"Go Bicycle Before It´s Too Late" - Exhibition in London

Yesterday as part of The London Design Festival the exhibition The Art of Movement has opened. “Go Bicycle Before It’s Too Late” is part of the official selection of the London Design Festival and will present art and design related to sustainable urban movement.

Bicycling - because the world is so hot right now (www.sanitov.com)

More posters at copenhagenize
21 Sep 2010 (All day) - 25 Sep 2010 (All day)

47 Mowlem Street

London 

Bike Culture Cities: No Green City Standards for Hamburg´s European Green Capital Traffic System

Fahrradstädte: Keine Umweltstandards für Hamburgs Umwelthauptstadtverkehrssystem

Hamburg city of cars. Cycling in Hamburg very often means to get off the cycle and push it.

 Talkmaster Schalthoff of Hamburg1 TV station invited politicians and members of cycle lobby and chamber of commerce to talk about a vision for future city traffic in Hamburg (Schalthoff Live Part 1 / Schalthoff Live Part 2). Hamburg as a city with human scale suggested from the cyclist organization with an overall speed limit of 30 km/h against the interests of car lobby and the concepts of car-oriented city, as Hamburg still is, showed the point of Hamburg´s traffic culture in face of Hamburg being European Green Capital in 2011.

Hamburg, the European Green Cycle Track Capital 2011
Hamburg, die europäische Hauptstadt der grünen Radwege 2011

Hamburg cycle traffic is still extreme far away from cycle traffic in Amsterdam or Copenhagen, the leading cycle capitals. Politicians and car lobby can not imagine to redistribute public space in the city from dominating car traffic to pedestrians, cycle traffic, open space for all and trams.

Lovely greenish cycle track with obligation to use it. Cargo-bikes and trailers are not welcome.
Wunderschöner Grünradweg mit Benutzungspflicht. Lastenfahrräder und Anhänger sind hier unerwünscht

The actual status of Hamburg traffic culture, urban planning and sustainability shows the critical study of the Hamburg Future Council about the Hafencity, the newest urban planning project in Hamburg. The Hafencity still under construction is not a place for good cycle traffic, although Hamburg wants to double cycle traffic. Future Council criticizes the missing cycle connections from the city to the Hafencity and the bad cycle infrastructure in the Hafencity. The role of cycle traffic in Hafencity is reduced only on leisure traffic.

Cycle route in Hafencity

Hamburg Green Cycle Track Capital 2011: This is the measure for newest Hamburg cycle tracks built due to the new Hamburg Bicycle Strategy to double cycle traffic from 9% to 18% until 2015.
Hamburg, die europäische Hauptstadt der Grünradwege 2011:  Dies ist der Maßstab für Hamburgs neueste Radwege gebaut gemäß der neuesten Richtlinien der Radverkehrsstrategie für Hamburg, um den Radverkehrsanteil von 9% auf 18% zu verdoppeln

Cycle traffic in the city could be so easy and a city could be much nicer with good cycle traffic, as the leading cycle cities show. Enjoy . . .


. . . Amsterdam Cycle Culture Video


Copenhagen - City of Cyclists from Copenhagenize on Vimeo.
. . . Copenhagen Cycle Culture Video

Basel Cycle Tracks as Model for Hamburg - First Modern Green Cycle Route in Hamburg

Cycle route in Hamburg some years ago (Picture: Frank Bokelmann)

Two years ago politicans and administration of the district of Altona invited me for consultation for a planned cycle route crossing the whole district. The cycle route should run along normal streets with cycle tracks or lanes, but also along small residential streets with speed limit of 30 km/h, or as a green cycle route through green spaces without car traffic.

Cycle route nowadays

Cycle route nowadays

Traditionally cyclists in Hamburg have to turn around fences when they leave a green cycle route at a crossing with a street. Cycle friendly cities like Copenhagen or Basel do not confront cyclists with fences or force cyclists to get off their bikes on main cycle routes. Apparently those fences are redundant.

Suggested cycle route from Basel

Suggested cycle route from Basel

Suggested cycle route from Basel

Suggested cycle route from Basel

Suggested cycle route from Basel

Suggested cycle route from Basel

After examples of Basel given to the administration fences were removed and the cycle route got a new direction. For the first time in Hamburg a green cycle route is designed in this way. Hopefully this will be applied at other cycle routes in the following years. Hamburg plans to build many kilometers of cycle routes until the year 2015, starting this year with Route No. 6 along the small river Wandse between downtown Hamburg and Barmbek / Dulsberg. The planned cycle route network was a showcase for the application as European Green Capital.

