LimitedWard

The Aventon Soltera 2 is on sale right now for $1200.

No that’s not the point. In countries like the Netherlands where proper bike infrastructure is in place, cyclists physically separated from car traffic. This type of “freak accident” would not happen if that were the case here.

It’s less about how we move lumber and more highlighting the dangers of having cyclists share the road with giant trucks and cars. You wouldn’t hear stories like this in countries like the Netherlands where they actually provide proper bike infrastructure that’s separated from the road.

It would be a similar process to organizing a club, though the exact steps would differ between schools. Ideally you’d meet up at a common central location for everyone and then continue onward to school, picking up other students along the way at other checkpoints.

No buses in this post? I’d place them under chaotic neutral

IDK what the culture is like at your school, but if you’re feeling motivated consider offering to organize a group ride to school to encourage others to join in. It could just start out as a one-time or once a month thing and increase from there if there’s enough interest.

Is there statistical evidence of that? Mainly curious so I can arm myself next time someone argues about it.

The runner is occupying the whole lane though and they have headphones on preventing the cyclist from getting their attention.

Assuming the structure can support the weight, I’m all in favor of green roofs. Though, most buildings are privately owned and therefore are not true replacements for proper public greenspace within a city. I think it’s also important not to get distracted from the primary source of land waste within cities: car infrastructure.

I saw a similar thing on the Amalfi coast in Italy, though the roads are so damn narrow there idk how else it could possibly work.

The Internet is not a replacement for real human interaction. Also a lot of elderly people have trouble using it.

CityNerd posted a really good video on this topic a few months ago. https://youtu.be/H6UD9h3hEdk

His videos are primarily US-focused, but I believe this one applies for pretty much any country.

I don’t really see an obvious solution here that avoids the need for a car, at least in the US (which I’m assuming you’re in base on the kind of car you drive). If your goal is to ultimately ditch the car, depending on how frequent the trips are, you could potentially save money by renting a car just for the longer trips.

One option to look into, especially for transporting small children, is a “bakfiets”. It’s a type of cargo bike with a large bucket in the front that can be used to haul kids and groceries. And you can find them now as ebikes to make it easier to haul more stuff. They’re super common in the Netherlands for their high carrying capacity. You’ll even see people moving furniture around with them!

you can’t drive the stock market to work

No, but you can ride a bike instead, which as the article demonstrates saves you a significant amount of money each year.

don’t buy an average car, by the one someone bought ten years ago for $5500.

That’s not how markets work. If everyone started buying cheaper used cars there wouldn’t be enough stock of said cheap cars. But even beyond that a $5500 car is going to cost you WAY more in the long run when you take into account the added recurring costs (e.g. higher maintenance).

At a reasonable (downright inexpensive) hourly rate of $50/hr and 11.000 miles at an average of 10mph vs 30mph in a car (including stoplights), she’s lost 700 hours or $35,000 just in lost time.

You are significantly overestimating the speed of cars and significantly underestimating the speed of ebikes. When accounting for traffic, stop lights, car accidents, etc., the average speed for car trips hovers around 18.5mph globally. Obviously that will vary significantly depending on your commute, but especially if you live in city bikes are at least on par in terms of speed. Most ebikes can reach speeds of 20mph+, and unlike cars they don’t get stuck in traffic.

Of course that’s a silly way to look at it. But so is assuming we all have $28k just lying around to invest in the stock market.

Why is that silly? What’s silly is the number of people choosing to put themselves into debt to own a car when in many cases they don’t need one.

I’m not trying to sit here and claim everyone should dump their cars and ride bikes. My point is that people severely underestimate how much of a money pit they are. If you live in an urban environment, the benefits of car ownership simply don’t outweigh the cons for the average commuter. The problem of course is that US cities have been designed to be actively hostile for active transportation, which is a major barrier for anyone looking to make the switch.

One thing these articles often neglect is the opportunity cost of car ownership vs bikes. The average used car in the US today is around $28k. Suppose you bought that car outright and sold it 10 years later. Assuming a reasonable depreciation of 15% per year, that car would sell for around $5.5k. That means (ignoring all other costs) your car cost you $22.5k. Now assume you took that $22.5k and invested it in the stock market. Assuming a reasonable interest rate of 8%, by the end of those 10 years your investment would more than double to $48.5k!

Cars are literally a mechanism to keep people poor.

Google pannier bags. They’re basically totes that mount onto a bike rack. Some of them even have straps to convert them into a backpack for easy carrying.

In terms of distance, I think you might be surprised by how far and fast you can go with an ebike. A lot of people only think about their speed when on the highway, but most of your time on the road is likely spent at slower speeds navigating traffic in town. So what bikes may lack in speed, they make up for in maneuverability.

Until it’s actually built, don’t count on it. NIMBYs will fight tooth and nail every chance they get. Even after it’s built there will be a constant barrage of unfounded complaints about how it hurts traffic flow and makes it more dangerous for drivers. Show up to your city council meetings and make sure to hold them accountable for their promises.

I’m shocked, I say. Absolutely stunned.

^/s

What class are you taking? Cognitive Dissonance 101?