PSA for the day: DO NOT BUY (or let your kids buy) random branded bicycle helmets off Amazon. A lot of them ABSOLUTELY FAIL US safety standards. If you are going to buy a helmet nowadays, buy a MIPS helmet. #bicycles #helmets #bikes #BikeTooter

PSA for the day: DO NOT BUY (or let your kids buy) random branded bicycle helmets off Amazon. A lot of them ABSOLUTELY FAIL US safety standards. If you are going to buy a helmet nowadays, buy a MIPS helmet. #bicycles #helmets #bikes #BikeTooter

Swapping brakes and levers

@bicycles

I have a randonneur bike from the 1980ies which still has many of the original parts. As far as i can tell it still has the original calipers and brake levers (shimano 600 ex or something similar, with cel 60 levers that go perpendicular in front of the handlebar; the caliper just says dia compe, it might be a dia compe gran compe 400). The brake shoes have been changed of course, but still the brakes are not very good. Trying to adjust the bowden cables didn't change much.

I'd like to take the bike for a tour across the alps, and am trying to figure out how to improve the brakes for it to feel safe. Does it make sense to change them completely, or should they still do their job well if set up correctly? If they should be changed, what do I need to consider when changing them? Since they are screwed onto the handlebar, would any modern break lever fit? What kind of brake should I get for a good improvement in brake strength if I don't want to go for disc brakes?

#cycling #bicycles #bicycling

"If you take all this parking for a bike lane, where will I park my car? You're not considering my needs!"

#bicycles#CarsRuinCities

https://www.andysinger.com/bikesample9.html

"If you take all this parking for a bike lane, where will I park my car? You're not considering my needs!"

#bicycles#CarsRuinCities

https://www.andysinger.com/bikesample9.html

I rode 80km last night putting up posters along bike routes in to the Melbourne CBD so people would be informed about the proposed e-bike ban on trains so you better make a submission.

#melbourne #bicycles

https://engage.vic.gov.au/public-transport-regulations

I rode 80km last night putting up posters along bike routes in to the Melbourne CBD so people would be informed about the proposed e-bike ban on trains so you better make a submission.

#melbourne #bicycles

https://engage.vic.gov.au/public-transport-regulations

New protected bike lanes on Park St in South Melbourne are really narrow and have been built by taking space from pedestrians and cutting down trees. That's disappointing. It was midnight and I still had people standing and walking in the bike lane so this design is going to be quite frustrating to use.

#melbourne #bicycles

New protected bike lanes on Park St in South Melbourne are really narrow and have been built by taking space from pedestrians and cutting down trees. That's disappointing. It was midnight and I still had people standing and walking in the bike lane so this design is going to be quite frustrating to use.

#melbourne #bicycles

A car does 10,000 times more damage to a road than a bicycle so dividing the $0.05/km road usage charge applied to cars by 10,000 we get a fair price for bicycle riders to pay for the wear and tear they do to the road at $0.000005/km) assuming my ~3000km/yr.

Sometimes carbrains say stupid things like "cyclists don't pay for the roads", or "you can have bike lanes when you pay for the roads"

My life time fair road usage charge would be something like $1.50.

#bicycles #melbourne#RoadUsageTax

https://theconversation.com/stop-the-free-ride-all-motorists-should-pay-their-way-whatever-vehicle-they-drive-262950

A car does 10,000 times more damage to a road than a bicycle so dividing the $0.05/km road usage charge applied to cars by 10,000 we get a fair price for bicycle riders to pay for the wear and tear they do to the road at $0.000005/km) assuming my ~3000km/yr.

Sometimes carbrains say stupid things like "cyclists don't pay for the roads", or "you can have bike lanes when you pay for the roads"

My life time fair road usage charge would be something like $1.50.

#bicycles #melbourne#RoadUsageTax

https://theconversation.com/stop-the-free-ride-all-motorists-should-pay-their-way-whatever-vehicle-they-drive-262950

@yianiris@ajsadauskas One more important point to share: Overall road deaths per 100,000 people.

The OECD average is 4.28 people killed driving each year per 100,000 people.

The Netherlands is slightly below this at 4.19.

And the USA? It's at 12.84.

Source: https://datahub.roadsafety.gov.au/progress-reporting/international-comparisons

So you are more than three times more likely to be killed on the roads in the USA than in the Netherlands.

And you are more than four times more likely to be killed cycling (per kilometre cycled) in the USA.

#cycling #cylce #bicycling #urbanism #UrbanPlanning #bicycles #bicycle #bikes #bike #Netherlands #TheNetherlands #Holland #Europe

@yianiris@ajsadauskas One more important point to share: Overall road deaths per 100,000 people.

The OECD average is 4.28 people killed driving each year per 100,000 people.

The Netherlands is slightly below this at 4.19.

And the USA? It's at 12.84.

Source: https://datahub.roadsafety.gov.au/progress-reporting/international-comparisons

So you are more than three times more likely to be killed on the roads in the USA than in the Netherlands.

And you are more than four times more likely to be killed cycling (per kilometre cycled) in the USA.

#cycling #cylce #bicycling #urbanism #UrbanPlanning #bicycles #bicycle #bikes #bike #Netherlands #TheNetherlands #Holland #Europe

@yianiris@ajsadauskas Let's run through this:

"The more you (the state) separate vehicles the more likely is to have car drivers assume the "road" belongs to cars only and display no mercy from "invading" vehicles on their domain. They will not even LOOK for a bicycle at some stage, and motorcycles are also in danger for the same bias."

