DON'T build it and they will come?

Ahhh..
The passion.
Almost fanatical.
It's no wonder why some (most) laugh at the serious cyclist.

Last nights bike coalition meeting.
We quickly worked through the core business,
leaving the Bicycle Master Plan until the end.
At that point I should have just up and left.



Some feel that there should be full bike lanes,
EVERYWHERE.
I used to think that would be nice,
but would never happen in this city.
It's way to much for so few cyclists.
I also agree with the notion that
if you relegate cyclists to lanes:
1. drivers & cyclists will not know how to interact.
2. it will reinforce the idea cyclists DO NOT BELONG on roadways.
address ALL issues with driver education (DMV) and
cyclist education, starting in elementary school (gym teachers),
and reinforce those principles with roadway markings (not signs).
Simple as that, for the most part.



Also throw in some protection for non motorized roadway users.
Stiffer penalties against aggressive drivers, and drivers found
at fault for serious 'accidents', which really are cases of
negligence.

Last nights meeting wrapped up with severe disagreements of:

'we just need more cyclists on the road, then things will change'

well, I went with the other opinion that is:

'right now all the 'serious' cyclists are out there battling
traffic, other people are coming out due to economic or
environmental reasons. But the general public will not ride
on the street because they don't feel safe, or protected.
And they're half right. So you can't 'just get them out there'.

It's education, and reinforcement of rights.
Not lanes all over the place.
Even serious recreational/racers do not commute regularly.
They only feel safe in large group rides.

So it boiled down to somehow people will just
magically show up on their bikes,
and things will start changing.
It was also dicouraging when the Master Plan
was labeled: The 20 Year Plan.
Twenty years, so when are you going to start on this?
What is ACTUALLY going to happen NEXT YEAR?
What's that?
You don't actually know when it's going to be implemented?
GREAT.



With storms rolling in (again).
I packed up and headed out,
at least the local police Pipe & Drum band were out practicing.
So the bagpipes cried as the dark clouds rolled in.
I don't know what was really accomplished.