But it's better than the Alternative which for me is staying home all day every day for eternity because public transport is not very accessible and very inefficient here and biking is also inaccessible to someone of my health.
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3cl1ps3I will build a labyrinth to house the cheeseRegistered Userregular
no
It will never cease to weird me out that people direct their ire for the "bikes in traffic" issue at the people on bikes and not the shitty local governments that have done zero work to enable cyclists to have a path to travel without holding up traffic or being on the sidewalk.
Like, cars and bikes coexisting is pretty much a solved problem if you just put in the bare minimum of effort to make it work. The fault for areas where cyclists have no good option does not lie at cyclists' feet, people. Stop crab bucketing.
replace all cars in urban areas with buses and light rail imo
Urban areas are also the places that tend to be much more likely to have bike lanes (not always, but often). The issue I think is more in small cities and suburbs.
It will never cease to weird me out that people direct their ire for the "bikes in traffic" issue at the people on bikes and not the shitty local governments that have done zero work to enable cyclists to have a path to travel without holding up traffic or being on the sidewalk.
Like, cars and bikes coexisting is pretty much a solved problem if you just put in the bare minimum of effort to make it work. The fault for areas where cyclists have no good option does not lie at cyclists' feet, people. Stop crab bucketing.
I got nothin against people who bike on the side of the road and follow traffic signals/stop signs/etc. but like the other day I got caught behind people riding 3 bikes wide across the only lane of a 45 mph road who would NOT get over.
And this was on a road with a bike lane! They were just being assholes!
It will never cease to weird me out that people direct their ire for the "bikes in traffic" issue at the people on bikes and not the shitty local governments that have done zero work to enable cyclists to have a path to travel without holding up traffic or being on the sidewalk.
Like, cars and bikes coexisting is pretty much a solved problem if you just put in the bare minimum of effort to make it work. The fault for areas where cyclists have no good option does not lie at cyclists' feet, people. Stop crab bucketing.
most cities weren't designed for separate bike lanes and it's impossible to magic that amount of space
a lot of newer developments are designed with bikes in mind, but it never goes very far because eventually it gets back into old infrastructure
It will never cease to weird me out that people direct their ire for the "bikes in traffic" issue at the people on bikes and not the shitty local governments that have done zero work to enable cyclists to have a path to travel without holding up traffic or being on the sidewalk.
Like, cars and bikes coexisting is pretty much a solved problem if you just put in the bare minimum of effort to make it work. The fault for areas where cyclists have no good option does not lie at cyclists' feet, people. Stop crab bucketing.
most cities weren't designed for separate bike lanes and it's impossible to magic that amount of space
a lot of newer developments are designed with bikes in mind, but it never goes very far because eventually it gets back into old infrastructure
I mean, sure, but again, this is a civil planning issue, not the fault of people who can't afford or don't want to own a car, and getting mad at them specifically doesn't accomplish anything.
It will never cease to weird me out that people direct their ire for the "bikes in traffic" issue at the people on bikes and not the shitty local governments that have done zero work to enable cyclists to have a path to travel without holding up traffic or being on the sidewalk.
Like, cars and bikes coexisting is pretty much a solved problem if you just put in the bare minimum of effort to make it work. The fault for areas where cyclists have no good option does not lie at cyclists' feet, people. Stop crab bucketing.
I got nothin against people who bike on the side of the road and follow traffic signals/stop signs/etc. but like the other day I got caught behind people riding 3 bikes wide across the only lane of a 45 mph road who would NOT get over.
And this was on a road with a bike lane! They were just being assholes!
Some people are just pricks. Folks in cars do all sorts of dickish bullshit, they're just moving more quickly. Yesterday when I was driving to get groceries I saw someone tailgating about 3" off someone who was going the speed limit for no apparent reason.
