The Demo Site

Dave Elmore of Bike to the Future would have Winnipeger's believe that building cycling paths will engage people to opt for bicycles as a mode of transportation and keep cyclists safer. He even goes so far as to say that this is a "Proven" fact! He said this live on CBC radio 990 on Oct. 07, 2010. This idea, and his statement are completely false. No Bike Path initiative in 40 years in any country in the industrialized world has ever done this.

Bike to the Future are nothing more than a minority group banded together to form a Bike Activists club who have successfully promoted to waste Millions of tax payer dollars with completely ineffective "Active Transportation" construction in our city.

John Forester, M.S., P.E. Cycling Transportation Engineer Consulting Engineer, Expert Witness & Educator in Effective Cycling, Bicycles and Highways knows bike paths and active transport well... Probably better than anyone else in the world. From his office in Southern California he conducted an interview with CBC's Terry McCloud on Oct. 07, 2010... here is what he had to say;

1). No city has any need for a network of bike paths or bike routes. These construction projects have been proven time and time again to be a complete waste of time & money.

2). In 40+ years of testing bike routes the conclusion is that they have never had the effect they were intended to produce. This is true for every city in every part of the world.

3). Bike routes do not make cyclists safe. Only cyclists learning how to drive safe, will be safe.

4). Bike routes tend to give cyclists a false sense of security. They feel and think they are safer in their lanes, however this has been proven as false time & time again.

5). In 40+ years on conducting studies, not a single bike activist group has been able to demonstrate in any case how bike paths have ever kept a cyclist safer.

6). Bike lanes & routes have had the opposite effect of what they were intended to produce. They have instead created more unpredictable reactions from cyclists and motorists - instead of safer riding, the ride for cyclists has become more dangerous with bike routes.

7). With or without bike routes, cyclists are proven to delay cars and traffic. Bike lanes painted onto streets have also created groups of cycle vigilantes or "Scofflaw Cyclists," as John Forester calls them. These cyclists take dangerous risks that endanger not only themselves but pedestrians and motorists as well.

8). Bike routes cause traffic patterns, and car/bike collisions to increase! Especially at turning and crossing left-turn intersections. The bike routes give cyclists a false identity on the road. The bike lanes confuse drivers and pedestrians as to what the cyclist should be doing.

Only a comprehensive bike safety program can work to keep cyclists safe. If Dave Elmore wants to do his bike riding friends any true service, he should establish a proper cycling training program for riders. Not, lobbying the city for more and more useless bike routes that do NOT get people on bikes, or promote cycling. Rather, the routes endanger all citizens of any city they have ever been installed in.

In conclusion, John Forester did mention that in his 40 plus years of being involved in Cycling Transportation he can say that along with comprehensive bike training programs, the only proven safety method for keeping cyclists safer on city streets is by the installation of more left turn signals on intersections. As for the concept that bike routes make cyclists safe and make people cycle more... According to John Forester - Completely unfounded!

Chris Johnston
Wpg. Report
Oct. 07, 2010

Read more on Bike safety and learn from a true expert on this subject by visiting Mr. Forester's Cycling Transportation website:
http://www.johnforester.com/