Contents:
- Low support for high-vis requirement
- Inspiring change: the 2013 CAN Do
- Map charts cycling crash hotspots
- The art of lobbying: 7 tips for bicycle advocates
- The cycle path to happiness
- Cycling in Britain: government to get serious with all-party inquiry
- Cycling solutions: why Germany has all the answers
- Weblinks
Low support for high-vis requirement
15 February 2013- A coroner's recommendation that all cyclists should be forced to wear high-visibility clothing has been met with widespread cynicism.
Wellington coroner Ian Smith has recommended:
- High-vis clothing be made compulsory for cyclists
- That drivers leave a gap of one metre from cyclists
- More education for cyclists and drivers
- Clearer rules around cycle lanes
The recommendations were in response to the death of road safety police boss Steve Fitzgerald at a Petone roundabout four years ago.
But the Government says it doesn't want to mandate one item of clothing.
"There are a number of things cyclists already do, wearing headlamps, other reflective bands, lights on bikes," says Associate Minister of Transport Michael Woodhouse.
The Cycling Advocates' Network (CAN) doesn't want mandatory high-vis clothing either.
"There's really no evidence that forcing people to wear high-vis all the time, on the waterfront or cycle trails, is an effective road safety improvement," says CAN spokesperson Patrick Morgan.
Read more here:
http://www.3news.co.nz/Low-support-for-high-vis-requirement/tabid/423/articleID/286941/Default.aspx
Inspiring change: the 2013 CAN Do
Are you passionate about more people on bikes, more often? You are invited to join us in the heart of Auckland on 13-14 April for CAN's National Cycling Summit.
Celebrate cycling. Network with others. And discover today's most effective tools for change.
We'll have expert panel discussions and workshops designed to inspire and inform- followed by an optional 2-day cycle tour from Auckland to Dargaville via the Kaipara Harbour, 15-16 April.
Registration for CAN members is $100. Travel assistance is available on application. A wide range of accommodation choices is available.
More information and a programme can be found at: http://can.org.nz/CANDo2013
Register or enquire with Patrick Morgan at CAN, tel 04 210 4967, email patrick@can.org.nz.
Auckland contact is Barb Insull, barbarainsull@gmail.com, tel 027 473 1831 / 09 377 4047.
Stay connected on the CAN Do Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/CanDo2013.
"Come to the big smoke, we're gonna welcome you and show you around. We're doing it on the cheap in the usual way. You're gonna get fed, have a good time and learn lots". - Paul Shortland (Cycle Action Auckland organising committee)
Map charts cycling crash hotspots
7 February 2013- Researchers have created a map pinpointing the location of every accident involving a car door being opened on a cyclist in New Zealand in the last five years.
The online map was created by laying data from New Zealand Traffic Crash Reports from 2007 - 2011 on top of Google Maps, and is believed to be world first.
The University of Otago injury prevention researchers created the tool with the idea of helping city planners and traffic engineers identify dangerous routes for cyclists.
Director of the university's Injury Prevention Unit, Professor Hank Weiss, said the map - the first to cover an entire country - would let cyclists know where their local "dooring" hazard areas were.
Read more here:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10863935
The art of lobbying: 7 tips for bicycle advocates
22 November 2012- The bicycle lobby is growing up. Gone are the days when politicians could say it was "silly hippies talking nonsense". These days, cycling is seen as a serious transport solution.
Fresh out of recent talks with European officials, the European Cycling Federation (ECF) thought they'd share some expertise from Europe's bicycle advocates. What are their top tips when you come to face to face with a transport Minister, a local politician or someone strategically important?
Read more here:
http://www.ecf.com/news/the-art-of-lobbying-7-tips-for-bicycle-advocates/
The cycle path to happiness
18 December 2012- Scientists are confirming what most cyclists instinctively know- that riding a bike has extraordinary effects on our brain chemistry.