3cl1ps3I will build a labyrinth to house the cheeseRegistered Userregular
no
That said, I'll definitely take an asshole on a bike over an asshole in a car any day. An asshole on a bike inconveniences me. An asshole in a car could wreck my car and seriously injure or kill me or the other occupants. And there are a lot of assholes in cars.
It will never cease to weird me out that people direct their ire for the "bikes in traffic" issue at the people on bikes and not the shitty local governments that have done zero work to enable cyclists to have a path to travel without holding up traffic or being on the sidewalk.
Like, cars and bikes coexisting is pretty much a solved problem if you just put in the bare minimum of effort to make it work. The fault for areas where cyclists have no good option does not lie at cyclists' feet, people. Stop crab bucketing.
most cities weren't designed for separate bike lanes and it's impossible to magic that amount of space
a lot of newer developments are designed with bikes in mind, but it never goes very far because eventually it gets back into old infrastructure
Then the roads should be made bike only roads. Supporting a bike lane is more important than supporting a car lane, and a limited number of roads can be retained that allow cars on them.
When I had to go to an office, it was about an hour by bus. If I had a car, it would've been fifteen minutes to drive.
But those fifteen minutes would be spent in misery, because driving sucks ass. The only feelings I have ever felt while driving have been boredom, anger, and fear.
On a bus, I can read a book. Play a video game. So the "longer commute" was filled with shit I'd be doing if I were at home. I very much prefer it to the stresses of owning a car and driving.
sorry it's raining or 20 below, you can't go anywhere anymore because
Yeah 10 below is my limit for cycling which I rarely have had to do. But biking in winter, assuming you don't have a recent massive snow, is very doable.
biking in the rain is a blast
also you can be in remarkably poor shape and still be able to ride a bike
It will never cease to weird me out that people direct their ire for the "bikes in traffic" issue at the people on bikes and not the shitty local governments that have done zero work to enable cyclists to have a path to travel without holding up traffic or being on the sidewalk.
Like, cars and bikes coexisting is pretty much a solved problem if you just put in the bare minimum of effort to make it work. The fault for areas where cyclists have no good option does not lie at cyclists' feet, people. Stop crab bucketing.
most cities weren't designed for separate bike lanes and it's impossible to magic that amount of space
a lot of newer developments are designed with bikes in mind, but it never goes very far because eventually it gets back into old infrastructure
Then the roads should be made bike only roads. Supporting a bike lane is more important than supporting a car lane, and a limited number of roads can be retained that allow cars on them.
they've done this exact thing in a lot of Amsterdam, it was lovely
That said, I'll definitely take an asshole on a bike over an asshole in a car any day. An asshole on a bike inconveniences me. An asshole in a car could wreck my car and seriously injure or kill me or the other occupants. And there are a lot of assholes in cars.
there's only more assholes in cars because there's more cars, i'm 90% certain the same percentage of bicyclists and drivers are rip-roaring assholes
+11
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3cl1ps3I will build a labyrinth to house the cheeseRegistered Userregular
That said, I'll definitely take an asshole on a bike over an asshole in a car any day. An asshole on a bike inconveniences me. An asshole in a car could wreck my car and seriously injure or kill me or the other occupants. And there are a lot of assholes in cars.
there's only more assholes in cars because there's more cars, i'm 90% certain the same percentage of bicyclists and drivers are rip-roaring assholes
Probably true! But the one that can kill me definitely worries me more than the one that slows me down.
+5
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UnbrokenEvaHIGH ON THE WIREBUT I WON'T TRIP ITRegistered Userregular
yes
Demi is trapped in this pleasantly generous hell forever
The NL sort of lucked into its current cycling friendly nature.
Between 1945 and 1973 we were mostly on the same path as the rest of the world.
But during the oil crisesof 1973 and 1979 the Dutch cabinet saw "lets bicycle more" as a combination of oil independence, health benefits and low cost compared to retooling cities for more and bigger cars.
This was actually boosted by a mostly inner city focused action group of citizens, who got local parties to adopt their stances and filter it upwards.
