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CanStar Weekly online: Group's cycling survey reveals some interesting results
by Beth McKechnie 24 Aug '11

24 Aug '11

Group’s cycling survey reveals some interesting results By: Marlo Campbell Posted: 08/24/2011 "If you build it, they will come," seems to be the theory underlying recent investments in local active-transportation infrastructure. Last year saw an unprecedented $20.4 million was spent on upgrades to Winnipeg’s AT network — everything from improved signage and painted bike lanes to new multi-use pathways and those oh-so-controversial traffic-calming circles. One assumes the goal of such investments is to encourage more citizens to cycle by making it safer and more convenient to do so — which begs the question: how do we know whether the improvements are having the desired effect? The answer: count the number of Winnipeggers riding bikes. Bike to the Future, a volunteer-run organization working to promote cycling as a means of transportation, has been doing exactly this for the past five years. Each spring, it stations people at various locations around the city during morning and afternoon rush hours to document the level of bicycle traffic. Because its focus is on commuter cycling, counts are limited to weekdays with special attention paid to routes in and out of downtown, particularly "choke points" (such as bridges) that cyclists can’t avoid. Since 2007, volunteers have completed 312 counts at 86 locations. This year, they completed 96 counts at 45 locations — 21 of which formed a circle downtown, although counts were also done in Fort Garry near the University of Manitoba, in St. Vital at Dakota Street and Bishop Grandin Boulevard, in St. James at Overdale Street and Bruce Avenue, and in West Kildonan at Main Street and the Chief Peguis Trail. The 2011 final report was released Aug. 12 and is available at biketothefuture.org. It estimates 5,600 Winnipeggers commute into downtown by bike on a typical spring weekday — but volunteers recorded other things, too. For example, 61% of cyclists were observed to be wearing helmets (more women than men), while, on average, 53% of cyclists rode illegally on sidewalks. Jeremy Hull, the volunteer co-ordinator/manager of the annual count, says sidewalk riding depends a lot on location. Take the underpass on Pembina Highway near Jubilee Avenue, for example. "People are very afraid of going through the underpass," Hull says. "They’ll cross Pembina and take the sidewalk and then come back — at quite a bit of extra inconvenience to them, in some cases." This year’s most surprising finding is an apparent 20% decline in commuter cycling traffic from 2010 (although it should be noted that overall bike traffic has increased by an estimated 20% since 2007). Hull suggests this could be explained by geography and Bike to the Future’s limited capacity. "Maybe cycling is increasing in general, but maybe, because we’re counting at these places that haven’t been improved, like the bridges, we’re not capturing it. So maybe people are cycling more on those trails within Fort Rouge or within St. James or within other area of the city, but they’re not crossing the bridges; they’re taking short trips and doing things within their neighbourhoods, or going on some of the new trails that we just aren’t capturing." Hull’s hypothesis begs another question: why is the city relying on volunteers to collect such important data? If it’s truly committed to developing Winnipeg’s AT network, shouldn’t it also be committed to documenting cycling trends in order to know where future investments are needed? If you build it, they will come — but only if you build it right. *Marlo Campbell drives a car to work but cycles for fun. There’s no way in hell she’d ride her bike through the Pembina underpass.* http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/our-communities/column/

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APBP 2011 Professional Development Seminars
by Mark Cohoe 24 Aug '11

