A new study looks at the interaction between bicyclists and streetcars (trams) or train tracks and does not find a good outcome.
Lloyd Alter writes in TreeHugger about the intersection of two popular modes of transportation in his city—bicycles and streetcars, or trams as they are called in Canada. The resulting mix is a decidedly dangerous one:
Toronto has lots of streetcar tracks, and more and more cities in the US are installing them. Those cities should consider this recent study, Bicycling crashes on streetcar (tram) or train tracks: mixed methods to identify prevention that looked at how cyclists and streetcar tracks interact, and it isn't pretty. It was prepared by a team led by Kay Teschke of the School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia.
Another passage from the article:
The number of cyclists having track-related crashes is significant, roughly a third of reported crashes in the study period. They looked at physical factors like the design of the tracks or the width of tires and found that narrow tires were involved in more accidents than wider, hybrid tires, but that except for fat bikes, all of the normal tires could get caught in the flange.
FULL STORY: Cyclists and streetcar tracks don't mix
Why Bike Lanes Are Good: An Explainer for the US Transportation Secretary
Sean Duffy says there’s no evidence that bike lanes have benefits. Streetsblog — and federal agencies’ own data — beg to differ.
Sharrows Are Ineffective, Potentially Counterproductive
Research shows there’s no substitute for protected bike lanes, and sharrows may make roads more dangerous for cyclists.
St. Petersburg’s Bike Infrastructure Efforts Pay Off
New bike infrastructure is encouraging more people to take to the streets on two wheels, but advocates say safety challenges remain.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Vehicle-related Deaths Drop 29% in Richmond, VA
The seventh year of the city's Vision Zero strategy also cut the number of people killed in alcohol-related crashes by half.
As Trump Phases Out FEMA, Is It Time to Flee the Floodplains?
With less federal funding available for disaster relief efforts, the need to relocate at-risk communities is more urgent than ever.
Berkeley Approves ‘Middle Housing’ Ordinance
The city that invented single-family zoning is finally reckoning with its history of exclusion.
SEPTA Budget Slashes Service by 45 Percent
The Philadelphia-area transit agency is legally tasked with maintaining a balanced budget. Officials hope the state will come to the rescue with additional funding.
Connecticut Governor Vetoes Housing Bill
Gov. Lamont reversed his view on a controversial affordable housing bill that would have required municipalities to zone for set amounts of affordable housing to receive state funding.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
JM Goldson LLC
Custer County Colorado
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)