra-to-introduce-30kmh-speed-trial">trial</a> has recently been announced in inner Melbourne. </p>
<p>We also need to improve the culture around cyclists as legitimate road users, through changes in legislation, education and training for all road users.</p>
<p>Given the rising injury rates in cyclists, we need government and road safety organisations to act now to provide a safer environment for cyclists.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/83569/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ben Beck receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council. The Victorian State Trauma Registry is funded by the Department of Health and Human Services, the state Government of Victoria and the Transport Accident Commission.</span></em></p>
More cyclists are suffering from serious injuries than ever before. Here’s what we can do to provide a safer environment.
Ben Beck, Research fellow, Monash University
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/78922
2017-06-13T20:21:35Z
2017-06-13T20:21:35Z
Cars overwhelmingly cause bike collisions, and the law should reflect that
<p>On a Thursday morning in June 1817, the prolific inventor Karl Drais took his <em>Laufmaschine</em> (running machine) for a 13km spin along the banks of the Rhine.</p>
<p>The voyage on the wooden bike, not dissimilar to a modern toddler’s balance bike, lasted just under an hour. The early bicycle sparked an <a href="https://books.google.com.au/books?id=uS9LAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=velocipede&hl=en&sa=X&ei=tk3-Tu73MOT40gG1wviRAg&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=velocipde%20schools&f=false">immediate craze</a>, and later versions became a symbol of <a href="http://www.bikecitizens.net/200th-anniversary-bicycle-changed-society/">freedom for workers and women</a>.</p>
<p>Two hundred years after their invention, bicycles are widely recognised as an effective tool to combat physical and mental health problems, reduce congestion on urban roads and improve the quality of the environment. </p>
<p>However, cycling participation across Australia is <a href="https://www.onlinepublications.austroads.com.au/items/AP-C91-15">stagnating</a>. This is mainly because of <a href="http://www.news.com.au/national/australians-too-scared-to-ride-their-bikes-survey/news-story/f6faedfa7dbc68a5a61ce4dff8840ca5">concerns about safety</a>. A report <a href="http://www.raa.com.au/community-and-advocacy/media-releases/1208">released last week</a> by the Royal Automobile Association of South Australia found that in the vast majority of crashes the cyclist was not at fault. </p>
<p>To keep our cyclists safe, it may be time to adopt the approach of many European nations by introducing legislation that, in civil cases, presumes that car drivers caused a collision unless there is evidence to the contrary.</p>
<p>Shifting the burden of proof to drivers – who must prove they didn’t cause a crash – <a href="http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2176&context=ealr">has been highly successful in other nations, along with other measures</a>, in keeping cyclists safer and reducing accidents. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/172671/original/file-20170607-11311-14wuse7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/172671/original/file-20170607-11311-14wuse7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/172671/original/file-20170607-11311-14wuse7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=433&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/172671/original/file-20170607-11311-14wuse7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=433&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/172671/original/file-20170607-11311-14wuse7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=433&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/172671/original/file-20170607-11311-14wuse7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=544&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/172671/original/file-20170607-11311-14wuse7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=544&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/172671/original/file-20170607-11311-14wuse7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=544&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Karl Von Drais and his Laufmaschine.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">© TECHNOSEUM</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Cars generally cause collisions</h2>
<p>Despite a significant reduction in road deaths in Australia over the past few decades, recent data point to a <a href="http://www.aihw.gov.au/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=60129554604">steady increase</a> in serious injuries among vulnerable road users, including cyclists.</p>
<p>Australia needs serious action if we want to reverse this trend. Last week’s report from the <a href="http://www.raa.com.au/community-and-advocacy/media-releases/1208">RAA</a> confirms other research in this area, such as a 2013 University of Adelaide study that examined police crash records and found drivers caused four in every five crashes between cars and bicycles.</p>
<p>These results are similar to a <a href="https://theconversation.com/helmet-cam-captures-bike-accidents-and-could-make-cycling-safer-3540">Monash University study</a> in which researchers examined camera footage of similar incidents. They found that drivers were responsible for the actions preceding the incident in 87% of cases. </p>
<p>The previous studies show that most of these crashes occur at intersections, and generally involve a cyclist travelling in a straight line on a single carriageway at the time of the collision with the motor vehicle.</p>
<h2>The presumption of liability</h2>
<p>Previous road safety lessons, like the <a href="link?">successful seatbelt campaign</a>, tell us education and infrastructure only work in combination with strong regulations. However, legislation in the area of cycling safety is inadequate and puts an unfair burden on cyclists. </p>
