Amid all of the bad news and strife today, the NY Times had this good news about kids biking to school.
It's a shame we don't have better cycling infrastructure that makes it safe for kids to just bike to school. This is a step in the right direction, though: biking together, with adults to help deal with cars on the road.
(This is a "gift" link that goes around the paywall.)
@bwbeach Ah yes, 1970s. I've read a while ago that this was the period that the Netherlands decided to go more bike centric. Before then it was heading the same way as USA.
I'm glad we went bike centric. I can go to many places by bike.
Honestly a place like New York would've been ideal with a bike.
@trinsec 99% Invisible did a very interesting episode on that history.
From the summary: "in the 1960s and 70s, it looked like the Netherlands would follow the same path as the United States. The Dutch had fallen in love with cars and they were rebuilding their cities to make room for them. It was only because of a multi-decade pro-cycling movement that cars didn’t take over the country entirely."
@bwbeach I think the car-less sundays also had a hand in it, when the oil prices were so high that the government decided that the cars couldn't drive on some sundays?
There are old pictures of kids playing on the highways and such, devoid of cars.
@bwbeach *Eyes the article* Oh yes, they did mention that. ;)
@trinsec I rode my bike to school here in the US in the 1970s, and it was perfectly normal. Since then, we have ceded the streets to the cars, and people walking and biking have to fend for themselves.
We need to redesign our infrastructure to prioritize people and bikes, so kids biking to school don't need chaperones and a bunch of protective gear.