[sustran] Re: Public bicycle planning, priorities, strategies

[Carlosfelipe Pardo]

(answering a pretty old post)
Hi,

We've been having a similar discussion in Bogotá last week in an event. 
There are various groups who intend to develop a public bicycle project, 
but they have very little idea of what this entails. This goes to the 
extent that they want to replicate exactly what has been done in 
Barcelona, with no attention to either contextual differences (Bogotá is 
pretty different from Barcelona!!) or to the environment in which these 
public bicycles would start operations. They have no concern for other 
urban transport- related issues such as the ones Eric has mentioned 
below, and they think that a public bike system is extremely simple (I 
have gone to the extreme of telling them that it's another public 
transport system and should be planned just as carefully).

I am also a bit afraid that people may continue the fashion-like trend 
of applying public bike schemes without taking into account the complete 
issue. As Stephen notes, it may distract people of the big picture. 
*But*... on the other hand, it may be used as a tool to make them aware 
of the real problems of urban transport which go way past an interesting 
trend such as Velib. I think a similar issue happens with some BRT 
systems when being implemented (planning is only done for the BRT and no 
attention is given to the city's urban transport as a whole).

Best regards,

Carlos.

Eric Britton wrote:
> This is an important point Stephen, and let me see if I can reassure a bit.
>
>
> With a couple of dozen public bike projects already rolling on the street in
> quite a range of different cities, configurations and cycling environments,
> and with literally hundreds of cities and consultants raking through all
> this with a view to developing sound plans for their own projects, one point
> concerning policy and practice is soaring above all the rest. 
>
>
> And that is that if any city or group tries to put on the street a public
> bike project with broad public access without first ensuring at least
> minimum conditions for safe cycling, this is not only a gross error but also
> in fact a criminal act. Why? Well, because cyclists  who are all of a sudden
> launched into a “car-war” environment are going to be injured and killed in
> numbers way above the historic statistical mean.
>
>  
>
> 1.     The supporting infrastructure must be there – and it must match with
> the travel patterns of city cyclists
>
> 2.     This infrastructure must be carefully maintained to a high standard
>
> 3.     It must be properly signed and marked (street paint, etc.)
>
> 4.     The streets on which the cyclists transit must be adequately
> protected by the police
>
> 5.     Effective educational campaigns must be launched, both for cyclists
> and for motorists
>
> 6.     (And I believe personally that those people who make these decisions
> should use the system only a daily basis themselves – thus ensuring the
> tightest possible feedback loops if and when any troubles or anomalies
> surface)
>
>  
>
> That I can safely offer is the state of the art as of 25 July 2008, and
> anyone who launches a project without ensuring these preparations is not
> only behind the curve, but dangerously behind the curve. 
>
>  
>
> The second part of this informal answer to your concern, is that a very
> significant impact of public bike projects got right, is that they bring
> more cyclists out on the street, which gives you both (a) strength in
> numbers and (b) a proportionately higher profile for cycling which in turn
> gets both media and policy attention. This is a very positive synergy and if
> you look at the leading city bike projects you can see it at work. 
>
>  
>
> You last point: about how to make this work in “poor countries” is something
> on which we a number of others are currently working. Stay tuned.
>
>  
>
> Eric Britton
>
>  
>
>  
>
>  
>
> From: NewMobilityCafe at yahoogroups.com
> [mailto:NewMobilityCafe at yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Stephen Plowden
> Sent: Friday, 25 July 2008 07:09
> To: No Reply; NewMobilityCafe at yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [NewMobilityCafe] Public bicycle strategies for troubled
> communities
>
>  
>
> Much as I admire the Velib and other similar initiatives, I am concerned
> that the emphasis on public bikes may distract attention from the more
> important issue of how to ensure safe and agreeable conditions for people to
> use their own bikes, wich most people even in poor countries can afford. 
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
>
> From: NewMobilityCafe at yahoogroups.com 
>
> To: NewMobilityCafe at yahoogroups.com 
>
> Sent: Thursday, July 24, 2008 6:00 PM
>
> Subject: [NewMobilityCafe] Digest Number 1155
>
>  
>
> The
> <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NewMobilityCafe;_ylc=X3oDMTJkdjZrZGtrBF9TAzk3
> MzU5NzE1BGdycElkAzEwODg3ODkEZ3Jwc3BJZAMxNzA3MjA1OTU0BHNlYwNoZHIEc2xrA2hwaARz
> dGltZQMxMjE2OTE4ODU0>  New Mobility Idea Factory 
>
>
> Messages In This Digest (1 Message) 
>
>
> 1a. 
>
> Public bicycle <>  strategies for troubled communities From:
> Andrew_Curran at translink.bc.ca] 
>
> View
> <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NewMobilityCafe/messages;_ylc=X3oDMTJmMzIwMTM