It's really amazing that a group that had only ten thousand members and is now mostly forgotten changed the country so much that it is part of the identity.
Only in the 80s does actual infrastructure get planned, like the red colored bicycle lanes (which signal much clearly than just white lines)
In the 1990s inner cities started designing their traffic plans to accommodate for different flows of traffic (The main cyclist lines are not the same as car plans. One way roads are used to make it impossible to cut through smaller roads, as a car you're forced on main arteries)
Now a new model is gaining traction: Bicycle first roads. Bicycles are expected to take up the whole road and set the pace.
These are used in the old inner cities where car+bicycle is simply too dangerous.
The message to cars is "you can be here if you really want to, but this is not the fastest way to get around "
All of it only works in roughly 10km radius though. That's about as far as people will cycle.
the first and only time I rode a bike to a job I was 16. the job was only three and a quarter miles away, however the elevation change was around five hundred feet and it was 95 degrees
I rode a bike to elementary school since it was 3 blocks away and I rode a bike in college since I lived 5 blocks away from the campus, but after that I haven't rode a bike anywhere, despite owning one.
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turtleantGunpla Dadis the best.Registered Userregular
yes
I did mall security for about a month like, hell, 12 years ago at this point? I made some bad decisions when I was 20, doesn't matter.
Anyway, I ended up having to pull a 12 hour shift on Christamas Eve, which was the first time I worked after the mall closed and it turns out they had bikes for doing rounds inside after hours.
Let me tell you riding a bike in loops around a completely empty, silent mall in the middle of the night is an experience. Not a great one!
FWIW, the road I was talking about is nowhere near a city, goes through a forest.
A bike lane (or even widening the road) would be an astronomical cost to add as it was an originally a carriage road for farm traffic that was eventually paved over. At least for most of the ride, the breakdown lanes are large enough to safely bike in; just not that stretch (which is about two miles).
I did mall security for about a month like, hell, 12 years ago at this point? I made some bad decisions when I was 20, doesn't matter.
Anyway, I ended up having to pull a 12 hour shift on Christamas Eve, which was the first time I worked after the mall closed and it turns out they had bikes for doing rounds inside after hours.
Let me tell you riding a bike in loops around a completely empty, silent mall in the middle of the night is an experience. Not a great one!
Should've gone for the Die Hard route instead.
+1
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#pipeCocky Stride, Musky odoursPope of Chili TownRegistered Userregular
It will never cease to weird me out that people direct their ire for the "bikes in traffic" issue at the people on bikes and not the shitty local governments that have done zero work to enable cyclists to have a path to travel without holding up traffic or being on the sidewalk.
Like, cars and bikes coexisting is pretty much a solved problem if you just put in the bare minimum of effort to make it work. The fault for areas where cyclists have no good option does not lie at cyclists' feet, people. Stop crab bucketing.
most cities weren't designed for separate bike lanes and it's impossible to magic that amount of space
a lot of newer developments are designed with bikes in mind, but it never goes very far because eventually it gets back into old infrastructure
Then the roads should be made bike only roads. Supporting a bike lane is more important than supporting a car lane, and a limited number of roads can be retained that allow cars on them.
they've done this exact thing in a lot of Amsterdam, it was lovely
Here in Vancouver there are bike designated streets - main roads with big bike lanes or smaller suburban streets with no center line on which drivers are expected to yield to bikes. Most cyclists use them and it seems like a good system. I used them when I rode to work. It adds a little bit of distance onto a trip, but not much if you plan your route. I have no problem with slowing down behind cyclists, most of them are smart enough to pull over whenever they can to let cars past.
The only problem I have with cyclists is... well actually there's a couple.
