Research from Europe shows bike infrastructure doesn't add to urban traffic and can shift mode share from cars to bikes and reduce the need for solo car trips.
Despite claims that cycle lanes added during the pandemic contributed to an increase in London's traffic congestion, research shows the city's traffic was largely the same in 2021 as in 2019, before the bike lanes were installed. David Metz reports that cycle lanes actually reduce the share of trips taken by car, which could diminish congestion as well. Thanks in part to aggressive measures taken by the city to discourage car trips, the use of private transport in London fell from 48 percent to 37 percent between 2000 and 2019.
"It’s important to note that creating cycle lanes reduces the space available for cars but does not necessarily get people out of cars. Copenhagen is a city famous for cycling, with 28 percent of journeys made by bike. Yet car traffic is only slightly less than in London." Meanwhile, residents of Copenhagen take only half as many public transit trips as Londoners. In fact, "there are no major European cities with high levels of both cycling and public transport. "
With revenues from public transit ridership drastically reduced by the pandemic, Metz writes, it is investments in cycling infrastructure that would "make the most sense for reducing car use in London."
FULL STORY: Why Cycle Lanes Aren’t Responsible for Urban Congestion
Feared Traffic Increase From New Bike Lanes Failed to Materialize
Data from a much-criticized bike lane project in Montgomery County shows no noticeable decrease in vehicle capacity and a sharp decrease in bike fatalities.
Less Paint, More Barriers, Make for Better Urban Cycling
New research from the University of Colorado Denver and the University of New Mexico sheds light on how to make cities safer for cyclists and other road users and refutes some assumptions about bike safety, such as "safety-in-numbers."
Bike use in London grew by 43% since 2019, but car use remains roughly the same
The city's efforts to reduce car use have stalled despite ambitious programs like congestion pricing and low-traffic neighborhoods.
The state-sanctioned urbicide of Austin
People don’t kill cities. Freeways do.
US to reduce Colorado River water deliveries to Mexico
A new Colorado Treaty amendment reduces Mexico’s Colorado River water allocation by 250,000 acre feet.
New Jersey’s second-largest city bans standalone data centers
Jersey City will continue to allow co-location facilities, such as those meant for research institutions that store their own data.
Amtrak not solely to blame for New Jersey commuter rail's unreliability, report finds
A new study from the Garden State Initiative found that NJ Transit’s budget grew 20% across a 4 year period, but reliability declined significantly over the same period.
EPA erases limits on planet-warming pollution from power plants
Under Monday’s plan, power plants would still have some limits on how much mercury, arsenic and other contaminants they can emit.
Phoenix announces new on-demand transit service, more frequent RAPID buses
Both new services will launch in October, and are part of Phoenix's Project Effective Access Solutions for Easing Congestion.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
Eagle County Government
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
Nashville Planning Department
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
Journal of the American Planning Association