> 4BF9TAzk3MzU5NzE1BGdycElkAzEwODg3ODkEZ3Jwc3BJZAMxNzA3MjA1OTU0BHNlYwNkbXNnBHN
> sawNhdHBjBHN0aW1lAzEyMTY5MTg4NTU-?xm=1&m=p&tidx=1>  All Topics | Create
> <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NewMobilityCafe/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJmcWVhaTYzBF9
> TAzk3MzU5NzE1BGdycElkAzEwODg3ODkEZ3Jwc3BJZAMxNzA3MjA1OTU0BHNlYwNkbXNnBHNsawN
> udHBjBHN0aW1lAzEyMTY5MTg4NTU->  New Topic 
>
>
> Message 
>
>
> 1a. 
>
>
> Public
> <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NewMobilityCafe/message/2899;_ylc=X3oDMTJxODF
> ya3RoBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE1BGdycElkAzEwODg3ODkEZ3Jwc3BJZAMxNzA3MjA1OTU0BG1zZ0lkAzI
> 4OTkEc2VjA2Rtc2cEc2xrA3Ztc2cEc3RpbWUDMTIxNjkxODg1NQ-->  bicycle strategies
> for troubled communities 
>
>
> Posted by: "Andrew_Curran at translink.bc.ca]" Andrew_Curran at translink.bc.ca]
> <mailto:Andrew_Curran at translink.bc.ca]%20>    fekbritton
> <http://profiles.yahoo.com/fekbritton> 
>
>
> Wed Jul 23, 2008 12:52 pm (PDT) 
>
>
> Curran, Andrew [mailto:Andrew_Curran at translink.bc.ca
> <mailto:Andrew_Curran%40translink.bc.ca> ] 
> Sent: Wednesday, 23 July 2008 19:04
>
> In speaking with some colleagues from Mexico City who are considering a
> Public Bicycle System, one of the main challenges is that credit card use is
> not widespread and the majority of the population does not have any readily
> available collateral to offer up as a guarantee that they will return the
> bicycle. This challenge is the same for many cities in the Global South and
> for poorer parts of wealthy cities. If a PBS is implemented in cities where
> only a wealthy minority has access to the bicycles they will be the target
> of serious resentment, vandalism and theft. 
>
> Perhaps some kind of Grameen Bank-style model might work? 
>
> The Grameen Bank provides micro-loans to poor women with no conventional
> collateral. The women organize into homogeneous 5-person "self-help" groups
> (to facilitate group solidarity). These primary groups of 5 are then
> federated into local centres which are affiliated with the central Grameen
> Bank. One woman in the group at a time is granted a small loan to undertake
> a quick income generating activity of her choosing. The next woman in the
> group is only eligible for a subsequent loan once the first woman repays her
> loan. The Bank achieves close to a 99% repayment rate (far better than
> conventional banks). The entire system works based on credit discipline
> through collective borrower responsibility and peer pressure.
>
> More info: 
>
> http://www.grameen-info.org/
>
> http://www.grameen-info.org/grameen/gtrust/replication.html
>
> In a Grameen-style Public Bicycle System, users could organize into groups
> of 5-10 and if one user fails to return a bicycle - their entire group is
> responsible? Either the entire group would need to chip in and pay the lost
> bike charge or the entire group would lose their bicycle privileges? It's
> not as clean or as obviously work-able as the Bank model but perhaps there
> is a seed of something here? Is there some way to set up a sustainable PBS
> where bicycles are returned based on collective borrower responsibility and
> peer pressure (as opposed to un-collectable fines or the heavy hand of the
> law)?
>
> Any other ideas to address this challenge? 
>
> Cheers,
>
> Andrew
>
> _____ 
>
> From: WorldCityBike at yahoogroups.com <mailto:WorldCityBike%40yahoogroups.com>
> [mailto:WorldCityBike at yahoogroups.com
> <mailto:WorldCityBike%40yahoogroups.com> ]
> On Behalf Of Eric Britton
> Sent: Wednesday, July 23, 2008 1:45 AM
> To: worldcitybike at yahoogroups.com <mailto:worldcitybike%40yahoogroups.com> 
> Subject: [WorldCityBike] Public bicycle strategies for troubled communities
>
> Dear friends,
>
> Here is an idea I would like to see if we can perhaps develop together, and
> suggest that we do this in the new mobility café – i.e., you post to
> NewMobilityCafe at yahoogroups.com <mailto:NewMobilityCafe%40yahoogroups.com> .
>
> Okay, We have pretty well established over the last several years of real
> world hands-on experience that public bikes can do some pretty interesting
> things . . . in certain kinds of cities. The basic conditions of success
> include the usual: topography, climate, land use, quality of supporting
> infrastructure, street safety, etc., etc. All of that we have gone into
> amply here.
>
> But one thorn in the side of this great new mobility idea is: how if at all
> do you make it work in communities that suffer from certain kinds of social
> and economic dysfunctionality? For example areas with very high youth
> unemployment and the social behavior that does along with it.
>
> The trick with the public bike is that they are out on the street and we can
> be sure that if there is any residual anger within the community, they are
> going to suffer. Even in calmer cities, vandalism and theft are always very
> much there are requiring the fullest attention of the city and their public
> bike partner. 
>
> Until now the pattern response that I keep running into when we speak with
> people from the Global South mega-cites for example (but not only them) the
> public bike idea does not get too far before it gets tossed out the window
> for a lot of “practical reasons”. 
>
> Hmm.
>
> Your thoughts on this?
>
> Eric Britton
>
>
>   
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