An outpouring of spectacular gibberish

 

What part of cheaper, healthier, environmentally beneficial don't these folks understand?

 

By Ethan Baron, The Province October 7, 2010 7:32 AM 

 There appears to be no end to the irrationality of citizens opposed to separated bike lines in downtown Vancouver. The city's approval Tuesday of a Hornby Street trial lane has provoked an outpouring of spectacular gibberish.

"These cyclist Nazis are taking over our city," one Province reader laments on our website. "They will not be happy until all our streets are converted too [sic] bike lanes."

Another reader complains that drivers are "subsidizing" cyclists.

In fact, it's the other way around: cyclists subsidize drivers, paying for road construction and maintenance through rent and property taxes while using only a small portion of the road and causing virtually no wear and tear. And cyclists are far from "taking over" the roads. The 2006 census showed that, while bicyclists make up four per cent of Vancouver commuters, only one per cent of the roadway is dedicated to them.

Motorists opposed to separated bike lanes commonly get their knickers in a twist over "scofflaw" cyclists running stop lights, weaving among lanes and failing to wear helmets.

These complaints are made in all seriousness, as if Vancouver drivers don't commit similar offences in vast numbers -- speeding, running lights, making unsafe lane changes and failing to wear seat-belts.

The consequences of such illegal behaviour are far more serious when motor vehicles, rather than bicycles, are involved, and all drivers pay higher ICBC rates as a consequence of dangerous motorist behaviour.

Vindictive calls for cyclists to carry insurance, so they have to "pay their way" as drivers do, are frequently heard, but of course ignore the fact that cyclists cause virtually none of the damage to people and property for which insurance is required.

What's especially absurd about all this anti-cycling nonsense from motorists is their refusal to acknowledge that every bike on the street represents one less car to delay these very same complaining drivers in traffic. Bicyclists add further benefits to drivers' lives by engaging in a healthy activity that reduces medical-system costs.

The contention that building dedicated bike lanes won't boost cycle commuting in a city that receives frequent rainfall in the winter falls apart in the face of statistics from Copenhagen, Denmark, an equally rainy city where, according to a City of Vancouver report, 37 per cent of commuters travel by bicycle.

Naturally, Hornby Street businesses have concerns about the loss of 158 parking spaces to make way for the bike lane.

Owners worry that customers will go elsewhere if they can't park close by. However, a City of Vancouver report confirming that there are 10,000 public parking spots within a block of Hornby shows this fear is unfounded.

We as a society have a responsibility to move toward transportation habits that reduce global warming. Mayor Gregor Robinson deserves credit for pushing ahead with bike lanes in the face of significant public opposition.

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