24 Aug '11

*APBP 2011 Professional Development Seminar *October 24-27 | Charlotte, N.C. Details and registration: www.apbppds.org <http://www.apbp.org/link.asp?e=markc@biketothefuture.org&job=444708&ymlink=…> *Early registration rates in effect through September 14* Plan to attend the best sustainable transportation conference in 2011! Join a wide cohort of bicycle and pedestrian staff, consultants, engineers, planners, landscape architects, policymakers, advocates, and many others at APBP's Professional Development Seminar in Charlotte, N.C., October 24-27. Complete Streets is the focus of this year's seminar, and Charlotte is a living laboratory where participants can explore textbook policy and exemplary implementation. Three conference tracks will focus on Complete Streets Design and Implementation, Livability and Economic Development, and New Guidelines, Research and Standards. PDS participants may choose from 26 in-depth, three-hour classroom and mobile sessions beginning Tuesday, October 25. Special all-day intensive seminars on Monday, October 24, offer deep classroom learning opportunities about Smart Trips, Healthy Living In Place, and Toward Zero Deaths as well as mobile sessions to Greenville and Spartanburg, S.C. and Davidson, N.C. Attendees will have the opportunity to learn from a dream team of bike/ped experts, including Andy Clarke, League of American Bicyclists; Barbara McCann, National Complete Streets Coalition; Dan Burden, Walkable and Livable Communities Institute; exceptional professionals from Charlotte's Department of Transportation; and many other recognized masters. Find the conference agenda and session details at www.apbppds.org <http://www.apbp.org/link.asp?e=markc@biketothefuture.org&job=444708&ymlink=…>. A student poster contest offers five winners the chance to attend the conference through a student scholarship award and travel stipend. Conference Location and Hotel: The Blake Hotel 555 South McDowell Street Charlotte, NC28204 (704) 372-4100 Website: http://www.blakehotelnc.com/ <http://www.apbp.org/link.asp?e=markc@biketothefuture.org&job=444708&ymlink=…> Click here <http://www.apbp.org/link.asp?e=markc@biketothefuture.org&job=444708&ymlink=…> to learn how to make your reservation at the group rate of $95 (king) or $129 (two doubles) per night. The room block is open until 9/23/11 or until full, whichever occurs first. The GSA per diem hotel rate for Charlotte is $95. For exhibit and sponsorship opportunities, contact sponsorship(a)apbp.org <mailto:sponsorship@apbp.org>. Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals PO Box 93 . Cedarburg, WI . 53012 262.228.7025 . info(a)apbp.org <mailto:info@apbp.org> www.apbp.org <http://www.apbp.org/link.asp?e=markc@biketothefuture.org&job=444708&ymlink=…>

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People Powered photo contest - submit your biking and walking pics!
by Beth McKechnie 24 Aug '11

24 Aug '11

http://www.peoplepoweredmovement.org/site/index.php/photo-contest The *People Powered Movement Photo Contest* addresses a critical need for bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organizations. Bicycle and pedestrian advocates need high-quality images of biking and walking to make their campaigns and communications both professional and engaging. Our nationwide contest builds our online Photo Library<http://www.peoplepoweredmovement.org/site/index.php/photo-library/>, which provides hundreds of images for Alliance members to download and use at no cost. Support grassroots advocacy by submitting your best biking and walking photos for use in the Alliance’s photo library. Enter the 2011 People Powered Movement Photo Contest! * * *You could win:* - An all-expense-paid trip to Tuscany from VBT Bicycling and Walking Vacations <http://www.vbt.com/> - A new bicycle from PUBLIC Bikes <http://publicbikes.com/> - Bags from Ortlieb <http://www.ortliebusa.com/> - Great products from Planet Bike <http://www.planetbike.com/> - Helmets from Bern <http://www.bernunlimited.com/> - *Bikes Are Better* products and gear from Fyxation<http://www.fyxation.com/> - PLUS, winning photos will be published in Momentum magazine<http://momentumplanet.com/> The contest runs from August 1 to October 31, 2011. - Online photo submissions will be accepted from August 1 to September 30. - Public voting will open October 1 and close October 31. - Winners will be announced in early 2012. Official 2011 People Powered Movement Photo Contest Terms And Conditions 1. *The People Powered Movement Photo Contest is open to all*. Eligible photos must be related to biking and walking and be generic in nature or taken in North America. 2. Entrants must provide contact information (valid e-mail address and name) to be eligible to win. 3. To be eligible, participants must enter each image in at least one of the following seven categories. The Alliance reserves the right to switch images to other categories. (See Photos page for full descriptions of each category. 1. *Biking* 2. *Walking* 3. *Biking and walking* 4. *Open Streets* 5. *Advocates in Action* 6. *Women* 7. *Diversity / Building an Inclusive Movement* 4. Each individual is eligible to submit up to 20 photos. 5. Photographs must be in digital format. No print or film submissions will be accepted for entry into this Contest 6. All digital files must be 5 megabytes or smaller, must be in JPEG or .jpg format, and must be at least 300 dpi (dots per inch or pixels per inch) 7. All images must be digitally uploaded. We do not accept mailed or shipped entries. 8. Entrants retain their ownership and other rights to their photos, but they grant the Alliance for Biking & Walking and its member organizations use of the photos for any and all purposes related to charitable work promoting bicycling and walking. 9. Digital Alterations: All photographs should accurately reflect the subject matter and the scene as it appeared. Photos that have been digitally altered beyond standard optimization will be disqualified. Acceptable are adjustments to color, contrast, brightness and sharpness; removal of dust and scratches; cropping; and black and white conversions. 10. No photos will be returned. 11. *Contest runs from midnight Eastern Standard Time (EST) August 1, 2011 to 11:59 pm EST September 30, 2011 during which contest participants can submit photos. DEADLINE: The final date and time for submitting photos is 11:59 pm EST, September 30, 2011.* To avoid uploading delays, please do not wait until the final days of the contest to enter. Large number of entrants trying to upload their photos just prior to the deadline may cause unforeseen technical problems. 12. Voting period runs from October 1, 2011 to October 31, 2011, during which contest participants are able to vote for their favorite photos. 13. Contest winners will be announced in March 2012, and prizes will be distributed soon thereafter.

