Advocacy & Safety - part 5...

... I emailed ICBC to ask just how many of these collision occurred in the downtown core to see if the installation of these new lanes may affect the number of collisions per year...

Finally received a reply to my query and get this; each year there are about 7060 collisions between motor vehicles in the downtown core and only about 80 motor vehicle/bicycle collisions.

Considering the bicycle share on the roads downtown is about 5% of the total traffic volume, the collision rate is pretty favorable for cyclists.

It also makes one wonder just how many fewer collisions there are going to be with these new protected lanes.

Considering the bicycle share on the roads downtown is about 5% of the total traffic volume, the collision rate is pretty favorable for cyclists.

It also makes one wonder just how many fewer collisions there are going to be with these new protected lanes.Actually, the question is, how many MORE collisions there are going to be with these new protected lanes.

Actually, the question is, how many MORE collisions there are going to be with these new protected lanes.

well, we already know that there have been more motor vehicle collisions, but when drivers don't leave enough room between each other to stop safely, I don't know if that can be a concern for cyclists or the fault of cycling lanes.

There's always the possibility that motorists will hit a few cyclists at some intersections at the lanes, but lanes like these usually result in fewer injuries to cyclists.

Couple that with a possible increase in cycling in the downtown core because of the interconnected protected lanes which may enact the increase of safety by numbers evidence, and injuries to cyclists may actually drop despite an increase in cycling.

Finally received a reply to my query and get this; each year there are about 7060 collisions between motor vehicles in the downtown core and only about 80 motor vehicle/bicycle collisions.
You sure that's not for all of Vancouver? That's almost 20 car crashes every day, in a pretty small area.

You sure that's not for all of Vancouver? That's almost 20 car crashes every day, in a pretty small area.

That's what ICBC said, so I'm assuming what they said to be true.

In context, there are about 45000 or so collisions in the province each year and the downtown core is an extremely congested area in the most heavily populated region of the province. The lower mainland is home to half the population of BC.

I'd imagine the vast majority of these collisions are minor fender benders.Just the type of collisions that happen in these areas.

Interesting thread. I had a couple of reservations about the segregated lanes:

1. that it would reinforce the idea that bikes are not regular road traffic and shouldn't share the road with cars, and
2. that it would make both groups less used to interacting, and potentially increase negative interactions away from the segregated lanes (which will inevitably be very limited in extent and unable to cater to the whole of a typical commute).

I think medium-long term data is required to determine whether either of these had any substance. But what's obvious is that the most common objections to the lanes - that they'll increase congestion and hurt local businesses - have not been borne out.

(Motor) traffic is obviously dynamic and I think there are still a lot of drivers who could easily carshare, take transit, cycle or walk. I think restricting the space available to cars probably will reduce the number of cars, just as building new roads seems to increase that number.

As for the complaints of the businesses (e.g. on Hornby), they were risible from the start. What sort of person is just driving along a downtown street, sees an art gallery, and decides to go buy some art because there's a parking space out front? How much passing trade do these businesses get? Almost none. People who want to shop there plan to do so, and plan their parking accordingly.

Personally I have enjoyed using the Dunsmuir lane for two blocks on my homeward commute. And the Burrard Bridge lane has been fantastic - sharing with the peds there was a total gong show.

There's always the possibility that motorists will hit a few cyclists at some intersections at the lanes, but lanes like these usually result in fewer injuries to cyclists.

Couple that with a possible increase in cycling in the downtown core because of the interconnected protected lanes which may enact the increase of safety by numbers evidence, and injuries to cyclists may actually drop despite an increase in cycling.Check your numbers in a couple of years and watch the right and left hooks increase on cyclist.

Aw yes, the pipe dream.

Check your numbers in a couple of years and watch the right and left hooks increase on cyclist.

Aw yes, the pipe dream.

in 2 years the ECF will be holding it's Velo-City conference here so I'm sure those numbers will be examined.

Who knows, maybe Vancouver will finally get it's bike share program on the road (it was supposed to be ready for the 2010 winter Olympics) by this time too.

I'm looking forward to it.

Check your numbers in a couple of years and watch the right and left hooks increase on cyclist.

Aw yes, the pipe dream.

well, there's been at least 1 so far...

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5220/5389937643_92edbb739c.jpg

The truck made an illegal right hand turn (it's not allowed at this intersection) and hit the cyclist who was riding in the lane.

I have no idea what the extent of the injuries suffered were, but I suspect as this happened yesterday and there was no media coverage of the incident, that they weren't significant.

This was bound to happen at some point. Drivers make mistakes and are sometime just careless or don't want to follow rules.

Just last week after this truck decided to take a short cut in spite of a cyclist in the lane

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5258/5390542684_481c8f9014_b.jpg

a consul car decided to do the same thing, except this time a picture of it ended up on the front page of one of Vancouver's major dailies

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5098/5389934577_bf65a53aec_z.jpg

BMW in bike lane sported honorary consul plates (http://www.vancouversun.com/travel/bike+lane+sported+honorary+consul+plates/4136890/story.html)

Hope nothing major for the cyclist, and he should get a new very nice bike out of the driver.

OK. Sorry, but while this may not be directly related to the Hornby and Dunsmuir lanes, it is about the Burrard Street Bridge segregated lane that connects them and about how the occasional motorist abuses them.

Apparently this made the evening news about a week ago. I missed it, but read about it on a local newsgroup.

Watch, and enjoy...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NvIsezNFbY

Are you saying that the motorist know they are not suppose to use them but do so anyway?

It's probably why he was going so fast; he wanted to get out of there...

I thought I'd post this as a new thread, but it is all about this segregated network in Vancouver, so I'll post it here.

Even Hitler, pissed as he is at them, has admitted he's been defeated by the lanes.

What did Gandhi say? Oh yeah. "First They Ignore you, then They Laugh at You, then They Fight You, then You Win"


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0C7AYsfB_dM

As to the latter I know that I and my wife are frequently harassed by motorists that believe that we have to ride in the crappy bikelanes that the Bekologists and GeneC's of this world cheerlead. I've been close to saying "**** it, I"m driving the car from now on" thanks to the efforts of Velo Quebec.

So all the people riding now are riding becuase some dangerous and inconvenient "bike lane" made them wake up some day and decide to start commuting?

Sorry, you cannot include me in your nah-saying session, as I have always touted well designed bike highways... and have stated that vehicular cycling works just fine where road speeds are low.

Bad bike lanes are bad, period.

And apparently people are riding because they now have a place separated from high speed motor traffic, vice trying to act like a speed bump for distracted motorists.

Daniel McLaren (the sushi-propelled idea monkey) has prepared a visual portrayal of one month’s downtown bike traffic. It is based on CoV data collected from mechanical-electrical bike counters on the downtown bike lanes. I haven’t checked the data myself, but it covers the period from January 14 to February 13, 2011.



The visualization tool has significant flexibility, with day-of-week segmentation and hover pop-ups showing numbers and so on.



Map: http://demo.danielmclaren.net/2011/vancouver_bike_traffic/



Blog with analysis: http://danielmclaren.net/project/2011/vancouver-bike-volumes