TRAINSPOTTING: What Seattle cycling can teach New Zealand

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Last week’s recess happened to coincide with the International Symposium on Bicycle Urbanism at the University of Washington, Seattle, where I was invited to give one of the keynote speeches.

 

It was a fantastic opportunity to briefly visit the 17th largest city in the United States (600,000 in the city proper, the metro area has a population of more than 3 million), whose mayor regularly rides a bike, was a climate campaigner, and one of the few elected officials in the entire state to oppose a motorway tunnel through the city.

 

I found bicycling in Seattle to be a pleasure and an example of what we could achieve in Auckland, and indeed the rest of New Zealand. Seattle is not flat, nor is it dry, but people of all ages are taking to bikes to get around the city, even with kids, because the city has invested in infrastructure.

 

The symposium was packed with transport professionals who imparted the latest research from around the globe. One of the things they reported on is the gender gap in cycling: a phenomenon in car-oriented countries like the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, but not in cycle-friendly countries like the Netherlands and Denmark. That seems to be improving in Seattle — at least half the dozens of people cycling along the route I took to get from downtown to the university were women my age.

TDB Recommends NewzEngine.com

 

Another recent study in Denmark of over 20,000 school children found that walking or cycling to school significantly improved their ability to concentrate and mental performance, even more than breakfast or lunch. (Not that meals aren’t important!) Allowing kids to walk or cycle to school with safe routes would also do a lot to reduce peak congestion. Everyone knows roads are clearer during school holidays.

 

In Seattle, there is good modal integration. That is to say, buses and light rail can accommodate bicycles, which helps extend the reach of both public transport and cycling. There are some good dedicated off-road cycle trails through the city, which carry thousands of commuters and students on work days.

 

New Zealand can learn from the steps Seattle is taking.

 

Investing in safe, welcoming infrastructure that makes it easy to cycle for transport in towns and cities is a no-brainer. It is much cheaper to provide infrastructure and parking for bicycles than cars. It helps reduce the pressure on public transport. It creates welcoming, people-friendly places that are good for business and socialising. Most of all, bicycling is much more affordable for households and great for public health. Cycle infrastructure, if done well, even works well for wheelchairs and mobility scooters – so it is accessible for people of all ages and abilities.

 

Bicycling is great for people and for towns and cities, but at the moment most people don’t have the option to cycle because of decisions local and central government are making to prioritise vehicles (at much higher cost to everyone).

 

We need to let local and central government know that we want to be able to cycle, at least some of the time. Our kids have a birthright to breath clean air, have a stable climate, and walk or cycle safely to school.

 

I have been bicycling for transport for over a decade, even in Auckland, and even though I know the environment can be safer and more pleasant with smart investment, I still benefit greatly from getting around by bike.

 

If you’re bicycle-curious, check out the video below!

2 COMMENTS

  1. The invention of a chain-driven bicycle with gears marked the pinnacle of human achievement:

    1. a bicycle requires less energy to move a person a given distance than walking.

    2. apart from the embedded CO2 involved in manufacture, a bicycle is as close to carbon-neutral as one can get.

    The problem with bicycles is that they require so little oil; just that needed to lubricate and that needed to manufacture tyres and brakes, a mere pittance. In a society which is controlled by oil companies and money-lenders that just will not do.

    Be a ‘good citizen’ and go out and buy a vehicle with a huge engine, using money you don’t have and need to pay interest on, so that oil companies can continue looting a polluting the planet and their mates in the banking sector can continue to get multi-million-dollar bonuses.

    Oh, and also, keep voting for bought-and-paid-for liars while you’re at it. They’ll spend your tax money on more roads at every opportunity and make sure your children have no future.

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