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More on reduced speed zones
by Beth McKechnie 24 Aug '11

24 Aug '11

[snipped from http://8-80cities.org/ August e-newsletter] * * *Effect of 20 mph traffic speed zones on road injuries in London* by Chris Grundy et al. in the British Medical Journal Road injuries are among the leading causes of mortality and disability worldwide, disproportionately borne by poor pedestrians, particularly children and young adults. Chris Grundy and his colleagues from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine investigate the effect of 20 mph (32 kph) speed zones on road casualties in London. They found that the introduction of 20 mph zones was associated with a 41.9% reduction in road casualties and that the percentage reduction was greatest in younger children and greater for the category of killed or seriously injured. In addition the researchers found that the areas adjacent to 20 mph zones, also had a reduction in casualties (8%) suggesting that there was no migration of casualties to nearby roads. Read the full article here<http://e2ma.net/go/7167857415/208643797/224271619/1404577/goto:http://www.8…> .

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City Cycling courses - Sept. 17 & 24
by Beth McKechnie 24 Aug '11

24 Aug '11

** please share widely! ** Leisure Guide cycling courses available in September! *city cycling for beginners* Do you want to ride your bike more often but just don’t feel safe? Do you want to teach your kids how to cycle safely? Can-Bike certified instructors from Bike to the Future will help you build both the knowledge and confidence to start riding on the streets and trails in Winnipeg. The course is endorsed by the Manitoba Cycling Association and each participant will receive a copy of the 2011 Winnipeg Cycling Map. *Fee:** $43.00 * *Fort Rouge Leisure Centre: 625 Osborne St.* *401595 Sat Sep 17 Noon–4:00pm* ** ** * * * * * *city cycling for commuters* new! Would you like to start commuting but are uncomfortable on busier streets? Are you already commuting, but want to learn the cycling skills that will allow you to ride safely in heavier traffic? Certified Can-Bike instructors from Bike to the Future will help you build the skills and knowledge to ride confidently in traffic. The course is endorsed by the Manitoba Cycling Association and each participant will receive a copy of the 2011 Winnipeg Cycling Map. *Fee: $43.00 * *Sport for Life Centre:145 Pacific Ave.* *401594 Sat Sep 24 Noon–4:00pm*

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Designing and Retrofitting Bridges for Active Transportation Handouts
by Mark Cohoe 23 Aug '11

23 Aug '11

Hi, Sorry I didn't manage to get these handouts sent out prior to the webinar last Wednesday (I've been sending messages to the list from the wrong email account). For those who would like to browse through the slides and handouts from that informative webinar, here <http://www.apbp.org/?page=Webinar_Downloads> they are. Mark October 19th, 2011 into your calendars, as Green Action Centre and Bike to the Future will be hosting the the APBP webinar, Multimodal Level of Service, on Wednesday October 19th, from 2-3pm in the MB EcoCentre boardroom at 303 Portage Avenue. Mark