Typical cycle route in Hamburg

Typical cycle route in Hamburg, even without low curbs

Typical cycle route in Hamburg

Sometimes cyclists in Hamburg find signs like this at the point, where a cycle route meets a main road.Cycling is not that easy in Hamburg

Jewel of Cycle Culture back again - the Postwoman at Hoheluft in Hamburg

Hamburger Fahrradkultur: Die Postradlerin ist wieder da

Jewel of cycle culture in Hamburg

Hamburg´s cyclist also have a symbol in town, the postwoman at Hoheluftchaussee close to the post-office. 2005 she disappeared from the street in front of the post-office, that had been moved to the new buildings at the former tram workshops. This summer the postwoman is back to her former place at Hoheluftchaussee, where the post office had been before the new shopping center was built.

Postwoman back in 2010
Postradlerin 2010

For many years the unsmiling postwoman looked onto Hoheluftchaussee. Maybe she looked sorrowful because of the very bad condition of the cycle track at Hoheluftchaussee directly in front of her. Hoheluftchaussee had one of the worst cycle tracks in Hamburg just at the former post-office and still cycle infrastructure at whole Hoheluftchaussee do not fulfill the regulations. The post girl seemed to show solidarity to all cyclists passing her as an advocacy, the only visible advocacy for cyclists in town. In times of Hamburg cycle traffic strategy and European Green Capital the post lady can smile someday in future hopefully. This jewel of cycle culture belongs to Hamburg and must become more popular.

Postwoman before she disappeared in 2005
Postradlerin 2005

Unsmiling postwoman before removal

A sister of the postwoman is working at a weatherstation in Copenhagen

Another relative racing with green wave on Nørrebrogade in Copenhagen

Cycle track near the postwoman some years ago

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Yesterday New Cycle Lanes Opened Officially

Neue Schutzstreifen wurden gestern offiziell eingeweiht

Hofweg with new cycle lane

The countdown for European Green Capital 2011 runs. Hamburg improves the cycle infrastructure just before Europe comes to the harbour city and will check cycle traffic critically. Most of the old cycle tracks still have to be abolished. Yesterday representatives of the state traffic administration, the district administration and the local cycle club handed over 530 meters new cycle lanes to cyclists in Hofweg between Averhoffstraße and Winterhuder Weg.

Hofweg with cycle lane

Hofweg with cycle lane

Hofweg with cycle lane

Compared to the former narrow cycle tracks the new cycle lanes make cycling easier and more comfortable. Keeping cars away from the new cycle lanes is desirable for future time. Yesterday cyclists seemed to be satisfied with the new lanes. Cyclists of all ages took over them. The old cycle tracks were converted into sidewalks yesterday. Sidewalks will be wider, no conflicts between cyclists and pedestrians any more.

End of cycle lane in Hofweg

New cycle lane and erased old cycle track

Cycle track converted into sidewalk

Cycle track to sidewalk

The comfortable cycle lane stops in the middle of the long street and cyclists need to watch out carefully to pass by parking cars. Hopefully the bad cycle tracks in extension of Hofweg, in Papenhuder Straße, will be abolished as soon as possible, too. Those cycle tracks are even more unsatisfactory than the old ones in Hofweg and unusable. It will be a challenge not to miss out the difficulties in Papenhuder Straße in order to earn the right being European Green Capital and increase number of cyclists in Hamburg up to 18% as planned.

More about Hofweg: From Cycle Path to Cycle Lane: New Cycle Lanes in Hamburg´s Uhlenhorst

Warning: Never take the switch to the old cycle tracks at the end of Hofweg to Papenhuder Straße! Otherwise you will pass the next stations . . .

Papanhuder Straße: So called "cycle tracks" still remained

Papenhuder Straße yesterday

Papenhuder Straße some years ago

Papenhuder Straße some years ago

Papenhuder Straße yesterday

Papenhuder Straße 2010 at evening

Papenhuder Straße 2010 at evening

Papenhuder Straße yesterday with Danish cargo bike

Papenhuder Straße 2010 early evening

Papenhuder Straße 2010 later evening

Papenhuder Straße yesterday

Papenhuder Straße some years ago early evening

Papenhuder Straße some years ago late evening

Papenhuder Straße 2010

Papenhuder Straße yesterday

Papenhuder Straße yesterday

Papenhuder Straße yesterday

Papenhuder Straße yesterday

Papenhuder Straße yesterday

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