<p>Under current laws, if a car collides with a bicycle or a pedestrian on Australian roads, they must make a case against the motorist to claim on the motorist’s insurance. If the insurance company contests the claim, the injured cyclist or pedestrian has to take the case to a civil court. </p>
<p>Surely the burden of proof should shift onto the more powerful road user, especially given that the research suggests they are more likely to be the one at fault. </p>
<p>To do so, we need a presumed liability law that protects vulnerable road users. Similar laws have been introduced in Canada and in many European countries, including <a href="http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2176&context=ealr">the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and France</a>. Under these laws, sometimes also referred to as “reverse onus” or “strict liability” laws, drivers must prove that a collision with a cyclist or a pedestrian was not their fault.</p>
<p>These laws affect civil cases only and do not remove the presumption of innocence. In criminal law, drivers in collisions with vulnerable road users remain innocent until proven guilty. It’s also not about always blaming motorists; for example, if a cyclist ran a red light and caused a collision, they would obviously be at fault and would not receive compensation. </p>
<p>An Australian version of these laws would mean that cyclists were more likely to be fairly compensated in the event of a crash. More importantly, such laws would encourage motorists to take extra care when driving alongside vulnerable road users. In many European nations presumed liability, which was originally introduced to reduce traffic crashes, is widely believed to be a key component of <a href="http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2176&context=ealr">encouraging safer cycling</a>.</p>
<p>A presumed liability law would encourage the full range of health, environmental and social benefits of cycling, and keep the spirit of Drais’s original <em>Laufmaschine</em> alive.</p>
<p>However, the law alone is not sufficient. Better cycling infrastructure, reduced speed limits in residential areas, and improved education for drivers and cyclists are all needed to keep our roads safe for everyone.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/78922/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Soufiane Boufous is a member of the Australasian College of Road Safety Executive Committee, NSW Chapter.</span></em></p>
To celebrate the 200th anniversary of the bicycle, we look at new research that confirms cars cause the majority of bike collisions. It’s time to follow much of Europe and shift liability to drivers.
Soufiane Boufous, Senior Research Fellow, Road Safety and Injury Prevention, UNSW Sydney
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.
tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/76256
2017-04-27T10:11:10Z
2017-04-27T10:11:10Z
The unbearable whiteness of cycling
<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/166681/original/file-20170425-13411-1bbrx53.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Oh so white.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Pexels.</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Every summer cycling enthusiasts anticipate the start of the <a href="http://www.letour.com/us/">Tour de France</a>, and in more recent times, in the north of the UK, the <a href="http://letour.yorkshire.com/">Tour de Yorkshire</a>. For the latter, yellow and blue bunting lines the streets of Yorkshire towns for one of the biggest cycle races in the country – with some of the top international teams taking part.</p>
<p>Events like the Tour de Yorkshire have put cycling on the map in Britain, and have had a major economic impact – with research showing that the 2016 Tour de Yorkshire <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-36639119">boosted the region’s economy by nearly £60m</a>.</p>
<p>The health benefits of cycling have also been well documented – with <a href="https://theconversation.com/cycling-to-work-major-new-study-suggests-health-benefits-are-staggering-76292">recent research</a> indicating that cycling to work could help you to live longer.</p>
<p>This has led to calls to get Britain biking, with <a href="http://www.bikebiz.com/index.php/news/read/cycling-uk-and-halfords-partner-for-cycling-advocacy/021145">campaigns</a> aiming to get more people “on your bike” to reap the health benefits that can come from commuting on two wheels.</p>
<h2>The white sport</h2>
<p>And yet <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21396761">research shows</a> that ethnicity, gender and income still strongly affect participation and preferences. Olympic Team GB cycling coach <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ethicallivingblog/2009/aug/10/cycling-white-sport">David Brailsford has described</a> how:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Breaking down the barriers to wider participation from black and ethnic minority groups remains the great unconquered goal for British cycling.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>In London, a city where a third of the population identifies as black, Asian and minority ethnic, <a href="http://www.thehuntingdynasty.com/uploads/PleaseCycle_Cognitive-Behavioural%20Quirks_CS_14-12-11.pdf">86% of male cyclists and 94% of female cyclists</a> are white – and two thirds of all cyclists are male. </p>
<p>Despite the former Mayor of London, Boris Johnson’s strategy to improve the demographics of cycling, it still maintains a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ethicallivingblog/2009/aug/10/cycling-white-sport">very much white</a>, male, middle class constituency. </p>
<h2>My own experiences</h2>
<p>As a regular cyclist of African-Caribbean descent, I have considered how the quality of my rides differs depending on where I go and who I’m with. </p>
<p>In one cycling group, I ride with white friends, and have generally found my ethnicity is never an issue. The odd second look I sometimes receive has not (yet) been followed by a negative racial remark, though uneasy gazes could be interpreted as unwelcoming micro-aggressions. </p>
