Graeme S. sent this link through this week
Hey Guys,
Really good replay of an Ideas programme from August on Radio NZ's Sunday show this morning.
Well worth a listen with some great info...
http://www.radionz.co.nz/podcasts/sunday.rss
FIFTY YEARS AGO - THE EVOLUTION OF CYCLING 1931
"Taken with the assistance of the Cyclists' Touring Club." Introductory
intertitle reads: "Fifty years ago, wearing a bustle and a pained
expression, Eve took a sedate front seat."
Travelling shot of a couple in Victorian dress riding on an antiquated
bicycle. The woman sits on the front part of the bike whilst the man
pedals at the back. "Nothing strenuous about this for Eve - Adam did
the pedalling." Closer travelling shot of the strange vehicle. "The
"Sociable", when the forward young Misses of the day dispensed with the...
New Delhi
Erin Roberts, a foreign tourist, gets out of a metro station in the national capital and walks towards the car park. She pays the parking attendant. Next, Erin rides out on a bicycle into the busy Connaught Place. This scene can be witnessed every day on several metro stations around Delhi, thanks to a new cycle rental service by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC).
Cyclists in New Delhi
"I came to India from Paris to make a documentary on Indian culture. This is my second visit and I...
Boson Au commutes from his Charles Village home to his downtown office
by bicycle. He rides his bike to the grocery store and, with a group of
cycling friends, to bars on weekends.
Traveling by bike allows Au a more immediate and intimate experience of
Baltimore than driving a car. "It makes the city seem smaller and
closer," said the 32-year-old Web developer. "I'm seeing the streets.
I'm feeling the bumps. It's made me more involved in the city."
But Baltimore's congested and pothole-ridden streets pose many hazards to...
My bike is going to kill me. That was all I could think about as I rolled the thing out of my apartment and made those initial awkward pedal pushes in my first ride around downtown Toronto.
But gliding along Queen St., with no angry cars honking or getting too close to my wheels, I figured I might actually get home alive. If I could just remember the road rules.
Hand signal directional changes. Turn left on left lanes only, or get off the bike and cross the intersection like a pedestrian. If you're changing lanes near streetcar tracks, approach them at a...
Slowly Coming to the U.S.
Cycling is extremely green, and there are all kinds of tools in the
arsenal of city planners to encourage more of it. One of the newest (in
the U.S.) tools is the bike boulevard, a concept that is relatively
common in Europe. To get an idea of what a bike boulevard is, you can
have a look at the Portland Planning & Design Guidebook for Bike Boulevards, or even better, check out the great video via StreetFilms.
Overview of this report
This
report is intended to serve as a planning and conceptual design guide
for planners, engineers,...
A young German cyclist killed in a collision with a truck in New Zealand in January described aggressive truck drivers as "beasts" just days before her death.
Mia Susanne Pusch, 19, arrived in New Zealand in early October and had been cycling around the country until her death last Tuesday.
Read more here
Below are photos and the speech made at the installation of a White Bike at the site of the accident.
Memorial speech for Mia on the occasion of the installation of a White Bike on August 31st 2010:
Mia Susanne Pusch from Kirtorf, Germany,...
when there is a cycle lane, motorists drive within their own marked lane with less recognition of the need to provide a safe and comfortable passing distance to those using the cycle lane
Source: CTCNew research supported by CTC – the UK’s national cyclists’ organisation shows that motorists give cyclists less room when they are riding in a cycle lane.
Using a bicycle with instruments that measure the distance of passing vehicles, Ciaran Meyers from the University of Leeds Institute for Transport Studies undertook the research on roads with and without cycle lanes....
Bicycles and summer go together, and kids of all ages will be heading out on new bikes this week.
Cycling Advocates' Network spokesperson Anne FitzSimon, says a bicycle is always near the top of the Christmas wish list.
"This year is no different with TradeMe reporting bikes in the top 10 searches for November."
For those lucky enough to find a bicycle at the foot of the Christmas tree, Cycling Advocates' Network has some tips:
Cycling is fun; having fun is more important than going fast Learn about your brakes and how to use them Mount and...Had a near miss on your bike? Feeling steamed up?
Here's a guide on what to do.
1. Take a deep breath. Write down what happened: time, location, rego of any vehicles involved, details of any witnesses.
2. File a Police roadwatch report athttps://forms.police.govt.nz/forms/online-community-roadwatch-report/9 Police write to the owner of the vehicle. You need rego, time, place, description of vehicle (make and colour if possible).
3. If you want charges laid, visit a Police station and lay a complaint.
4. If a commercial vehicle was involved, call / email...
New Zealand needs to put its money where its mouth is if it wants to become a true ecotourism destination, says a family of cyclists scared off the roads.