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WFP online: Driving the future - Master transportation plan to be released in Sept (Aug.19'11)
by Beth McKechnie 23 Aug '11

23 Aug '11

Driving the future Master transportation plan to be released in September By: Jen Skerritt Forty-one years ago, Winnipeg metro councillor Bernie Wolfe warned cars would be on a "collision course" with cities unless governments of all levels sat down and negotiated a planned approach to urban transportation. At the time, Winnipeg was debating whether or not to move ahead with recommendations from a 1968 study to build 30 kilometres of freeways and an 8.6-kilometre subway system. Ultimately, the idea was scrapped, and the city grew to rely on major routes and traffic signals to keep vehicles flowing. Winnipeg has been without a long-term transportation plan ever since. Today, the city faces a similar dilemma: How will it upgrade its existing roadways and move people from point A to point B? The city is in the middle of finalizing a $1.15-million transportation master plan that will identify plans for land use and what future road and rapid-transit improvements are needed. It is expected to be publicly released in September and put to a city council vote on Oct. 19. Some critics worry history may repeat itself, and the plan will not have a specific vision for Winnipeg’s future. "Despite efforts and progress, we’re still simply trying to define what the heck we’re doing with our transportation system," said Jino Distasio, director of the University of Winnipeg’s Institute of Urban Studies. "I think it’s going to continue to put us behind other cities that have made significant strides in creating more integrated systems of transportation." Road infrastructure plays an important role in safety since it influences how people travel — via transit or bike lanes, for example — and how they interact with pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles on the road. Winnipeg is in a similar bind to other Canadian cities since it is trying to balance the need to fix and maintain existing roads and bridges while investing in major upgrades to transit and active transportation. Public works director Brad Sacher said roads and bridges built in the 1950s and 1960s are nearing the end of their lifespan. There is a need for significant rehabilitation of Winnipeg’s infrastructure in general, as well as for new infrastructure in response to growth in parts of the city. "It is a difficult balancing act and it’s a real challenge," Sacher said. Department staff have reviewed things such as traffic flow, collision data, transit patterns and active-transportation corridors to determine how people and goods move across the city, Sacher said. That way, the city can anticipate future growth and set aside space for things such as intersections and rights-of-way, instead of spending more money on costly road upgrades later, he said. The master plan will be "flexible," he said, and could prevent situations in which construction of major road infrastructure is required to catch up with development, such as along south Kenaston. "That’s a situation where it went from being a rail yard in the past to a very desirable location," Sacher said. "The trick in the longer term is to be out in front of as many development opportunities as possible so you can be as efficient as possible in planning them." Intersections are likely to need improvements before roadways since safety issues often arise when vehicle volumes increase. Winnipeg public works staff use engineering software tools to analyze how many vehicles travel through an intersection, the types of vehicles, pedestrian activity, traffic-signal timing and side-street traffic volumes to see what improvements can be made and what impact any improvements may have. One of the big fixes being made to the city’s intersection stop-and-go problem is taking a long time to complete. Mayor Sam Katz made synchronizing traffic signals an election pledge in 2006, but a recent audit found no workers are dedicated to the $11.5-million project, despite the fact it would improve safety and the flow of cars. Lights have not been synched in 80 intersections downtown, and traffic-signals-branch staff say they are still working on "tweaking" the timing of lights that have been synched elsewhere in the city. The project might not be done until 2013. Traffic signals engineer Michael Cantor said part of the difficulty is traffic flow is always changing, and even a five-second interval can make a difference between hitting a stretch of red or a stretch of green lights. Timing patterns will likely have to be updated every few years, he said. The city has hired an Ontario-based consulting firm to prepare a plan to time intersections based on speed, traffic volumes, distance between them and time of day. City staff will implement the timing plans, and the consultants will make any necessary additional changes. Engineers are currently trying to gauge how well the synchronization works on certain routes by comparing travel times before and after implementation. Cantor said city staff are driving the routes and timing them with a GPS. "We try to reduce