Charles Akben-Marchand, a frequent contributor to the comments on this WSA blog, does a good job dealing with the criticisms of the proposed Laurier segregated bike lane project. It is well worth reading:
http://centretown.blogspot.com/2011/01/my-take-on-laurier-segregated-bike-lane.html
I had a little chat with Terry Scanlon, the hot dog vendor at Bank/Laurier yesterday, He was expressing concern about the bike route. I could tell that he did not like the idea but he did not know my position. So slowly, I started to talk about the benefits and how hard it already is to park near Bank/Laurier during the day. Surely someone (me) on a bike might be more inclined to grab a hot dog than someone who has to search for a parking spot. I also told him about the plans for more parking on Gloucester. By the end he seemed to think it wasn’t such a bad idea after all. I suspect the effected businesses do not get all the facts from the Bank Street BIA.
Thanks Chris, that’s a great idea!
Thanks Charles, By the way, I heard that the CFSC voted 7-1 last night in support of the Laurier SBL. It will be good to get a consistent message from them.
I commented here because it’s the most recent cycling post of yours I could find.
Page 3 of this article
http://outsideonline.com/adventure/travel-ga-201103-new-york-bike-commuting-sidwcmdev_154507.html?page=3
has this interesting statement:
When New York City put a protected bike lane on Ninth Avenue, some protested it as unsafe for people on foot. But since the lane’s opening, pedestrian injuries on Ninth have dropped by 29 percent. Last year, as miles of bike lanes were added, New York had its best pedestrian-safety record ever.