Here, in order to ride your bike on the road you need three things - a helmet, a light and a bell. These are BASIC SAFETY FEATURES. They are cheap and easy to use and make your ride drastically safer. A lot of folks just straight up don't bother. These seem to be the same folks who weave indiscriminately between lanes, don't check around before turning and also ride at night wearing black clothes. I can't count how many times I've come this close to just fucking liquifying some fool on a bike who just appears out of the darkness directly in front of me.
The other problem is people who argue for their right to not wear a helmet. Modern helmets are comfortable and you can get a decent one for not much money and I literally don't give half a fuck how you think they look uncool or are uncomfortable there are myriad ways you can fall off a bike that are 0% your fault and when you have fucking brain damage you will wish you got away with your hair getting messed up instead. WEAR A HELMET. My wife has permanent brain damage from concussions and none of it is good. WEAR A HELMET.
It's always fun hearing people who don't have to own a car to live telling me I'm horrible. I was basically set up with a lifetime of car/insurance payments against my will in high school, and there's not really any way for me to escape it.
Recently a podcaster/streamer who has always lived in a major city and never needed to drive (and is, you know, a podcaster/streamer who doesn't need to leave the house to get paid) decided to purchase a car to get around during lockdown while still avoiding people, and it was hilarious to listen to him complaining for an hour or so about his first experience with the DMV, insurance, registration, parking, etc.
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#pipeCocky Stride, Musky odoursPope of Chili TownRegistered Userregular
Posts
But it's better than the Alternative which for me is staying home all day every day for eternity because public transport is not very accessible and very inefficient here and biking is also inaccessible to someone of my health.
Like, cars and bikes coexisting is pretty much a solved problem if you just put in the bare minimum of effort to make it work. The fault for areas where cyclists have no good option does not lie at cyclists' feet, people. Stop crab bucketing.
Problem solved
This will be here until I receive an apology or Weedlordvegeta get any consequences for being a bully
Urban areas are also the places that tend to be much more likely to have bike lanes (not always, but often). The issue I think is more in small cities and suburbs.
Finally my turbo teen fanfic is real
I got nothin against people who bike on the side of the road and follow traffic signals/stop signs/etc. but like the other day I got caught behind people riding 3 bikes wide across the only lane of a 45 mph road who would NOT get over.
And this was on a road with a bike lane! They were just being assholes!
most cities weren't designed for separate bike lanes and it's impossible to magic that amount of space
a lot of newer developments are designed with bikes in mind, but it never goes very far because eventually it gets back into old infrastructure
I mean, sure, but again, this is a civil planning issue, not the fault of people who can't afford or don't want to own a car, and getting mad at them specifically doesn't accomplish anything.
Some people are just pricks. Folks in cars do all sorts of dickish bullshit, they're just moving more quickly. Yesterday when I was driving to get groceries I saw someone tailgating about 3" off someone who was going the speed limit for no apparent reason.
Then the roads should be made bike only roads. Supporting a bike lane is more important than supporting a car lane, and a limited number of roads can be retained that allow cars on them.
But those fifteen minutes would be spent in misery, because driving sucks ass. The only feelings I have ever felt while driving have been boredom, anger, and fear.
On a bus, I can read a book. Play a video game. So the "longer commute" was filled with shit I'd be doing if I were at home. I very much prefer it to the stresses of owning a car and driving.
Yeah 10 below is my limit for cycling which I rarely have had to do. But biking in winter, assuming you don't have a recent massive snow, is very doable.
biking in the rain is a blast
also you can be in remarkably poor shape and still be able to ride a bike
they've done this exact thing in a lot of Amsterdam, it was lovely
there's only more assholes in cars because there's more cars, i'm 90% certain the same percentage of bicyclists and drivers are rip-roaring assholes
Probably true! But the one that can kill me definitely worries me more than the one that slows me down.
Demi is trapped in this pleasantly generous hell forever
Now that I clicked that I wish I didn’t remember
Between 1945 and 1973 we were mostly on the same path as the rest of the world.