delays and see the traffic going more fluidly." Some transportation activists are worried governments are spending an unprecedented amount of money on highways without considering the impact on cyclists and pedestrians within Winnipeg. Janice Lukes, head of the province’s active transportation advisory group, said provincial and federal governments have devoted more than $200 million to build an expressway for the CentrePort transportation hub but have not studied the need for active-transportation corridors or pathways as part of the industrial development. "Huge opportunities are being missed," Lukes said. CentrePort CEO Diane Gray said CentrePort has not examined active-transportation routes yet, but it is something that should be looked at as the development moves ahead. "I’m supportive of that because I don’t want to see cyclists riding on expressways next to large trucks," Gray said. "We need to find a balance here that makes sense." However, it’s still too early to predict how many people will travel to work at the Centre-Port air, rail and truck cargo hub every day and how many more vehicles could be flowing into Winnipeg, she said, because the numbers depend on what types of industries want to locate there. In general, labour-based industries employ more workers, while warehouses or distribution centres typically employ fewer people, Gray said. The new expressway is expected to reduce the number of vehicles on the western stretch of the Perimeter Highway by 5,900 trucks and cars a day and take pressure off feeder routes such as Oak Point Highway and Saskatchewan Avenue, she said. Distasio said what’s really missing in Winnipeg is innovation and leadership. A "car rules the road" mindset still exists among some Winnipeg drivers, he said, and the city has missed opportunities — such as in the debate surrounding parking at the new Bomber stadium — to educate the public about the merits of rapid transit and active transportation. Distasio said he’s not optimistic the city’s latest plan will outline any clear vision for the future. "I’m going to be very interested in whether this comprehensive plan actually says what it is we’re investing in. BRT (bus rapid transit), LRT (light rail transit), subways, seaways, tramways, gondolas to St. Vital?" Distasio said. "Does it actually say something or, for the umpteenth time, are we going to be wishy-washy?" jen.skerritt(a)freepress.mb.ca <%C2%A0jen.skerritt(a)freepress.mb.ca> Traffic flow See a map showing the average number of vehicles that drive on city streets in a 24-hour period<http://media.winnipegfreepress.com/documents/2009-TrafficFlow-Map.pdf>. Source: City of Winnipeg public works, 2009 Mapping a way forward for Winnipeg traffic *What's the city's plan to improve roadways and traffic flow?* *To figure out a plan:* The city is in the midst of finalizing a $1.15-million transportation master plan that will identify what future road and rapid-transit improvements are needed. City officials expect it will be publicly released in September and put to a city council vote on Oct. 19. *To finish what we started:* The city is also working to end one of Winnipeg’s greatest driving frustrations: getting stopped at multiple red lights on the same stretch of road. While a plan to synchronize traffic signals is six months behind schedule, city staff say it should be done by 2013. Here’s a look at which routes are done and which ones are scheduled to be done in the coming years. City staff say they’re still doing some "tweaks" to get the timing right on intersections that have already been synched. *Routes that are done:* Kenaston Boulevard — Academy Road to Scurfield Boulevard Lagimodiere Boulevard — Headmaster Row to Bishop Grandin Boulevard Main Street — Euclid Avenue to Fernbank Avenue St. Anne’s Road — Aldgate Road to St. Mary’s Road St. Mary’s Road — Burland Avenue to Marion Street/ Goulet Street Portage Avenue — Vaughan Street to St. Charles Street Bishop Grandin Boulevard — Lagimodiere Boulevard to Waverley Street McPhillips Street — Notre Dame Avenue to Templeton Avenue Pembina Highway — Confusion Corner to Rue des Trappistes *Routes to by synched this year:* Henderson Highway — Hespeler Avenue to McIvor Avenue Grant Avenue/Roblin Boulevard — Pembina Highway to Barker Boulevard/Dale Boulevard *DOWNTOWN AREA:* How do we get from A to B? In 2007, the city hired an outside consulting firm to find out how and where Winnipeggers travel. They found on a typical weekday, residents in the city made 1,569,470 trips, for an average of 2.83 trips per person age 11 and older. Thirty-seven per cent of the daily trips took place between the morning and afternoon rush-hour periods, and work-related and school trips accounted for the vast majority — 74 per cent — of all morning travel. The survey found 81 per cent of trips by Winnipeggers and residents in surrounding areas — including East St. Paul and Steinbach — were in cars. Only 10 per cent of all residents walked or cycled to get from A to B. The downtown core saw the highest influx of people in the morning rush-hour period. About 16 per cent of all trips in the city in the morning period are to the downtown, more than to any other part of Winnipeg.

