First, I know it's not as simple as the subject line states. But having a short subject line was more important than nuance.
The Green Lanes Project - a group that unabashedly pushes for protected and buffered bike lanes - had a wonderful post today about the admittedly irrational reason people often won't ride on a street with or close to cars. http://greenlaneproject.org/blog/view/what-if-bike-comfort-is-more-important-than-bike-safety Most on this list probably feel fine riding with traffic, or at least riding in a bike lane close to traffic. But we also all know many people that do NOT feel comfortable under those same conditions, and this prevents those people from using a bike for transportation. No matter how much we explain the statistics and proven safety of riding in/near motorized traffic, there is a substantial portion of the population that just won't do it. So if we want to change the mode split - i.e. the percent of people using cars vs. feet vs. transit vs. bus - we have to make transit, walking, and biking FEEL as safe as driving. And maybe whether people FEEL comfortable using a facility should factor into our bicycle planning decisions. Robbie Webber Transportation Policy Analyst State Smart Transportation Initiative www.ssti.us 608-263-9984 (o) 608-225-0002 (c) [email protected]
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