2302 replies to this topic

[Matt R.]

Unavoidable hill in the middle, but I was in great shape.

[Mike K.]

Looks like a good ol' fashioned barrel burn up the hill there.

[splashflash]

SSI has gotta be one of the least bike friendly places in the CRD. Terrible potholes and bumps, narrow highways, no lines painted, no shoulder most places, no room for bike lanes, let alone bikes, twisty corners, and those laid back islanders sure know how to find the gas when they’re trying to catch the ferry.

I really can’t understand the appeal of cycling on SSI. Seems like a great way to have a near death experience imo.

Yes, it’s awful and I don’t know why people promote it. I spent about seven years cycling from Tillicum to the oak bay marina, not much in the way of bike lanes back then so mostly just in traffic and that felt very safe. Cycling here? No way. I tried.

SSI, cycling safety focused planning is coming your way. Brought to you by the provincial MoTI:https://www2.gov.bc....5F7CBEAD98EDE0F

Edited by splashflash, 29 March 2024 - 08:13 AM.

[Matt R.]

Looks like a good ol' fashioned barrel burn up the hill there.

That’s the landlord burning yard waste I believe.

[aastra]

 

...but I was in great shape.

 

VV forumer. 'Nuff said.

[Mike K.]

That’s the landlord burning yard waste I believe.

Classic.

“Siri, describe for me an ironic scene.”
“Sure. A group of cyclists are gathering after travelling aboard a diesel-powered ferry to an environmentally-concerned island community, where they will spend the weekend riding their bicycles along tight, dangerous, winding roads that locals speed down. In the distance residents burn yard waste.”

[Mike K.]

Has there been a decrease in cycling in the region? All of these new curb-plunked cycling lanes that have narrowed critical road infrastructure, and no cyclists them.

What are we doing wrong, if these lanes were described as barriers to cycling but months or even a year-plus following their installation there is no activity in them.

[Nparker]

They (not we) keep voting for the wrong people, who waste taxpayer money on infrastructure that only a small fraction of the population ever uses.

[max.bravo]

Has there been a decrease in cycling in the region? All of these new curb-plunked cycling lanes that have narrowed critical road infrastructure, and no cyclists them.

What are we doing wrong, if these lanes were described as barriers to cycling but months or even a year-plus following their installation there is no activity in them.

Because riding a bike sucks. It's difficult, you get sweaty, and it's either too cold (90% of the time), or too hot (10%).

 

I'm guessing work-from-home is a reason we see fewer bikes using the bike lanes. I biked to work sometimes when I had to commute downtown for a government job. Very few government workers are required to spend 5 days/week in office now...

[lanforod]

It’s difficult? Huh?

[max.bravo]

only 1000x more effort required than sitting in a climate conditioned comfy chair and depressing a gas pedal... 

[max.bravo]

my point is that bike lanes only work for a very small segment of the population -- people who can arrive to work sweaty, have secure bike parking on site, or can bring their bikes into the office, who are outdoorsy and willing to invest in the right clothing to make it work, have time to spare (because its slower than driving), who have a relatively short commute, who are willing to undertake a more dangerous form of commuting, and who never have to pick up kids or groceries...

 

here are some of the people who bike lanes will never work for

• the obese and overweight (its hard, makes them too sweaty)  63% of canadians fall into this category https://www150.statc...e/00005-eng.htm
• tradespeople who need tools with them
• anyone with limited mobility / any kind of physical disability (including vision, hearing, balance, neurological issues)
• delivery jobs
• people who make sales calls / visit clients around the city
• people who have to drop off / pick up kids
• people who have tight schedules
• people who work from home
• people who can't show up to work sweaty and change at work
• people who work on-call jobs who are required to show up quickly
• people who arent confident bike riders who feel like it's too dangerous to share the road with big trucks
• people who don't like outdoorsy stuff 

bike lanes are realistically useable for mayyyybe 10% of the population, at best.

 

I'm pro-bike lanes though. I used to commute on the lochside trail from north saanich to downtown on an e-bike - it was great, at a certain time in my life (no kids, more leisure time, fewer responsibilities). Now it's an impossibility for me.

Edited by max.bravo, 30 March 2024 - 09:04 AM.

[lanforod]

Ah okay, you're equating effort with difficulty.

