Author Archives: jm

Different Sundays

Every Sunday in Bogota, Colombia, is different thanks to Ciclovia. From 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., streets become more human, quieter and peaceful. Ciclovia was born 50 years ago when the independent organization Pro-cicla closed the first streets to pollutant vehicles on 15^th December 1974. It congregated 5,000 people who protested against pollution, cars and lack of leisure alternatives in the city. In June of 1976, the mayor made it “official” through decrees 566 and 567. As time passed by, the number of kilometers for people on Sundays diminished to 20, until Ciclovía was managed by the Secretaría de Tránsito y Transporte and the Instituto Distral de Recreación y Deporte. Today, more than 80 kilometers are closed every Sunday. Even more, there is the Ciclovia Nocturna (Night Ciclovia) which consists in closing streets twice in August and Christmas. It started in December 1999 and three million people enjoyed it.

As it comes to the types of people who take advantage of Ciclovia, the earlier risers are the cyclist who preferred making sport since they go to Patio, Guadalupe and Montserrate hills. Next, families with children use streets as playing grounds. After them, other bikers, skaters, senior citizens and walkers join the celebration. Finally, food sellers, gymnastic groups and sometimes live concerts contribute to make it a party.

The success of this event goes deep into transforming an area into a democratic and universal surface. Not surprisingly, it has been exported to other cities within Colombia, Chili, Mexico and USA.

The path

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How would our cities be if car did not dominate them?

Today, most of cites are mastered by cars which product pollution, noise, dead cashes and less surface for people. If the XX century had been different and vehicles such as bicycles, buses or trains would be opted for, I assure you that there would be far less car fatalities, people would have better health and psychology, climate change could be no problem today, children would still play on streets, adults would enjoy streets and neighbor relationships more, extracted energy from Earth would be less, wildlife would be higher and perhaps more diverse, local stores would sell more as people cycling and walking have time to see the products they sold versus people in cars who does not have time enough to focus or even see products that stores sell. They told cars improve safety in cities, but this is not true. Some examples that demonstrate it are:

– Curitiba (Brazil): For its urban planning, not focused on cars

– Copenhagen (Denmark): For its urban infrastructure and cyclist planning

– Vancouver (Canada): For its example on shared mobility

– Singapore: For its accurate tax system for vehicles

– Zurich (Switzerland): For a good-thought, public transport system

Can AI help to promote urban biking?

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Every day we read a piece of news related to advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI). A lot of fields are taking advantage of it in order to automate processes, show a more precise analysis or creating new materials, just to name a few. Can AI help to promote urban biking?

As you could imagine, the answer is yes. In a few words, AI plays a significant role in promoting biking by enhancing safety, convenience and awareness for cyclists. Some ways to reach them are:

Smart route planning: AI algorithms analyze real-time traffic data, weather conditions and infrastructure to suggest the safest and most efficient biking routes. This makes more people to use cycling over other modes of transport
Traffic management and optimization: When a biker is in charge of deciding which traffic systems are better for bike users and has in mind AI, she usually determines that AI-powered traffic systems are suitable to prioritize bike lanes, optimize traffic light timings and reduce congestion. When this point is used in urban biking, it becomes safer and more appealing
Safety monitoring and alerts: AI can facilitate the development of wearable devices and bike sensors that detect hazards, monitor urban cyclist health and send alerts about approaching vehicles of unsafe street conditions
Bike sharing optimization: Although bike sharing systems are common in many cities around the world, AI can analyze usage patterns to optimize the placement and availability of shared bikes, making bikes more accessible and convenient for users
Public awareness campaigns: Apart from human thinking, AI-driven data analytics can identify barriers to cycling adoption and tailor targeted campaigns to address misconceptions, promote health benefits and inform citizens about cycling infrastructure
Infrastructure planning: Urban planners can use AI as assistant by analyzing data on traffic flow, accident hotpots and commuter patterns to design better bike lanes, bike parking and facilities
Personalized incentives: AI systems can offer personalized rewards or incentives for cycling to work or study. This way more city residents are encourage to incorporate biking into their daily routines

All these points are examples of how cities can create a safer, more efficient and more attractive environment for urban biking by using AI, leading to healthier populations and more sustainable urban development.

The cuentakilómetros

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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.