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It's all about speed...
by Beth McKechnie 23 Aug '11

23 Aug '11

Winnipeg Free Press Letter to the Editor One step further (Aug.20'11) Re:* Mayor hopes to reduce speeds in school zones<http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/Mayor-hopes-to-reduce-speeds-in-scho…> *(Aug. 17). Mayor Sam Katz should be commended on his leadership in taking the initiative toward making our communities safer around schools. But why not take it one step further and reduce the speed limit to 30 kilometres per hour throughout residential neighbourhoods? This would make the entire community safer for everyone, whether you are eight years old or 80. This is especially salient when one considers the World Health Organization statistic that "pedestrians have a 90 per cent chance of survival when struck by a car travelling at 30 km/h or below, but less than a 50 per cent chance of surviving an impact at 45 km/h and almost no chance of surviving an impact at 80 km/h." JACKIE AVENT Winnipeg Letter of the day: Speed is biggest danger (Aug.18, 2011) Re:* Walking, cycling can be deadly<http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/walking-cycling--can-be-deadly-12771…> * (Aug. 15). Thank you to Jen Skerritt and the *Free Press* for raising this important public health issue. Motor vehicle collisions (MVCs) are the leading killer of children, teens and young adults in Canada. As the article points out, this tragedy is magnified by the fact that there are a number of relatively simple interventions to reduce injury and death from MVCs. Speed more than any other factor predicts the chance of injury and death in a MVC. According to the World Health Organization: - An increase in speed of one kilometre per hour results in a three per cent higher risk of a crash involving injury and a four to five per cent increase in crashes that result in death. - The likelihood of death is 20 times greater for a car occupant in a crash with an impact speed of 80 km/h compared with 30 km/h. - Pedestrians struck by a car travelling 30 km/h have a 90 per cent chance of survival, which drops to 50 per cent at 45 km/h. Pedestrians have almost no chance of surviving an impact at 80 km/h. Obeying posted speed limits and exercising due caution, along with sustained and visible enforcement and environmental controls such as speed bumps to encourage reduced speeds, can significantly reduce the risk of motor vehicle collisions that injure and kill. DR. MICHAEL ROUTLEDGE Winnipeg Regional Health Authority

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Macleans: Do the health benefits of cycling outweigh the safety risks?
by Beth McKechnie 18 Aug '11

