How bikes and cars co-exist
The Ottawa Citizen -In every city there are thousands of closet cyclists, people who would love to ride their bikes but don't dare. They see cycling in the city as something for bike couriers, for the fiendishly fit, for neighbours with nerves of steel.
Our cities are just bursting with pedaling potential, and it's time to set it loose on the streets. The key lies in building the right kind of infrastructure. Cycling routes designed by cyclists for cyclists.
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What strikes the Canadian visitor is just how ordinary cycling seems to be in the lives of the locals. It is not a big deal to choose to ride somewhere. It does not involve special clothes, helmets, gloves and fancy bikes. Herds of children roll by on their way to school together. Couples head off to work. An older lady rides by with a load of groceries in the rear panniers, and a lapdog in the front basket.
With the right urban planning and infrastructure design, the cities of North America could be just as full of bikes: cleaning the air, cutting greenhouse gas emissions, improving public health, and freeing up some storage space.
- David Chernushenko
