News for hackers. Stuff that matters.

A comment on 'Green Roads' Are Plowing Ahead, Buffering Drought and Floods. Parent comment

Re:'Green Roads' Are Plowing Ahead, Buffering Drought and Fl... by hibikir on Friday December 15, 2023 @06:00PM (#38659936)
In large parts of the US, suburban distances and very bad biking weather make e-bikes cover relatively few use cases: When a shopping trip is a 15 minute car drive, and a typical commute to work is 40 minutes, the e-bike doesn't win at all. Perfect lanes don't cut bad distances, 100F summers or -10F winters. And often yes, what we see in US bike infrastructure is unsafe, leading to basically no cyclist using it.

Bikes are great when your development pattern is Netherlands-like: Not dense enough for serious public transport to the home, or to do everything on foot, yet not so light that many trips go past 10 miles. I bet there's a few large metro areas that could support this, but in a lot of the country, it's not about unsafe lanes.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:'Green Roads' Are Plowing Ahead, Buffering Drought and Fl... by bobthepanda on Friday December 15, 2023 @06:48PM (#38660290)
I think there is more here than meets the eye.

The modern suburban arterial often has light cycles measured in a few minutes, which adds up if you're hitting a bunch of them.

Dedicated bike infrastructure, even at high volumes, does not require coming to a full stop, so while the top speed might be lower, the average is more competitive than it appears. And grade separating a bike lane is a lot easier than a whole suburban road.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:'Green Roads' Are Plowing Ahead, Buffering Drought and Fl... by campl3r on Friday December 15, 2023 @11:44PM (#38661806)
Weather is not a major factor in ridership given good infrastructure.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:'Green Roads' Are Plowing Ahead, Buffering Drought and Fl... by devilbunny on Saturday December 16, 2023 @07:06AM (#38663654)
On what planet? Finns ride bikes in very cold weather, but what do you do about New Orleans, where it's 75 F at 4 AM with 100% humidity? You absolutely need showers at work for anyone who is going to bike in because they will be covered in sweat.

A lot more people in this world live in the tropics than the frigid north.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:'Green Roads' Are Plowing Ahead, Buffering Drought and Fl... by okr on Saturday December 16, 2023 @07:58AM (#38663875)
Frigid north? What are you implying?
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:'Green Roads' Are Plowing Ahead, Buffering Drought and Fl... by devilbunny on Saturday December 16, 2023 @01:23PM (#38666509)
It’s cold close to the poles, right? Been that way every time I’ve gotten near.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:'Green Roads' Are Plowing Ahead, Buffering Drought and Fl... by okr on Saturday December 16, 2023 @04:58PM (#38668129)
Maybe it would not be that cold, if
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:'Green Roads' Are Plowing Ahead, Buffering Drought and Fl... by devilbunny on Saturday December 16, 2023 @06:53PM (#38668988)
If what?
[ Parent | on HN ]