European couple Wouter van Wezemael and Vanessa Mudarra are calling for more cycle lanes after being forced to use public transport on their charity bike ride, traversing the length of New Zealand to raise money for Forest & Bird.
But Transport Minister Steven Joyce says work is being done, and it is a matter of logistics and money.
The family began their journey in Cape Reinga on November 1...
Cyclists' lobby group CTC said the report needed to focus on driver behaviour rather than issues such as cyclists wearing helmets. Photograph: Antonio Olmos
A tiny proportion of accidents involving cyclists are caused by riders jumping red lights or stop signs, or failing to wear high-visibility clothing and use lights, a government-commissioned study has discovered.
The findings appear to contradict a spate of recent reports speculating that risky behaviour by riders, such as listening to music players while cycling, could be behind a near 20% rise...
20 is Plenty
New proposals will allow councils in England to bring in more 20 mph (30km/h) speed limit areas without having to introduce traffic-calming measures such as speed humps. Road Safety Minister Paul Clark encouraged councils to introduce the 20mph schemes into residential streets and other roads where there are lots of cyclists and pedestrians. He also renewed his call for a review of speed limits on rural roads. CTC campaigns for 20 mph and is pleased The Department for Transport is changing its guidance to give a stronger backing to the use of 20 mph zones and...
Road humps have often been criticised by motoring organisations for causing damage to vehicle suspension and tyres Photo: CHRISTOPHER COX
Councils will be allowed to introduce the 'go-slow' zones without also having to install traffic calming measures such as the 'sleeping policeman'.
The measure is being considered as part of the Government's push for more 20mph zones, following research showing that they reduce road casualties by more than 40 per cent.
Previously, councils wanting to launch 20mph schemes on groups of roads have had to do so in 'zones',...
Hypermobility is now the opium of the people, an obsession that wrecks communities and planet. There are no free trips.
Nature loves irony. As Copenhagen's Glastonbury of gloom ended last week and the global warming groupies jetted home, they were greeted by, of all things, a freeze. "Road, rail and air chaos as UK grinds to a halt," cried the Guardian. The Times shrieked, "Worst driving conditions in years." The BBC asked: "Is the government doing enough?" Britain was paralysed by a little ice. It was "the curse of the fluffy French...
Moves are afoot in the US to make harassment of cyclists illegal
(©
boogieelephant - Fotolia.com)
Laws forbidding the harassment of cyclists could make it into the statute books if plans in Mississippi and Los Angeles come to fruition – following in the wake of similar legislation passed in other US states and cities in 2009.
Mississippi cyclists have been pushing for such bike-friendly legislation for three years, and next year they anticipate success at last. Meanwhile in Los Angeles, a similar law seems to be making steady progress ahead of a crucial...
The Copenhagen Wheel
Photo - Courtesy of the SENSEable City Lab
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Tomorrow, Dec. 15, at the
Copenhagen Conference on Climate Change, MIT researchers will debut the
Copenhagen Wheel — a revolutionary new bicycle wheel that not only
boosts power, but can keep track of friends, fitness, smog and traffic.
Though it looks like an ordinary bicycle wheel with an oversized
center, the Wheel's bright red hub is a veritable Swiss army knife's
worth of electronic gadgets and novel functions.
"Over the...
New research shows that cycle helmets useful for "simple falls or tumbles" but not for impacts from cars.
New research shows that cycle helmets useful for "simple falls or tumbles" but not for impacts from cars.
MPs such as Peter Bone have long been clamouring for cycle helmet compulsion following lobbying from Angela Lee, CEO of the Bicycle Helmet Initiative Trust.
Bone has asked many parliamentary questions of the Department for Transport, asking when cycle helmet compulsion will be enacted.
The DfT has always responded by saying it would wait for a new...
Investing in Public Transport
“Investment in public transportation expands service and improves mobility, and, if sustained over time, can potentially affect the economy by providing:
• travel and vehicle ownership cost savings for public transportation passengers and those switching from automobiles, leading to shifts in consumer spending;
• reduced traffic congestion for those travelling by automobile and truck, leading to further direct travel cost savings for businesses and households;
• business operating cost savings associated with worker wage and...
In this webpage you will find the content of the “Ciclovía Recreativa Implementation
and Advocacy Manual.” This consists of a basic teaching guide that
covers the steps and procedures essential to the planning and
implementation of a Ciclovía Recreativa, multimedia tools and an annex of documents.
What is Ciclovía Recreativa?
The Ciclovía Recreativa
consists of the temporary opening of streets to residents so they may
enjoy a safe and pleasant space for walking, jogging, skating or riding
a bike....