All posts by John Dawson
Tell town planners where cycle parking is most needed
Convenient and secure cycle parking will encourage more people to commute on two wheels. Now you can help decide where it’s needed. Full article – Guardian.co.uk
Double hit for taxpayers as NRA needs €100m bailout on toll roads
NRA get toll figures wrong by 20 to 30% – but it’s taxpayers that will pay
- On the M3 traffic is 22% below the penalty payments level
- Traffic is 26% below the penalty payments level on the Limerick Tunnel
- Taxpayers face a €100m bill over the life of PPP contracts based on a scenario favourable to the NRA i.e. traffic growth assumed from 2011
- Arrogance and naivety of the NRA shown in toll road contracts
- NRA continues to use discredited projections in attempting to justify further motorway
The NRA’s expectation that traffic would grow rapidly has proved hopelessly inaccurate. Continue reading Double hit for taxpayers as NRA needs €100m bailout on toll roads
Controversial speed limit in the capital to be lifted
A CONTROVERSIAL speed limit in the capital is to be lifted from parts of the city.
Councillors last night voted to remove parts of the quays from a 30kmh traffic-calming scheme in Dublin city centre. The speed limits have been the subject of complaints from drivers since their introduction at the end of January. Continue reading Controversial speed limit in the capital to be lifted
Bicycle Politics workshop report
There were participants from across the planet – South Africa, India, Australia, the US, Spain, Denmark, Ireland and Italy – as well as from across the UK. And they came from many walks of life – activists, students and academics, transport planners, cycle trainers and bike co-op members. What united us was a passion for cycling, and a belief that cycling can change the world. Full report
How to Get More Bicyclists on the Road
Getting people out of cars and onto bicycles, a much more sustainable form of transportation, has long vexed environmentally conscious city planners. Although bike lanes painted on streets and automobile-free “greenways” have increased ridership over the past few years, the share of people relying on bikes for transportation is still less than 2 percent, based on various studies. An emerging body of research suggests that a superior strategy to increase pedal pushing could be had by asking the perennial question: What do women want? Full article.
Insanity in Galway
Inspired by this example from Harlow, Galway City Council have created this even more ambitious scheme on Doughiska Road. Unfortunately, the cost of erecting Cyclists Dismount signs at the 18 junctions, 41 private drives and 12 bus stops interrupting this 1.4km shared use pavement proved prohibitive, so they had to compromise by painting Give Way markings on the pavement.
Cyclist.ie meeting Galway Sat 25th NUIG 11a.m.
Is there a better way to share our streets?
Ben Hamilton-Baille wants cars and people to share the same street space and he believes that this will make cities safer for pedestrians and drivers. Ben Hamilton-Baillie likes taking risk. He thinks we all need more of it in our daily lives.
“How we manage and live with it is part of the natural orders of life. Trying to mollycoddle motorists and cocoon them in safety equipment is good for neither the driver nor the other road users with whom they share the streets.” Full article.
What’s the best way to keep cyclists safe from the monsters of the road?
UK Guardian: There is an ad campaign running at the moment encouraging cyclists and truck drivers to look out for each other, stressing the role of both in preventing the deaths of the former. Full story.