18 Aug '11

Do the health benefits of cycling outweigh the safety risks? by Julia Belluz<http://www2.macleans.ca/author/juliabelluz/>on Wednesday, August 17, 2011 http://www2.macleans.ca/2011/08/17/do-the-health-benefits-of-cycling-outwei… *The Statement: * “To be sure, cycling provides good exercise, but there are safer ways to get it. [...] Second, bike riding here is not as environmentally virtuous as it’s cracked up to be.”—*Montreal Gazette<http://www.montrealgazette.com/Deaths+show+downside+urban+cycling/5238644/s…> *, 08/11/2011** This* Gazette<http://www.montrealgazette.com/Deaths+show+downside+urban+cycling/5238644/s…> * story was prompted by a series of five very sad cycling fatalities in Montreal this year, “an unusually high death toll,” the writer lamented, before going on to list myriad downsides related to cycling in the urban environment. The *Winnipeg Free Press*<http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/walking-cycling--can-be-deadl…>published a similarly disturbing article, which noted that in the last 18 months, 29 people have died on Winnipeg streets in car crashes, and 18 of them were pedestrians or cyclists. The *Winnipeg Free Press* article’s message was as clear and pedantic as its title: “Walking, cycling can be deadly.” Ontario doctors<https://www.oma.org/Mediaroom/PressReleases/Pages/ItsTimetoMakeCyclingSafer…>have likewise called for safer cycling. They note that while biking is good exercise, the government needs to invest in cycling infrastructure, such as purpose-built bike lanes, to make commuting on two wheels safer. The provincial NDP in Ontario offered another (seemingly unlikely and impossible to enforce) solution to the problem of cars and bikes mingling dangerously on the road: they suggested<http://www.windsorstar.com/travel/promise+auto+cyclist+buffer+zone/5255145/…>changing the Highway Traffic Act so motorists can be fined for crossing a one-metre buffer with cyclists. But what is the evidence behind these proposed cycling policies? And if cycling is as dangerous as these news articles purport, do the health benefits of cycling outweigh the risks? Or should people refrain from biking on city streets altogether? I looked at a myth-busting evidence review<http://www.ncceh.ca/en/practice_policy/ncceh_reviews/active_transportation>produced for the Canadian National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health<http://www.ncceh.ca/>. First, the good news: people who choose “active transport” (walking and cycling to get around) are, on average, more fit and less overweight and obese than motor-vehicle users. As well, all-cause mortality, disease-specific mortality, and cardiovascular risk are lower in this group. Exercise for transportation is also found to be sustained more consistently throughout a person’s life than other workouts, such as gym regimes. Now, the bad news: people who choose active transport face higher risks of fatality or injury per distance travelled than people who use cars, buses, or rail, according to the review. A 2003 study published in the *American Journal of Public Health <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12948971> *found that the fatality risks per distance travelled for U.S. pedestrians and cyclists are 23 and 12 times higher, respectively, than for drivers. A study<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19540975>that looked at injury rates for Norwegian pedestrians and cyclists per distance travelled found they were 4 and 7.5 times higher, respectively, than for those who travelled by car. There is no Canadian data on the absolute risk of injury and fatality for cyclists, but there are a few things we know about how bike accidents happen here. Transport Canada, which tracks crashes between cyclists and road motor vehicles, reported<http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/tp-tp2436-rs201002-1067.htm>that 64 per cent of these deaths occurred on urban roads, and the peak time for crashes was afternoons and evenings. Bicyclists also make up the smallest percentage of road fatalities compared to other road users. For example, people<http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/tp-tp3322-2009-1173.htm#t7>who died while biking in 2009 made up 1.9 per cent of fatalities on the road (compared to 53.1 per cent for drivers, 19.5 per cent for passengers, and 13.9 per cent for pedestrians). Of the risk to Canadians, Kay Teschke, a professor of public health at the University of British Columbia who studies cycling in cities, told * Science-ish*, “The fatality rates are about the same for cyclists and pedestrians, though the numbers of pedestrians killed is much higher, because more people walk. Of course, the numbers of motor-vehicle fatalities is much higher than either cycling or walking.” She concluded: “The safest mode of transport by far is transit—like buses or subways —there’s no question about it.” So what would make cyclists safer: bike lanes or a one-metre buffer? Teschke noted that the evidence shows purpose-built bike lanes seem to be the way to go. “One of the interesting features that has been found in North American cities <http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/bicyclists/prospectparkwest.shtml>where European-style separated bike lanes are being installed is that this is not only lowering cyclist crashes, but also pedestrian and motor vehicle