e.CAN 200 - The email bulletin of Cycling Advocates' Network, NZ

e.CAN 200 - The email bulletin of Cycling Advocates' Network, NZ

e.CAN

Contents:

Work starts on 'Super highway' for Auckland cyclists

16 November 2012- A $12.5 million cycleway into central Auckland opens the floodgates for cycling across all corners of the city, says Cycle Action Auckland.

The Transport Agency has started work on the $11 million, 1.9km Grafton Gully cycleway that will give cyclists their own 15km off-road "super highway" from Te Atatu to Beach Rd in the city by 2014.

Cycle Action Auckland chairwoman Barbara Cuthbert said the two-stage project would have a profound effect beyond the Northwestern Cycleway and the waterfront.

Read more here:

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10847734

CAN merchandise- last orders for Christmas

A reminder to get in soon if you want to order Christmas gifts from the CAN shop this year. Our shop elves will be away from December 15, so avoid disappointment and don't leave it to the last minute!

The CAN shop web page is here:

http://www.can.org.nz/shop

Note that CAN t-shirts will be unavailable now until after Christmas. But you can still order CAN 'One Less Car' and 'Think Globally, Cycle Locally' pack covers, and Spacemaker flags.

Expressions of interest for hosting the 2 Walk & Cycle Conference 2013

The second "2 Walk & Cycle" Conference is planned for late 2013, following on from the highly successful combined walking and cycling conference held in Hastings in February this year. The conference organising committee is now seeking Expressions Of Interest from locations interested in being the host venue for the next conference.

If you would like to receive more details about what is required for an Expression Of Interest (including what is expected of local host organisers, what to include in your proposal, and how the bids will be assessed) please send an email to conference@can.org.nz. Final bids must be submitted no later than Friday 18th January 2013.

Would you like to help with the next 2 Walk & Cycle Conference?

We have started planning the next Walking & Cycling Conference, which is scheduled to be held towards the end of 2013. We need a group of enthusiastic people to help with the organising process.

The activities that go into planning a successful conference include:

  • Determining the conference theme and format
  • Selecting a conference venue and date
  • Identifying and arranging keynote speakers
  • Promoting the conference to a variety of audiences and media
  • Reviewing conference presentation proposals
  • Developing the final conference programme
  • Seeking sponsorship and exhibitors
  • Planning the social programme and other external activities
  • Preparing conference materials, e.g. handbook
  • Maintaining a conference website
  • Preparing and monitoring the conference budget
  • Local venue liaison

Previous conference committee members have come from a variety of backgrounds, including CAN, NZTA, Ministry of Health, local councils, universities, and consultants. Organisers are typically scattered around the country, so most of the work is done via email, phone and the website, with teleconference calls about monthly at most. A lot of the "grunt" work is done by a professional conference organiser.

If you are interested in helping with any of these tasks, please email conference@can.org.nz. Don't be too daunted by the list - even if you only want to contribute to one or two tasks, that will help immensely. If you can think of any other colleagues who may be interested in helping, please feel free to forward this note on to them too.

Cyclists 'must be first' as car use passes its peak

7 November 2012- The theory of 'Peak Car' is a significant one for those who wish cities to be designed for people, not motor vehicles. If car use is declining - and official stats from US and UK bear this out, and it's not just because of the recession - there is less need to build expensive 'white elephant' highways for motor vehicles and more need to build wider pavements and install bike lanes built to Dutch-standards.

In today's Times of London newspaper, the theory of Peak Car is part of the 'cities for cycling' coverage. Transport correspondent Philip Pank writes:

"Years of falling traffic volumes suggest that car use has passed its peak and may have entered a long era of decline, a growing body of officials from the Department for Transport and London's City Hall believe.

"The implications for how cities are designed and streets are used are enormous if car use really has passed its tipping point. Supporters of Peak Car theory see a future in which the inner cities are given over to pedestrians, cyclists and public transport, and cafe culture replaces car culture."

