Author Archives: jm

The cuentakilómetros

Some times politicians promise new bike lines in political campaigns and after they win the elections, they mysteriously forget what have announced thus cheating on their voters. Cities inhabitants have two options: Make as nothing happened or fight for the promised bike lines. Regarding the second point, there is un action, the Cuentakilómetros (in Spanish) originally created in Málaga (Spain) and replicated for other cities. It consisted in using an interactive map with a progress bar in Google Maps in which one could see the evolution of bike lines being built.

The urban bike group Ruedas Redondas was upset about the promise that the mayor proposed in the political campaign (to double the number of bike lines kilometers in Málaga, from 45 to 90) and the lack of pieces of news on media about the new projects and on the streets. So, they created the Cuentakilómetros (the technological tool that I have commented) for every person to see how the evolution was. For this gentle way of showing reality, Ruedas Redondas only had to check media and public trading platforms for newness and update it. This way, cyclist could see the evolution of bike lines creation and confirm that it is impossible to trust on politicians who promote motor vehicles instead of bicycles under a climate change challenge. Smart people will remember the lack of such bike lines when voting again.

Ideas for governments and companies

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It is well-known that going to work by bicycle is good for the glucose and cholesterol levels, stress reduction, good mood and productivity increment. Indeed, according to the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructures 80% of workers who pedal to work show a better compromise between companies and their jobs, and their work absenteeism diminishes. Moreover, diabetes is reduced by 20%. Not surprisingly, open-minded governments promote the use of bicycles with strategies such as giving social benefits to workers who buy bikes through firms (these get tax reductions), those workers who ride to the office obtain money per pedaled kilometer, urban biking promotion not only the Day of the Bike but 365 days in a year, a day for bike maintenance, free subscription to public bikes, bike lines and bicycle parking building. In return, sanitary costs are reduced and environment improves not only because bikes do not pollute in the using stage, but also as a result of if a person uses a bike instead of a car she provokes the same emissions diminishing as one tree every month.

Can a bicycle owner be determined by her bike?

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This is a thought that I have been chewed on it for a time. It implies that given all the different bike types and accessories, they tell about their personality and interests owners somehow. Indeed, when you periodically meet bikers from time to time, for instance in the Critical Mass, you could not remember the name of each and every cyclist if it is a numerous group. But you recognize them by their bicycles if you have previously seen their possessors, even if you have not meet them for a long time giving they still maintain the same bike. Personality is shown through bike kinds (mountain bike – a person who enjoys riding mountains, hybrid bike – possibly somebody who does bike-tourism, road bike, etc.) and accessories (bicycle basket – there is or has been a child, saddlebags – a bike-tourist, rear-view mirror – somebody who usually pedals on car lines…).

Baana

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In some cases, bike and pedestrian lines are built or transformed from railways or car lines to take advantage of a previous infrastructure which does not have necessity nowadays. This is the case of the rail trails in Spain (https://trafficnightmare.net/rail-trail/) or Baana.

Baana is located in Helsinki, Finland. It connects Helsinki downtown with residential and commercial areas. Over a million people use it every year. This 1,5 kilometers line was born to allow train goods movement between the central station and the west suppliers dock in 1894. In order to do so, an open canyon was dug on which a railway was put. After more than a century and the infrastructure lack of use, neighbors associations, urban-plannings and the mayor decided to give it a new use with urban biking in mind. The 16,000 squared meters were transformed into a bike-pedestrian line surrounded by nature, with specific places in which urban artists create graffiti murals, the Love Helsinki sculpture by Janne Siltanen and there are sport fields really close. Indeed, this line is integrated in a long park. At the same time, Baana connects bicyclers to the Nikolaleff palace and the Natural Sciences Museum.

This project was completed with the Orient Baana to be the backbone of the Helsinki bike lines. Not surprinsingly, Baana received the European Public Urban Place award in 2014 due to its meaning impact on urban revitalization in Helsinki.

Victims and culprits

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A car can be kind of a weapon to the Law. Not only it is dangerous as it comes to the pollution it produces, but also due to drivers misbehavior. This last issue also applies to other ways of transport. Thus, the concept of Vial Criminology deals with criminal and victim study focused on road safety. It also treats with preventing crashes and tries to avoid risk behavior.

Other interesting concept is the Vial Victimology which studies crash victims, for instance bikers, who are the most vulnerable in roads and determines innocent, imprudent, provocative or simulated victims. Such analysis allows understanding better all the actors on roads and work on preventive strategies to avoid accidents.

According to the book La mente del delicuente vial, by José María González, there are three types of vial criminals:

– Vial aggressive: who shows hostile conducts

– Vial criminal: who shows dangerous hostility plus acts like vial harassment

– Vial terrorist: who uses his vehicle to cause wilful damage

What should we do against vial harassment? Keep calm, never commit aggression against the car driver and call police if needed. Ideally, respect and comprehension will diminish vial harassment.

In Spain, more than 40% of serious or mortal crashes are associated with criminal behavior and committed by young man between 20 and 40. And 8% of they are repeat vial criminals.

Bikes and natural disasters

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Bicycles have been used in man-made and natural disasters. One example of bike use was done in Second World War when both Allies and Axe took advantage of them to move behind enemy lines and carry supplies. Regarding natural disasters, bicycles are also very handful, for instance in the case of the DANA (High-altitude isolated depression) on the Valencia, Spain, region on 29^th October 2024.

