Originally Posted by
spare_wheel
i'd like to see ~15% of 18-60 year olds riding for transport before we start spending tons of money on infrastructure designed for 8 year olds. denmark and the netherlands first achieved 8/80 cycling in the victorian era (and never really lost it) so i don't think their current policy is always the best example of how we should get from 2% to 20%.
I don't think you'll see 15% of 18-60-year-olds for the same reason you won't see 8-year-olds—doing battle with 4000 pound cars operated by humans who are very prone to error and distraction is not appealing. I think that the facilities that will allow 8-year-olds to ride a few miles to school by themselves are the exact same as the ones that will get everyday moms and dads and grandmas and grandpas to ride to the store or cafe.