Superb Idea: Bike Lane That Travels With You
- Posted by: Zach Frechette
- on January 15, 2009 at 3:01 pm
As we look for ways to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and find viable transportation alternatives to the internal combustion engine, many urbanites are turning to that staple of bipedal locomotion: the humble bicycle. While ridership is increasing every year, bicycle safety remains a huge issue: in 2007, 43,000 people were injured in bike accidents, resulting in 698 deaths. Though many cities are getting serious about making bike-friendly infrastructure changes, installing bike lanes is a costly porposition with a glacial pace of implementation.
Enter LightLane, a safety concept from the clever designers at Altitude, Inc. The system projects a virtual bike lane (using lasers!) on the ground around the cyclists, providing drivers with a recognizable boundary they can easily avoid. The idea is to allow riders to take safety into their own hands, rather than leaving it to the city. And just in case you need to be convinced about the need for better cycle saftey, watch this video about the stupidest bike lane in America.
DISCUSSION: 38 Comments
fantastique!!!!!
wow! great idea!!
Re: video of bad cycle lane. You think that’s bad? In the UK that would be an example of a superb cycle line. Take a look at “Facility of the Month” here: http://www.warringtoncyclecampaign.co.uk/Lots and lots of examples of crap cycle lanes. There’s a book you can buy too. As the video says, all roads are available to cyclists, and in fact there’s evidence to suggest cycle lanes make cycling less safe. For example, the lane in the video guides the cyclist quite close to parked cars and their opening doors… whoops.
I would like to have one of this. It is dangerous to ride in Turkey, even in daylight. We do not have lanes, so this would be very nice!
The cyclist has no lights, no reflector belt and no helmet.
A much simpler solution would be to enforce the use of lights on cyclists at night. Flashing led lights should be allowed (Red at the back, white/blue white at the front).
Helmets are a good idea, but I would make the optional. Lights should be mandatory.
A solution such as this is way over-engineered – all you need to do is to paint a white line on the road.
mahonj, (cyclist) Dublin, Ireland.
Lights are mandatory in the United Kingdom. You are required to have a solid white on the front and solid red on the rear once the street lights are on. (Same as cars have to have headlights on then.)You can have flashing lights as long as you have a steady light as well. And helmet aren’t mandatory sadly, although they should be.
Where can I get one?! What a great (and very marketable) idea!
love this.www.joannagoddard.blogspot.com
Sweet! Now I’ll always be in the bike lane as I weave in and out of slower auto traffic!
of course, first use wrecks will increase as you keep looking backwards at your new cool laser lane.
Hmmm, I think this does little more than a regular blinking safety light. The fact that it is a light increases your visibility – that’s a good thing. But the idea of making your own bike lane wherever you want just seems like a clever sort of bullying – just the kind that drivers don’t like. Drivers already think that cyclists have a sense of entitlement, this isn’t going to help. Might as well walk around the world with “THIS BELONGS TO ME” stickers, and put them on anything you want – same logic. Clever though, I like it, but I don’t think it’s practical. Get some regular bike lights, probably cheaper too. Here’s some good info about bike lights: http://900mpg.org/lights.php
Also… I bet that it doesn’t really look like that “photo” which appears to actually be a digital rendering. Here’s an attempt to make that link about <a href=”http://www.900mpg.org”>bike lights</a> work.
I think I’ll keep my blinkie lights for a while.RE: the video – Here in Atlanta, we have many/much more stupid bike lanes than the one in the video!
Problem is that drivers aren’t aware of the rules when it comes to bikers. Plus the matter of the fact pitting bikers and cars is the stupidest thing I can think of.Take a car and a bike – have them go at eachother.Now, take a bike and a pedestrian, and get them full speed at eachother. What sounds a bit more equal to you, a little less carnage, and who is more responsible and aware?
[...] Good. [...]
Where can I get one? I can’t seem to find it sold anywhere online.
Briljant!
Sweet! no I can easily spot cyclist like my fuck of a father at night. All the easier to run down.Just put a congestion charge zone in. The issue is people driveing when they don’t need to. I drive for an hour and a half to get to work. It would be a lot shorter if all the drivers that only travel 4 blocks were off the road.
Seriously , if anyone here knows where to buy one of those , let me know(or maybe get in contact with the guy who created it) because downhere in Brazil , riding a bike on the streets , its almost like suicide , cars and busses dont give a damn abou you , neither does the government .
My brother was killed riding his bicycle – hit by a truck. I wonder if this might have saved his life….it’s really quite brilliant
Amazing! In Poland I can only dreaming about this one bike lane.
no wonder cyclists get injured,
in the photo the person isnt wearing a helmet and isnt going the right way in the lane.
someone should also invent a cyclist brain !
i like bikes
do they make a front light ?
can the lane be lengthened? or better yet, how big of a lane can you create by changing the lights angle?
Bicycles + Motor Vehicle Lanes = Bad IdeaYou can’t keep up with traffic, which means you’re pissing off the drivers, and worse than that, you have no insurance (while vehicle insurance is mandatory in most places).I ride the sidewalks. It’s easier maneuvering around pedestrians than it is dodging angry pickup trucks and delivery vans.
“I ride the sidewalks.”Which is also equally unsafe, considering the way people pull out of their driveways suddenly and without warning. Or if you’re driving in a downtown area, people coming out of a storefront could pose a hazard as well.Drivers just need to be more courteous of bikers. Simple problem, simple solution.Of course bikers should also use measures (reflectors/flashing lights) to make sure they are noticed.