To sum up, the DANA is a succession of heavy rains in a short period of time. This time it flooded inner villages and those downstream, closer to the Mediterranean sea where heavily affected by a tsunami of mud. As a result, the area was under a deep lid of mud which destroyed stores, industries, some road and train infrastructures, and provoked hundreds of deaths. How did the Valencian bikers act? The Valencian Massa Critica coordinated to bring food and drinkable water since the next day (30^th October 2024). That day dozens pedaled with backpacks and saddlebags plugged with basic food. In the next days, cars and vans were not allowed to access the villages due to there were destroyed cars all around and inside villages that had been moved by the force of mud and had created physical barriers for such wide vehicles. The tightness of bikes allowed them to overpass such barriers. The next days (31th October 2024 and 1^st November 2024) social nets made it possible to see hundreds of bikers with traditional bikes, cargo bikes and bikes carts pedaling together in convoys to carry first need food and other products to villages such as Paiporta, Catarroja, Alfafar, Benetúser, Torrent, Albal and Sedaví. Indeed, bikers where the first volunteers to coordinate themselves in bringing such essential products for human life in La Rambleta, Valencia. After these days, additional volunteers (pedestrian, medical people and persons who provided APIs) used La Rambleta as a headquarter. The next week, food was not always wanted by those who suffered the disaster, rather they needed cleaning (bleach, ammonia, etc.) and hygienic (shampoo, gel, detergent, soap) products. Again, bikers carried them to injured villages. Additionally, riders all over Spain donated bikes and others objects such as bicycle wheels, brakes or chain grease in order for urban bikers in those villages continuing pedaling.

This is the force of bikes in natural disasters: Bicycles reach places that cars can not come.

The next video shows the work Massa Critica did (in Spanish):

Chess

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Bicycles and art have been going hand by hand since the first bike was created. Understanding art in a wide sense, one can imagine a lot of objects (not necessarily bicycle accessories) in which part of bikes play an essential role. One of such objects is a chess exclusively made from bicycles components. It was created in El Ciclo BCN,Barcelona, a workshop for such a lovely vehicles. Ramiro Sobral is its owner and the person who came up with it years ago. This Argentinian artist started transforming scrap to lamps, and his work evolved into chess. It lasted about 2 months to complete it in which he found, cleaned and added something unique to every piece. Indeed,there is nothing painted, welded or glued in his chess. And all started with a brake lever seen as a chess horse.

Karaban

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Kibera is a large suburb in Kenya in which a million people live under difficult conditions as it comes to scarcity and high mortality rate. Here, a lot of children do not choice in living on streets. Thus, whatever option to progress is rather limited.

Karaban was a project developed by at least Elena Milà and David Vilanova with the aim of pedaling from Andorra, a small country in Europe, to Kibera to bring opportunities to 22 children. This 12,000 km trip proposed being sponsored with €50,000 to allow the children being accepted in important student residences, with personalized following, until university or microcredits if they want to become entrepreneurs. However Karaban brought a little bit of hope to Kibera, most of the hope is provided by the NGO Kings and Queens of Kibera which works on the field since 2011 to help Kibera inhabitants develop a better future.

Regarding the bike trip, Elena and David experienced some tough moments such as crossing Namibia (a country with the second lower population density), the Namib dessert (up to 45ºC and few water and food sources), a cub came across in a forest, a scorpion appeared inside a saddlebag, howls of jackals at sunset, etc. However, it is important to appreciate the good moments as when sleeping in farms, haystacks or schools at night. And above all optimism and positivism are the two most important ways of living when facing serious drawbacks, from feeling your mind and body tired to not having a source of water in kilometers ahead.

Urban planning ideas

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How do countries with traditional high use of bikes deal with associated problems? The answer is simple and clear: Urban designers think under the bicycle perspective. It means creating and adapting infrastructures for cycling. For example, instead of a normal bike line consisting of two parallel lines if seen from the sky, they have implemented conic bike lines. This is due to the facts that bikers ride at different speeds usually and to diminish time in covering the same length. So, when there is the need of speed bicycle traffic, some bikers can pass others as there is enough space to do it.

Other well-established infrastructure is to create specific-bike bridges to overpass rivers, houses, highways you name it. This way bikers avoid major tours. Going a step further, such bridges can be suitable for pedestrians with a dedicated longitudinal line of half of the total space.

Changes of the traffic light sequence is another good idea. Such countries prioritize bikes over cars in some very busy streets. Moreover, some traffic lights have a cyclist counter and when it reaches a previously determined number, the green light for bikes appears out of a sudden. When designing bike parking, it is necessary to take into account dedicated areas for cargo bikes and electric charges for ebikes. And of course, please do not design narrow bike lines.

Bike highways allow connecting cities with industrial areas and villages. If this is the case, they should show enough wide as to allow easy and secure overtaking.

Maddy Novich

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The use of cargo bikes has been increasing over the last years. Even in countries so pro-car as the USA, this kind of bicycles remains a clear alternative to cars. Maddy Novich, Criminal Law teacher at Manhattan University, knows it in deep. This mother of three has five cargo bikes and uses them to carry couches or big wardrobe, and also her three children. The children enjoy the rides while playing, eating, or chatting in the box. Moreover, she is always open to answer questions in relation to bikes and particularly cargo bikes to others moms who want to gain independence and take care of their health and environment. Maddy advises about issues like what cargo bike model to choose or how to drive a cargo bike.

She has also visited several European countries and appreciates specially those who offer good, physically separated bike lines from car lines. Indeed, Maddy started using cargo bikes in Amsterdam back in 2019. Moreover, she highlights the difference mentality of European and American car drivers. She affirms that in general European car drives respect bikers more in the sense that they reduce speed and keep more safety distance when they see a bicycle.