But during the oil crisesof 1973 and 1979 the Dutch cabinet saw "lets bicycle more" as a combination of oil independence, health benefits and low cost compared to retooling cities for more and bigger cars.
This was actually boosted by a mostly inner city focused action group of citizens, who got local parties to adopt their stances and filter it upwards.
It's really amazing that a group that had only ten thousand members and is now mostly forgotten changed the country so much that it is part of the identity.
Only in the 80s does actual infrastructure get planned, like the red colored bicycle lanes (which signal much clearly than just white lines)
In the 1990s inner cities started designing their traffic plans to accommodate for different flows of traffic (The main cyclist lines are not the same as car plans. One way roads are used to make it impossible to cut through smaller roads, as a car you're forced on main arteries)
Now a new model is gaining traction: Bicycle first roads. Bicycles are expected to take up the whole road and set the pace.
These are used in the old inner cities where car+bicycle is simply too dangerous.
The message to cars is "you can be here if you really want to, but this is not the fastest way to get around "
All of it only works in roughly 10km radius though. That's about as far as people will cycle.
Anyway, I ended up having to pull a 12 hour shift on Christamas Eve, which was the first time I worked after the mall closed and it turns out they had bikes for doing rounds inside after hours.
Let me tell you riding a bike in loops around a completely empty, silent mall in the middle of the night is an experience. Not a great one!
A bike lane (or even widening the road) would be an astronomical cost to add as it was an originally a carriage road for farm traffic that was eventually paved over. At least for most of the ride, the breakdown lanes are large enough to safely bike in; just not that stretch (which is about two miles).
Should've gone for the Die Hard route instead.
Here in Vancouver there are bike designated streets - main roads with big bike lanes or smaller suburban streets with no center line on which drivers are expected to yield to bikes. Most cyclists use them and it seems like a good system. I used them when I rode to work. It adds a little bit of distance onto a trip, but not much if you plan your route. I have no problem with slowing down behind cyclists, most of them are smart enough to pull over whenever they can to let cars past.
The only problem I have with cyclists is... well actually there's a couple.
Here, in order to ride your bike on the road you need three things - a helmet, a light and a bell. These are BASIC SAFETY FEATURES. They are cheap and easy to use and make your ride drastically safer. A lot of folks just straight up don't bother. These seem to be the same folks who weave indiscriminately between lanes, don't check around before turning and also ride at night wearing black clothes. I can't count how many times I've come this close to just fucking liquifying some fool on a bike who just appears out of the darkness directly in front of me.
The other problem is people who argue for their right to not wear a helmet. Modern helmets are comfortable and you can get a decent one for not much money and I literally don't give half a fuck how you think they look uncool or are uncomfortable there are myriad ways you can fall off a bike that are 0% your fault and when you have fucking brain damage you will wish you got away with your hair getting messed up instead. WEAR A HELMET. My wife has permanent brain damage from concussions and none of it is good. WEAR A HELMET.
Need some stuff designed or printed? I can help with that.
Recently a podcaster/streamer who has always lived in a major city and never needed to drive (and is, you know, a podcaster/streamer who doesn't need to leave the house to get paid) decided to purchase a car to get around during lockdown while still avoiding people, and it was hilarious to listen to him complaining for an hour or so about his first experience with the DMV, insurance, registration, parking, etc.
My wife got four concussions while wearing a helmet
The more times you get concussed the easier it is to get concussed, the last one she didn't even hit her head at all.
Honestly if we're in a car accident and she gets decent whiplash she might never be able to work again.
Need some stuff designed or printed? I can help with that.
the missus did derby, right?
those ladies do not fuck around
She got concussion number 1 riding a bike as a teenager. Numbers 2 & 3 were derby related. After number 3 she quit playing and became a referee.
Number 4 happened while she was skating laps and slipped during warm up. She was on sick leave from work for 8 months.
Don't get concussions, people.
Need some stuff designed or printed? I can help with that.