<p>In my other cycling group, all the riders are black – something of a rarity in cycling circles. And it is when I am in this group that passersby have taken time to wind their windows down to throw racial slurs in our direction. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/166682/original/file-20170425-13408-1ocwr9b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/166682/original/file-20170425-13408-1ocwr9b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166682/original/file-20170425-13408-1ocwr9b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166682/original/file-20170425-13408-1ocwr9b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166682/original/file-20170425-13408-1ocwr9b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166682/original/file-20170425-13408-1ocwr9b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166682/original/file-20170425-13408-1ocwr9b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The traditional British cyclist.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Pexels.</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>At loftier levels, the treatment of some world class black cyclists has been equally disturbing. In 2015, the MTN-Qhubeka Tour de France team complained of racism after <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/cycling/tour-de-france/11730282/Tour-de-France-2015-Racism-row-ruins-African-teams-landmark-success.html">members of the team were racially abused</a>. In what was described as a “heat of the battle” exchange, an offended MTN-Qhubeka rider was <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/jul/09/mtn-qhubeka-racism-tour-austria-natnael-berhane">issued with an apology</a> and the offending cyclist was expelled from the race.</p>
<p>Racism in competitive cycling is <a href="https://www.tesfanews.net/african-rider-natnael-berhane-racially-abused-at-tour-of-austria/">nothing new</a> but the emergence of more high level black riders has unmasked some particularly ugly racism that the sport has yet to tackle full-on.</p>
<h2>Biking while black</h2>
<p>Over in the US, the issue of race and cycling has led to claims of institutional police racism. In Chicago in particular, it seems <a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-chicago-bike-tickets-minorities-0319-20170317-story.html">black cyclists have been targeted by the police</a> for unfair treatment. </p>
<p>The Chigago Tribune newspaper reviewed police statistics on the number of biking tickets issued by the police in the city. And the review showed that more than twice as many tickets are being written in African-American communities than in white or Latino areas. These tickets are often given out for minor offences, such as cycling on the pavements, but in some cases cyclists have ended up being arrested.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/166813/original/file-20170426-2857-42ww2v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/166813/original/file-20170426-2857-42ww2v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166813/original/file-20170426-2857-42ww2v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166813/original/file-20170426-2857-42ww2v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=404&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166813/original/file-20170426-2857-42ww2v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166813/original/file-20170426-2857-42ww2v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/166813/original/file-20170426-2857-42ww2v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=508&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A cyclist from the Rockhampton Cycling Club.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/rexboggs5/6777972313/">Rex Boggs/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Chicago is a city where the bulk of cycling infrastructure is within white neighbourhoods. So for white people, <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-it-means-to-be-black-in-the-american-educational-system-63576">white privilege</a> means there is less chance of a fine.</p>
<p>The police statistics also show that despite high levels of cycling in predominantly white areas, over an eight-year period (2008-2016) the top ten ticketed areas included seven that are African American and three that are Latino. </p>
<p>And many in the city now believe that the <a href="http://chi.streetsblog.org/2017/03/21/why-the-cpds-biking-while-black-enforcement-practices-have-got-to-stop/">bike stops</a> are just another pretext for racially motivated searches – described as the new “stop and frisk”. </p>
<h2>Beyond the white male image</h2>
<p>Cycling and biking should be a sport or leisure activity anyone can get involved in, regardless of age, skin colour or gender. But until the dynamics of “race”, racism and whiteness in cycling are more fully understood, the sport will continue to be dominated by white, middle-aged men.</p>
<p>The significance of “race” and white privilege is not only an issue for <a href="https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/">British cycling</a> and its mass participation goals, but also for the international governing body for cycling – <a href="http://www.uci.ch/cyclingforall/">the UCI</a> – whose <a href="http://www.uci.ch/mm/Document/News/News/18/21/45/2017-Cycling-for-all-Manifesto_ENG_English.PDF">Cycling for All Manifesto</a> has not yet considered these subtle differences in how black riders experience cycling.</p>
<p>Until then, those barriers to wider participation from black, Asian and minority ethnic groups will sadly continue to be in place – for recreational cyclists, professional competitors and everyday cyclists both in the UK and beyond.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/76256/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Kevin Hylton does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>
Why is cycling such a white sport?
Kevin Hylton, Professor of Equality and Diversity in Sport, Leisure and Education, Head of Research Centre for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Leeds Beckett University
Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.