You need only look at the physique of Bradley Wiggins to appreciate the potential effects of cycling on the body. But what about the mind? For as long as man has pushed a pedal, it's a question that has challenged psychologists, neurologists and anyone who has wondered how, sometimes, riding a bike can induce what feels close to a state of meditation.
Read more here:
Cycling in Britain: government to get serious with all-party inquiry
20 January 2013- It was a mantra heard time and again amid the cosy fug of 2012's British sporting success: with a Tour de France title, another clutch of Olympic golds and Bradley Wiggins their sports personality of the year, they were now officially a nation of cyclists.
Except they're not. Exclude racing or tourism and Britons are near the bottom of just about every European cycling ranking. Just 2.2% of people use a bike as their main means of transport, lower than all but a handful of EU nations such as Bulgaria, Malta and Cyprus.
And yet cycling advocates hope things could be about to change. This week is the start of a pioneering parliamentary inquiry into how best to get Britons on their bikes, building on the momentum from last summer's sporting triumphs and an energetic cycle safety campaign by the Times. All three main party leaders have signed up. Expectations are growing that Downing Street could be on the verge of making a significant commitment.
Read more here:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2013/jan/20/cycling-in-britain-government-inquiry
Cycling solutions: why Germany has all the answers
3 January 2013- Whenever we think cycling, our thoughts always drift to the Dutch and the Danes. They seem to have all the answers. Yet neighbouring Germany should be a feast for any bicycle advocate yearning for expertise. Cycling in Europe's most populous nation is booming.
Even the national level has noticed the change. Late last year, the German government updated its 'Nationaler Radverkehrsplan' (National Bicycle Plan) which they've had since 2002. They announced, to much fanfare, that they want to see 15% of all trips done by bicycle by 2020. The Transport Minister may soon have to scrap the plan and aim even higher. Cycling already has a 14.5% mode share up from 9.5% mode share in 2002 to according to new figures (2011) released by Mobility Panel Germany.
Read more here:
http://www.ecf.com/news/cycling-solutions-why-germany-has-all-the-answers/
Weblinks
How bicycling is transforming business: Cities across the U.S. discover that good biking attracts great jobs and top talent to their communities:
http://www.yesmagazine.org/happiness/how-bicycling-is-transforming-business
Women pedal to the forefront of the bicycle movement:
http://momentummag.com/blogs/bike-advocacy/women-pedal-to-the-forefront-of-the-bicycle-movement/
Kids who walk or bike to school can concentrate better:
Don't mention the war: why Britain hasn't (yet) got a Dutch-style bike path network:
http://www.roadswerenotbuiltforcars.com/alnessreport/
City Cycling: a review of the new book from John Pucher and Ralph Buehler on cycling advocacy:
http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2012/12/sober-data-based-approach-bicycle-advocacy/4128/
Everyday Cycling in Aotearoa New Zealand: meanwhile, back home, a review of CAN member Alistair Smith's new book on cycling for transport:
Robohorse TV: Australian documentary film-maker Jimmy Purtill's cycling adventures through some of the more remote parts of the globe:
About e.CAN
e.CAN is distributed approximately every 1-2 months to CAN members, Friends of CAN and other interested people. CAN members also get our bi-monthly magazine, ChainLinks.
To check back issues of e.CAN, go to http://www.can.org.nz/ecan .
About CAN
Cycling Advocates' Network (CAN) is New Zealand's voice for cyclists. We want to see cycling become an everyday activity in NZ. CAN's membership includes experienced cyclists, advocates, engineers, planners, local and regional councils, bike shops, and local advocacy groups throughout the country.
To find out more about CAN, go to our website, http://www.can.org.nz.
Sign up to CAN online via credit card at http://www.can.org.nz/join-can/. Join us!
We also welcome donations to support our work. You can donate online at: http://can.org.nz/donate
address: PO Box 25-424, Wellington 6146 email: secretary@can.org.nz
website: http://www.can.org.nz