Typically, the dedicated bike lanes go on main roads.

Side streets still have mixed traffic, and are dropped to 30 kph or less.

Here's what the research shows:

"Pedestrian crash: There is a 10 per cent risk that a pedestrian will be killed if hit by a modern car at 30km/h.

"At a 50km/h impact speed, the risk increases to 80 per cent.

"Side impact crash with another vehicle: There is a 10 per cent risk that a person in a safe car will be killed if they crash at speed of up to 45-50km/h. At a 70km/h impact speed, the risk increases to 80 per cent.

"Side impact crash with a tree/pole: Because the energy is concentrated on a smaller area, side impact crashes with a narrow, fixed object, like a tree or pole, are less survivable than those with another vehicle, and the fatality risk at 45-50km/h is much higher.

"Head on/frontal impact with another vehicle: There is a 10 per cent risk of a driver/passenger being killed at collision speeds up to 70km/h. At 90km/h the risk is up to 80 per cent.

"With increased speed, the amount of energy released in a crash increases. It is inevitable that some of this energy will be absorbed by the human body. However, the human body can only withstand limited forces before injury or death occurs.

"Pedestrians and bicycle riders are particularly vulnerable as they are unprotected during a crash."

https://www.icare.nsw.gov.au/-/media/icare/unique-media/employers/employer-obligations/injury-prevention/road-safety/speed-fact-sheet.pdf

In short, speed is the key risk factor.

So the aim on side streets is to drop the speed limit to 30 kph or less, and add traffic calming, to drop the risk of a fatality to 10%.

On main roads where the speed limit is above 30 kph, you separate out cyclists into dedicated separated lanes, making collisions less frequent.

And the most car-centric drivers who think the road belongs to them tend to be in car-dependent suburban areas where driving is the only viable mode of transport.

"Tremendous expense and useless infrastructure, trillions of tons of more cement to sink into the ground, just so the state can pretend it did something for public safety."

It's a far more effective use of street space than an additional lane for car traffic, which is what the alternative would be.

Because the modal share for driving only decreases when there are viable, safe, and faster alternatives.

"In countries where there are virtually no bike lanes other vehicles have learned to watch and respect cyclists."

The modal share for cycling is far higher in the Netherlands than any major US city:

"Already world-leading in cycling for transport, new figures from the Netherlands show that modal share is now topping 50% of journeys in some regions.

"Utrecht leads the way, with 51% of journeys made by bike, according data from the Knowledge Institute for Mobility Policy. Amsterdam closely follows with 48% of trips cycled."

https://cyclingindustry.news/netherlands-further-builds-on-cyclings-modal-share-hitting-51-in-utrecht/

"US/UK/AUS/NL/FR have the most fatal cyclist accidents than everyone else."

The US has a significantly higher rate of fatal cycling accidents per billion kilometres cycled than the Netherlands.

And it's not even close.

It's 44 per bn km cycled in the US, vs 10.7 in the Netherlands:

"In countries like the Netherlands and Denmark where people cycle an average of 864 and 513 kilometers each year, the number of cyclists killed per billion kilometers of bicycle travel stands at 10.7 and 14.6 respectively.

"Compare that to the United States where the average cyclist travels 47 kilometers in a year. However, the death toll stands at 44 per billion kilometers, pointing towards the fact that the fewer cyclists there are, the more likely accidents and fatalities are to occur."

https://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2015/02/24/the-more-cyclists-in-a-country-the-fewer-fatal-crashes-report-infographic/?sh=3d721b6d33b3

So you are four times more likely as a cyclist to be killed on roads in the US than the Netherlands.

The big difference is that the modal share for cycling in Utrecht is over 50%.

So yes, if more people in absolute terms are cycling every day, then in absolute terms more people will be in crashes than in cities where hardly anyone cycles.

But per km cycled, the Netherlands is 4x safer than the US.

#cycling #cylce #bicycling #urbanism #UrbanPlanning #bicycles #bicycle #bikes #bike #Netherlands #TheNetherlands #Holland #Europe

oh hey mastodon, i hear you friggin nerds like #bicycles, so get ready for a #photodump 🧵 from today's visit to the Cincinnati Museum of Art's exhibit "Cycle Thru! The Art of the Bike". https://www.cincinnatiartmuseum.org/art/exhibitions/cycle-thru-the-art-of-the-bike/
first, below are some 1890s bikes. my favorite of this set is at bottom right.

last one for tonight. some 1950s and 1960s #bicycles

bottom right: Pee-wee Herman's bike
top right: a pretty green Huffy with a radio built into the frame! aptly called Radiobike®️ and it has red grips and a freakin headlight!
bottom left: predecessor to the recumbent bike
top left: a slick beautiful bike from Sears called Spaceliner. it has a sort of mid-century modern mixed with art deco styling. i'll be posting more very cool Sears bikes tomorrow. for now, goodnight!

oh hey mastodon, i hear you friggin nerds like #bicycles, so get ready for a #photodump 🧵 from today's visit to the Cincinnati Museum of Art's exhibit "Cycle Thru! The Art of the Bike". https://www.cincinnatiartmuseum.org/art/exhibitions/cycle-thru-the-art-of-the-bike/
first, below are some 1890s bikes. my favorite of this set is at bottom right.