Last Monday, CERA’s Central City Development Unit (CCDU) released their Central City Recovery Plan, promising a more compact central area, bounded by a green “frame” and home to a number of designated precincts for different activities. Having had a …
Category: Flashback
Identifies those posts that have already been featured in a Flashback Friday
Should we have cycle helmet legislation? NOT the same question as “should we wear helmets”!
I’m writing this here because I seem to be writing something like it often recently thanks to Aaron Keown’s comments in the media recently!
All other things being equal, I agree, it is better to wear a helmet when cycling …
The banana box challenge
I’m sure this could become an internationally acclaimed event whose popularity rivals the Tour De France. How many banana boxes can you fit on one pedal powered vehicle and keep them there while cycling for three kilometers over potholed road …
Bikes on Buses
Another reason why cycling in Christchurch is great: you can combine bike and bus trips!
This evening I had to go to a meeting in Burnside. From work it was only another 5km – easy to get there by bike. …
Cycling Missing in the Neighbourhoods
“Suburban Nation – The Rise of Sprawl and the Decline of the American Dream”
Andres Duany, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, and Jeff Speck
10th Anniversary Edition
North Point Press 2010
Suburban Nation is three architects’ vision for how our burgeoning population can …
Cycling in the News
There have been a flurry of cycling-related articles in the local news lately; looking at the online versions, they have also attracted a fair amount of discussion (and rant, vitriol, …):
- Christchurch City councillor Aaron Keown waded into the helmet
The Orthodoxy of the Highway – The true believer’s approach to transportation planning
Back in the 1940’s urban planners found that building or expanding roading increased traffic congestion. This point was further reinforced in NY in 1973 when the West Side Highway collapsed and the predicted traffic chaos was instead a reduction in …
Cyclopolitan
For some time now I have needed a new word. When I tell people that I ride a bike, they instantly think ‘Cyclist’ and imagine me in head-to-toe lycra – this is not a good thing.
I would not wish …
Vancouver: Neighbourhood Greenways
Some of the best cycle routes I encountered in Vancouver had virtually no cycle facilities on them… The City of Vancouver (pop.600,000 within the 2.2million Greater Metro area) has about 450km of bike routes. While some of that is conventional …
Advocating for Cycling
Writing a submission is really not so hard. You need only say what is on your mind, in your own words. Brevity is a virtue, but well thought out points well made are also fine. In most instances you can …
Vancouver: Separated Bikeways
Greetings from Vancouver! Actually I’m about to head home after a busy week exploring the city and meeting up with many of the world’s foremost experts on matters cycling at the VeloCity Global 2012 cycling conference.
The conference was …
Cycling and Snow: It’s the Little Details
The big thaw is now underway in Christchurch, and it’s time to go back to work as well. So off on my trusty steed I headed this morning. Cycling after a snowfall is “interesting” because of the potential ice hazard …
Snow chains on bikes
The snow is certainly coming down thickly. At this rate I will need to get my bike snow chains out. They work really well for ice, though for slushy stuff a normal knobbly tyre is usually adequate. The NZ Herald …
Starting with a Solid Base
For anyone who has spent the past 20-odd months living in Christchurch, the importance of a solid foundation is pretty obvious. Otherwise sturdy homes and other buildings were no match for ground conditions that turned into quicksand when the big …