August 2017

In this issue

CAN is organising NZ's first Bike Expo

$24m boost for cycle skills education

Opinion pieces: Cycling advocates- are we communists or fascists!? and We need to talk about parking

Touring: Crossing South Island by tandem & canoe

Auckland: EVs in bus lane and a $635 million plan for cycling

Overseas conferences: Asia-Pacific coming to NZ, and 10 tips from VeloCity (you won't believe no. 8!)

Weblinks. 103 year-old drivers; crazy cyclists... 

Ethically sourced, kiwi-designed T's at CAN's Shop

About Cycling Action Network

CAN is New Zealand's national network of cycling advocates. We work with government, local authorities, businesses and the community on behalf of cyclists, for a better cycling environment.  

Welcome to another Chainlinks. Thanks are due to CAN volunteer Adrian Croucher who compiled and edited well over 200 issues of e.CAN, our e-newsletter. This e-newsletter merges e.CAN into Chainlinks in an e-format. Enjoy!

Finally, have you 'followed' our Facebook page? Click here   

Announcing NZ's first ever National Bike Expo!

The NZ Bike Expo will have its first show on 28-29 October in Christchurch, in the last weekend of Biketober.

Initiated by CAN, and organised by a professional event manager with volunteer support, the NZ Bike Expo is a community-led consumer show celebrating ‘everything to do with the bicycle’. 

The 2-day show will be at the Airforce Museum of NZ in Wigram. Indoors will feature all kinds of bike related suppliers, tour and event operators, and community groups. An events stage will feature talks and videos to inspire and inform. Outdoors on the airfield a demo zone will include a kids track and a MTB/BMX track, with road and e-bikes taking over the sealed runway.  

CAN’s aim for the Expo is to bring together, in a friendly, inclusive, celebratory way, all types of bicycles and cycling opportunities to celebrate bicycles. The event aims to attract 6,000 people, including sports cyclists, commuters, people who cycle for fun or fitness, and families.

With $160m being invested in new cycleways in Christchurch, a big springtime celebration is just the ticket to encourage people to get out and enjoy.  CAN is also appreciating building relationships with bicycle-related businesses and sporting organisations. 

Want to be part of the Expo? Exhibitor stands are still available for businesses and clubs. Want to volunteer to help make it happen? We’d love to have you!

Contact nzbikeexpo@gmail.com or jo@can.org.nz. Follow the NZ Bike Expo on facebook. Visit the website. And see you at the Expo!

ELECTION 2017 

Raise awareness among your candidates of how cycling can benefit our communities:  Download CAN's Messages for Political Parties and mail, post or read them to your local pollies at the earliest opportunity!

Want to see more kiwi kids biking?

Hate it when they pass you too close or cut you off?

Wish there were more attractive, connected cycleways?

CAN's working on all these fronts by carrying on our core work: talking to officials, politicians and other groups who make the decisions affecting our cycling environment. 

Much of CAN's work is done by you our members in local groups but some issues need a national approach. That's why CAN maintains an office in Wellington and our part-time, professional spokesperson Patrick Morgan.

But right now our income is falling short of covering expenses. YOU can make a big contribution by doing three simple things:

• Check your membership's up to date; we send reminders on your renewal date, so check if you've had an email from membership@can.org.nz. Send us an email if unsure.
• Make a donation (it's tax deductible, CAN is a registered charity)
• Spread the word by letting your family and friends know about CAN — the only national organisation reminding Government to get MORE PEOPLE ON BIKES MORE OFTEN!

NZTA and Minister announce $24 million for cycle skills education

• Major step forward in getting kids on bikes.

• 18-month transition phase now underway

• Close links with Bikes in Schools project

Connected networks for cycling are receiving serious attention from central and local government through the ongoing Urban Cycleways Programme. To complement this the NZTA and ACC recently agreed to approve funding for the implementation of a National Cycling Education System.

This will form part of the NZTA's Safe System approach and the Cycling Safety Action Plan. Planned investment in the system is $24 million over four years, primarily shared between the Transport Agency, ACC and local government. 

The new system's focused on giving people the skills they need at the right time in their life – from learning bike handling skills in primary school, through to learning road rules and how to ride on-road when they are ready. It will also offer opportunities for adults who haven’t ridden a bike for a while, with programmes designed to help them improve their skills on both standard and electric bikes.

An 18-month transition phase, led by the Transport Agency, is now underway. Here's the joint media statement by Transport Minister Simon Bridges and ACC Minister Michael Woodhouse.

CAN has been consulting with the working groups and it certainly looks like a really exciting development. More info is available on the NZTA website here.