Stephen Joseph, chief executive of the Campaign for Better Transport, said: "In principle, Peak Car does give planners much more freedom to think about what kind of cities they want.

"I am not sure that policymakers have got to grips with this yet. We can promote cycling and take road space for cycling and people will use it."

Read the full article here:

http://www.bikebiz.com/news/read/cyclists-must-be-first-as-car-use-passes-its-peak-says-the-times

Study: protected bike lanes reduce injury risk up to 90 percent

22 October 2012- A study by researchers at the University of British Columbia provides compelling new evidence that bike infrastructure makes cyclists safer - a lot safer.

The study, published in the American Journal of Public Health, examined the circumstances around the injuries of 690 cyclists who wound up in emergency rooms in Vancouver and Toronto during a six month span in 2008 and 2009. Based on interviews with the cyclists, the authors plotted where the injuries occurred on each cyclist's route. Then for each route, the injury site and a randomly-selected control site were categorized in one of 14 different street types. The authors used this method to measure the safety of each street type while controlling for other factors.

They found that wide streets with parked cars and no bike infrastructure were by far the most dangerous for cyclists. Compared to that type of road, streets with bike lanes had injury rates 50 percent lower, while the risk of injury on protected bike lanes was a whopping 90 percent lower. Interestingly, multi-use paths - or off-street trails where cyclists, pedestrians, skaters, and other non-motorized modes mix - were found to reduce injury by a comparatively modest 60 percent.

Read more here:

http://dc.streetsblog.org/2012/10/22/study-protected-bike-lanes-reduce-injury-risk-up-to-90-percent/#more-131136

Walking and cycling should be the norm for short journeys

28 November 2012- Walking and cycling should become the norm for short journeys rather than driving a car, the UK government's health advisory body has recommended in an attempt to tackle a national epidemic of inactivity and obesity which now causes as much harm as smoking.

In strongly-worded advice, which places significant pressure on the government to increase the extent of safe walking and cycling routes, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice) urges local authorities, health bodies, workplaces and schools to do all they can to assist people in active travel.

The report urges local authorities to devise a coherent, long-term plan for boosting active travel to be at the centre of every policy, avoiding the piecemeal efforts exemplified by the cursory and suddenly-vanishing bike lanes familiar to most UK cyclists.

Read more here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/nov/28/cycle-walk-maintain-health-advises-nice

Shopping by bike

29 November 2012- As part of its involvement in the EU-funded CycleLogistics project, the UK CTC recently ran the first of two "Shop by Bike" trials, in which 77 participants pledged to shop by bike over a period of 4 weeks, and return questionnaires about their experiences.

Currently 57% of all inner-city trips are related to goods transportation in some way, and nearly all of these trips are made by motorised vehicle. Research also shows that only 6% of all shopping trips are of a size that requires a car, with most consumer goods being easily transportable on a bike using baskets, panniers or a trailer.

Those taking part covered 5,973 km on their bikes, saved 402 kg of fuel, and prevented over 1 tonne of carbon dioxide emissions. Most said they enjoyed the experience and would continue, though the facilities offered for cyclists and their bikes was variable. Most used panniers to carry their shopping. Some carried other things besides shopping, such as musical instruments and televisions.

The full report is available here:

http://cyclelogistics.eu/docs/114/CTC_evaluation_shop_by_bike.pdf/

Weblinks

City Cycling: a guide to the urban cycling renaissance, by John Pucher:

http://citycyclingbook.wordpress.com/

Threeseater: an Auckland-to-Christchurch charity ride on a triple, raising funds for Big Brothers Big Sisters, The Shortbread Trust and Gap Filler:

http://www.threeseater.org.nz/

Customers on bikes spend more:

http://bikeportland.org/2012/07/06/study-shows-biking-customers-spend-more-74357

Cycling helps cancer paitents' recovery:

http://www.ecf.com/news/study-cycling-helps-cancer-patients-recovery/

The coolest ways to recycle old bikes:

http://www.bukisa.com/articles/385930_the-coolest-ways-to-recycle-old-bikes

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