crashes.” She also pointed to European centres where bike-specific infrastructure is ubiquitous and cycling injury rates are much lower than in the United States. (See this comparison<http://www2.macleans.ca/2011/08/17/do-the-health-benefits-of-cycling-outwei…>of American, Dutch, and German cyclists, which shows Americans are twice as likely to get killed as Germans and over 3 times as likely as the Dutch per kilometer and per trip cycled.) Other studies from Europe indicate there are large net benefits of cycling. A 2010 review in *Environmental Health Perspectives*<http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1289%2Fehp.0901747>looked at cycling in the Netherlands—with its extensive cycling networks—and found that, “on average, the estimated health benefits of cycling were substantially larger than the risks relative to car driving.” A recent review published in the *British Medical Journal*<http://www.bmj.com/content/343/bmj.d4521.full>, which looked at the risks and benefits to health of travel by bicycle, came to similarly positive conclusions. “The health benefits of physical activity from cycling using the bicycle sharing scheme (Bicing) in Barcleona, Spain, were large compared with the risks from inhalation of air pollutants and road traffic accidents.” One of the study authors told *Science-ish*, “Our findings are applicable to other cities, although the risk benefit ratio may change depending on the level of pollution between cities, as well as the risk of traffic accident. But the benefit of physical activity will remain constant.” So, here in Canada, to cycle or not to cycle? Teschke said, “I think getting exercise is a major problem in North America, and though we have higher [injury and fatality] risks from cycling than in Europe, we have higher risks from obesity, as well. So, in North America, while the risks are greater, the benefits are greater as well.” It’s important to note, too, that there is a well-documented “safety in numbers” effect for pedestrians and cyclists, meaning that as more people get on their bikes or walk to work in a city, the safer these methods of transport become. “In the Netherlands, which has some of the highest cycling rates in the world (almost 30% of all trips are by bicycle) the injury risk for cyclists is 1.1 cyclists injured per 10 million km cycled. In comparison, in the UK and the U.S. only about 1% of trips are made by bicycle, and the risk is 3.6 and 37.5 cyclists injured per 10 million km cycled,” the 2010 evidence review<http://www.ncceh.ca/en/practice_policy/ncceh_reviews/active_transportation>stated. Teschke is hopeful that as more awareness is raised in Canada about the benefits of cycling and the need for biking infrastructure, the roads will be safer places for motorists on two wheels. In fact, already, the number of fatalities for cyclists has been decreasing. In 2010, Transport Canada reported<http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/roadsafety/tp-tp2436-rs201002-1067.htm>that “bicyclists accounted for about 2 per cent of traffic fatalities, with an average of 60 bicyclists being killed each year in collisions with motor vehicles.” This was a 2 per cent decrease from the 1996-2001 period. Similarly, this summer, the Canadian Institute for Health Information put out a press release<http://www.cihi.ca/CIHI-ext-portal/internet/en/Document/types+of+care/RELEA…>that said while “the annual number of cycling injury hospitalizations remained relatively stable between 2001–2002 and 2009–2010, the number of cycling-related head injuries decreased significantly, from 907 to 665, over the same period.” By now you may be wondering: what about that ubiquitous bicycle appendage, the helmet. Is it safer to wear one? Stephen Walter<http://fhs.mcmaster.ca/ceb/faculty_member_walter.htm>, a professor in clinical epidemiology and biostatistics at McMaster University, told *Science-ish*, “Some people argue they increase risk because their use may encourage riskier behaviour by riders and drivers.” But he added: “Conditional on being in an accident, I know I would rather be wearing one than not. If you’re going to bike, wear a helmet.” *Science-ish is a joint project of Maclean’s, The Medical Post<http://www.canadianhealthcarenetwork.ca/login/>, and the McMaster Health Forum <http://www.mcmasterhealthforum.org/>. Julia Belluz is the associate editor at The Medical Post<http://www.canadianhealthcarenetwork.ca/login/>. Got a tip? Seen something that’s Science-ish? Message her at julia.belluz(a)medicalpost.rogers.com or on Twitter @juliaoftoronto*

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Wednesday smile
by Stacy Matwick 17 Aug '11

17 Aug '11

What To Say When Drivers Yell At You http://www.notquitewrong.com/rosscottinc/2011/02/28/the-system-472-road-sag… enjoy Stacy Matwick Information Centre International Institute for Sustainable Development 161 Portage Ave. E., 6th floor Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3B 0Y4 Voice: (204)958-7755 Fax: (204)958-7710 Email: smatwick(a)iisd.ca<mailto:smatwick@iisd.ca> IISD Research Library web page: http://www.iisd.org/ic SD-Cite: IISD Research Library database: http://sd-cite.iisd.org<http://sd-cite.iisd.org/> GENERata web-magazine: http://www.iisd.org/generata/ "Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read" Groucho Marx

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