[Victoria Watcher]

my point is that bike lanes only work for a very small segment of the population -- people who can arrive to work sweaty, have secure bike parking on site, or can bring their bikes into the office, who are outdoorsy and willing to invest in the right clothing to make it work, have time to spare (because its slower than driving), who have a relatively short commute, who are willing to undertake a more dangerous form of commuting, and who never have to pick up kids or groceries...

here are some of the people who bike lanes will never work for

• the obese and overweight (its hard, makes them too sweaty) 63% of canadians fall into this category https://www150.statc...e/00005-eng.htm
• tradespeople who need tools with them
• anyone with limited mobility / any kind of physical disability (including vision, hearing, balance, neurological issues)
• delivery jobs
• people who make sales calls / visit clients around the city
• people who have to drop off / pick up kids
• people who have tight schedules
• people who work from home
• people who can't show up to work sweaty and change at work
• people who work on-call jobs who are required to show up quickly
• people who arent confident bike riders who feel like it's too dangerous to share the road with big trucks
• people who don't like outdoorsy stuff

bike lanes are realistically useable for mayyyybe 10% of the population, at best.

I'm pro-bike lanes though. I used to commute on the lochside trail from north saanich to downtown on an e-bike - it was great, at a certain time in my life (no kids, more leisure time, fewer responsibilities). Now it's an impossibility for me.

How about:


Those that never biked regularly as a child or youth.


Which is almost all younger people now.

[Nparker]

...here are some of the people who bike lanes will never work for...

• Ambulance drivers
• Firefighters
• NASCAR racers

[Victoria Watcher]

Didn’t that one famous race car driver become seriously disabled by a skiing accident. Talk about crazy unlucky.




The German star was skiing in the French Alps resort of Meribel in December 2013 with son Mick, then 14, when he went off-piste and hit his head on a boulder, suffering catastrophic injuries despite the fact he was wearing a helmet. His wife Corrina revealed that on the day of the accident, Schumacher had voiced concerns that the snow wasn't up to scratch and suggested aborting the trip in favour of skydiving in Dubai.

https://www.mirror.c...th-28863328.amp

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 30 March 2024 - 09:27 AM.

[mbjj]

We rode our bikes all over the Cowichan Valley in the 1960s and 70s, all the way out to Cowichan Station for a day trip with lunch (no parents involved), or up the steep Lakes Road hill once we got our ten speeds. I used to ride a bike a bit around Victoria, but haven't for years now. I'm too lazy and always have things to carry or people to take somewhere. 

[Victoria Watcher]

Council approved a five-year implementation strategy for the nine cycling facilities prioritized in the 2023 Oak Bay Active Transportation Strategy Review to be funded through taxes. That translates to a 1.15-per-cent tax increase for 2024 and starts with hiring two full-time active transportation coordinators.

https://www.vicnews....network-7334890


Two full time active transportation coordinators. At a time where kids have never used less active transportation. At a time that less and less Oak Bay residents cycle.

 

 

 

 

Oak Bay has backpedalled on funding staff for cycling transportation improvements in this year’s budget just days after it settled on a five-year plan on cycling infrastructure.

 

On Monday, council decided on a five-year plan to improve nine cycling routes after hours of deliberation.

 

But three days later, council narrowly voted in favour of halving the staff allocated for the initiative in a bid to avoid a double-digit tax increase.

 

Mayor Kevin Murdoch said the move was made to lower the projected Oak Bay tax increase, which had gone up to a projected 10.4 per cent this year. “Our net budget was creeping up,” he said.

 

The staffing level change was one of several decisions made Thursday to move projects forward, but still keep the tax increase below nine per cent, he said.

Coun. Carrie Smart, who voted against cutting the funds, said the original plan would have cost $250,000.

 

“The mayor had voted on Monday to go ahead with the five-year implementation plan which would have needed two staff members, and then his vote changed in the budget deliberations,” Smart said.

 

 

 

https://www.timescol...k-plans-8532507

Edited by Victoria Watcher, 31 March 2024 - 05:40 AM.

[aastra]

 

All of these new curb-plunked cycling lanes that have narrowed critical road infrastructure, and no cyclists them.

 

I've seen some cyclists.

[Nparker]

...All of these new curb-plunked cycling lanes that have narrowed critical road infrastructure, and no cyclists them...

It could be worse. They might use this to separate the bike lanes.