Opinion: Advocates for people on bikes- are you communists or fascists!?

Spokes Canterbury's Dirk deLu has had all sorts of epithets thrust on him while advocating for cycling in contemporary NZ. Read his reactions here.

Extreme cargo

Need to bring a 45kg St Bernard to work every day? No me neither, but Jeremy shows here that even with heavy loads it's quite practical to use an ebike instead of a car, particularly with those brand-new bike lanes opening...

Read more on the Action Bicycle Club blog site here. ABC are one of CAN's generous Supporting Organisations.

Opinion: We need to talk about Parking

Opinion by Alastair Smith of Cycle Aware Wellington

When the rubber hits the road and Councils begin laying out cycle lanes, space allocated for car parking quickly becomes a controversial issue. There are solutions. Alastair looks at this issue in the ever-thoughtful Cycle Aware Wellington blog.

Auckland: Should electric vehicles be allowed in bus lanes?

It's a Government proposal for trial in Auckland. Would it encourage the uptake of EVs? Or just slow people on buses so they revert to their (cheap petrol) cars? What about electric bikes?

CAN made a submission to the NZTA on the subject which you can access here.

Auckland's $635 million plan to get biking to 5%

A proposed combined investment of $600million over the next 10 years to build 150km of bike network and raise the proportion of people cycling to 5% – with an additional $35 million invested in complementary initiatives

See the full story over at Bike Auckland's website here.

Touring: Coast to Coast to Coast, Fossil Fuel Free

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The indomitable Steve Muir and friends on an amphibious mission across the South Island.

Steve proves you can not only tow your kayak behind a tandem on some of the South Island's hilliest passes, but also pop the tandem into the kayak for a cruise down the Waimakariri. What could possibly go wrong!? Find out here.

International- Asia-Pacific Cycle Congress comes to NZ

It’s not often an international conference based around cycling drops into NZ. APCC brings together world-renowned speakers under the theme of Gearing Up – rethinking our communities for the future. 

The Congress runs from October 17 to 20. More on the APCC website here.

International- VéloCity Conference

10 tips for cycling advocacy from VéloCity cycling conference (you won’t believe no. 8!)

 See the CAN web story here.

Weblinks

Bicycles were once blamed for making riders — especially women — crazy: Quartz online magazine

Dunedin: Almost five years since the crash that took Chris He's life, and after countless hours of advocacy by Robert, Jon and others at Spokes Dunedin, the SH1 separated cycleways are finally under construction: NZTA update

Trucking lobbyists call for more rail, congestion charging especially in Auckland: NZ Truck and Driver

Regular cycling for transport can halve stress: Cycling Industry News.

1.1km section of 19km Omokoroa to Tauranga cycleway opened last month: Minister’s press release

As covered in e.CAN 220: Undercover police target London drivers who pass too close to cyclists The Guardian.

A report on 'e-devices' has been released, presenting a review of overseas legislation, technology trends, market and safety analyses for low-powered vehicles. CAN's Alastair Smith contributed to this report, testing a variety of devices on the way: View ViaStrada PDF

Christchurch City Council providing education about sharrows: CCC website & video.

Cycle commuting is associated with a lower risk of Cardio-vascular disease, cancer, and all cause mortality:  British Medical Journal.

Converting fixed driving costs to variable per-mile charges — and offering cash savings in lieu of parking that is often provided for free — encourages voluntary reduction of driving and related decreases in GHG emissions, traffic and parking congestion, crashes, and local pollution.  Victoria Transport Policy Institute: Todd Litman.

A CAN volunteer's visit to see Barcelona's Superblocks, where traffic is limited within city blocks and kids play on the streets: CAN website

103-year old driver injures pedestrian, has careless driving charge struck out: Irish Times

More good Auckland news: First section of Waterview Shared Path opened: Path will connect Unitec, Mount Albert, Mt Albert, NorthWestern Cycleway: Minister's press release

27% of Kiwi cyclists own bikes worth more than their car: Taupo Lakes Challenge website

Your skills could help grow cycling!  Could you be CAN's... 

   •  Web and online editor?

   •  Graphic and infographic designer?

   •  Membership growth co-ordinator?

Click here for more info - and don't forget, you can also volunteer for your local group if there's one in your region.

Grab a bargain and support your Network!

Grab one of our beautiful, sustainably-produced, kiwi-designed T-shirts!

We also have some old stock which needs to go, so our remaining 'Freedom' T-shirts and cycling vests are going for bargain rates.

Click through to our online shop or email Lyneke at shop@can.org.nz

The views expressed in Chainlinks are not necessarily those of CAN.