Originally Posted by
Blue Roads
+100
My sense is the cyclists who are complaining are those who are comfortable with riding in traffic and all that entails. They don't want that challenged by a more, for lack of a better term, 'gentrified' cycling culture in Portland. If it's true that Oregon has laws that specify bike lanes must be used if available, then Amsterdam-style cycle track lanes would certainly challenge their ability to ride in traffic.
Frankly, I think it's a selfish position.
If we as a cycling community -- and who knows if we exist as one cycling community -- want to integrate cycling into our American culture, we must welcome what's being proposed in Portland.
Cycling will never be mainstream in America until soccer moms can put their young kids in a Bakfiets and ride in what they perceive as a safe environment, and non-roadies can ride a Townie with a handlebar basket across the city to run errands. The Portland plan provides exactly that, where the current situation of riding in Portland's areas of 'slow traffic' does not.
If it means the further growth and integration of cycling into American urban cores, I'm willing to sacrifice my enjoyment of riding in traffic in certain areas -- and gladly ride in cycle track lanes. I would hope others would be willing to do the same.
I understand your position and am sympathetic to it, but it is based on false assumptions.
People using these cycletracks will still be riding in traffic, just in a different way. It almost always seems like a better way to beginners, but isn't necessarily a safer or better way to deal with auto traffic. While there are some streets that might be improved for cycling with such a sidepath, this does not seem to be one of those streets. And this calls into question the priorities of the planner-politicians who are pushing this project.
If you've been around this forum for a while you should notice that the people who are telling you this are not necessarily the same people who can be expected to attack any plan for any facility anywhere. People who are open-minded, practical and highly experienced are telling you this plan stinks. People who have ridiculed Vehicular Cycling ideologues and chest-beaters repeatedly on this forum are telling you this.
I wish beginners would listen to those with experience. It's generally a good policy. The current plan in Portland is planning for beginners, by beginners. It's a trap. The bicycle mode share of Northern European cities is based on culture, history, physical geography and tremendously expensive fuel relative to North America. Infrastructure is probably down the list a bit. It's silly to think we can start to transform our cities -- even Portland -- into Amsterdam with token cycle tracks, when we can't even mention raising the price of gas through taxation.