Look how far we have come in 72 years
In Europe, where bicycles are economically important as a means of transportation, special cycle lanes have long been in use. In the Victorian heyday of the American bike, the "high-wheeler" or "safety" could turn down any lane at no greater risk than frightening a horse and arousing the blasphemy of its driver.
But America's billion-dollar highways, many of them barely wide enough to accommodate two lanes of two-ton machines hurtling at 40 to 60 mph in either direction, are death traps to the cyclists. Pedestrians don't want bicycles on the sidewalks; they are barred in many parks.
Where then, ask 4 or 5 million young Americans, can we ride? Build cycle paths of gravel or rolled-grass on the shoulders of highways, say the growing number of adult cyclists. We bought our children bicycles, say parents, because riding is a healthful sport. But approximately 700 cyclists were killed by automobiles in 1937, 300 of them between the ages of 5 and 14. More than 35,000 riders were injured in 1937. Construct bicycle paths in public parks! <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=EEEEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA34">http://books.google.com/books?id=EEEEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA34</a>
What's Related