PUMA Needs Exclusive Lane

I am sure you have heard about the GM and Segway joint venture called Project PUMA (Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility). Just this weekend I read an interesting article titled Will GM Design Your Next Car? In this article Parade Magazine interviews Larry Burns, head of R&D for GM, and asks some great questions about the future of mobility. Larry hits on many key points supporting a shift towards smaller vehicles, including the PUMA high-tech electric scooter. Most notably, he points out that sustainable transportation is about more than petroleum and global climate change, its also about congestion and safety - which, coincidentally, are the two underlying reasons for developing motorcycle infrastructure.

So, Larry, GM, and Segway, I would like to make a suggestion. If you really want to design the vehicles of the future you also need to help with the infrastructure of the future. PUMA will not be successful if you are asking customers to drive in in mixed traffic alongside SUVs - its too dangerous (according to the NHTSA, you are 35 times more likely to die, per vehicle mile traveled, on a scooter or motorcycle than you are in a passenger car). We need to develop priority lanes for new innovative electric scooters like the PUMA that can be shared with bicycle commuters and other vulnerable road users.

Cycle sales help Honda cope with down economy

I came across this article (Cycle sales help Honda cope) that, in summary, states that Honda is expected to post a significant profit largely due to its motorcycle sales. It goes on to state that most of these sales are in southeast asia where motorcycles are used for everyday transport and while the $20,000-30,000 Honda car and SUV sales have plummeted, sales of relatively affordable motorcycles have held strong.

“Motorcycles are more resilient against a recession than cars because these products are used in Asia for people’s main mode of transport,” said Makoto Haga, president of Tokyo-based hedge fund Wing Asset Management Co. “Motorcycles give Honda an advantage over its rivals.”

What are the implications for the rest of the world? What if cash-strapped Americans were to turn to efficient and affordable motorcycles as a means of everyday transport? What would it take to make this happen? In my opinion, safe motorcycle infrastructure is needed, the riders will follow.

American Planning Association National Conference

I will be giving a poster presentation on Exclusive Motorcycle Lanes at the APA National Conference this spring in Minneapolis. This will be a great opportunity to engage planning professionals in the merits of establishing motorcycle infrastructure in the US. I will be sure to report back to this blog on the feedback I receive from the conference.

Safe Routes Scooter Rally, Melbourne, Australia

In Melbourne the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce (VACC) has been holding a Safe Routes Scooter Rally for a few years now to shine a spotlight on scooters as a valid mode of transport and to demand that government make allowances for scooters in their transport policy. Here are a few of their positions that, by the way, are all relevant in the US:

“VACC is calling for the implementation of designated and signed ‘Safe Routes’, access by scooter riders to certain designated bicycle lanes, filtering in stationery or slow moving traffic and allowing boxed turns at certain busy intersections,”

“With high petrol prices, many people are tightening their financial belts. Some see scooters as a viable means of transport because they are cheap to buy and run, easy to park and are environmentally friendly."

“Sales are soaring and yet, the Government and transport policy makers seem oblivious to their existence and growing relevance."

"There is no sign of the boom in scooter and motorcycle sales abating. Road sharing must be made safer for scooter and motorcycle riders. Neither regulation, nor training, nor traffic management and infrastructure has kept pace with the boom in sales of two-wheeled transport. Clearly cars and poor road sharing practice pose the greatest risk to scooter riders."

“Riders are doing their bit for the economy and environment by taking to scooters. Now the Government has to do its bit and provide protection for these responsible, but vulnerable, members of society."

"Scooter sales are booming. Some brands are up nearly 60 percent on last year. They are a cheap alternative to cars, they benefit the environment because they leave a tiny carbon footprint, they reduce congestion on roads and they reduce pressure on city parking spaces. It is time for the Government to take them seriously and to accommodate scooters in our road planning and traffic management systems."

"Encouraging more people to get on their bike, whether pedal or powered"

In my opinion, this is a very insightful position by London Mayor Boris Johnson.

“One of the ways we can ease congestion is by encouraging more people to get on their bike, whether pedal or powered, and I believe they should be able to share our bus lanes successfully and safely. At the end of the trial period I will listen carefully to the views of all our road users and then make a decision about whether this should be a permanent arrangement.”

Source: Date set for London bus lane access

Exclusive Motorcycle Lane in Vietnam

Here is a picture of an EML from Vietnam that shows scooters, bikes and small motorcycles adjacent to a highway with cars and trucks. EMLs are found primarily in Asian countries where large numbers of motorcycle riders already exist. However, as gas prices rise and road congestion worsens, the benifits of commuting via motorcycle/scooter/bike are being realized throughout the rest of the world.

The following link from the The International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP) shows costs and benefits of EMLs, including a 40% crash reduction: http://www.irap.net/toolkit/default.asp?p=treatment&i=86.

Scooters and Motorcycles in Bus Lanes

In the UK a three year study has shown that scooters and motorcycles can safely use bus lanes.



Petition to use bus lanes
By MCN
Politics & the law
23 February 2007 14:41
Riders can now let Tony Blair know what they think about bikes in bus lanes by signing an online petition demanding we’re allowed to use them.

The petition, on Number 10’s website, says: “We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to allow the use of "Bus Only" lanes by scooters and motorcyles throughout the UK without penalty at any time.”

More than 1,000 names have already been added with five months to go before it’s submitted to Blair.

We reported last month that transport authorities in London were still stalling on letting us use bus lanes despite a three year limited trial showing it would not lengthen bus journey times or deter cyclists.

Riders’ rights groups say access to bus lanes in the capital is a key step to access across the country.

Scooter sales soar as gas prices rise

Scooter sales are going through the roof throughout the country. Here are a few links:

• Scooter sales soar in Seattle



• Sale of Vespa Scooters rise



• Scooter sales rise with gas prices

Cyclists pedal scared on Triangle roads

The Raleigh News and Observer ran an article today titled Cyclists pedal scared on Triangle roads. I also heard a story this morning on a local radio show where the DJs were discussing how they would love to ride their bikes to work but that they would not take the chance because the roads are so dangerous. A few people also called in and said they only ride their bikes on the greenway systems, but would also love to ride to work, for the exercise, to save on gas and other expenses of operating an automobile.

Can someone out there tell me why it is that two wheeled vehicles do not have their own infrastructure? It is almost as if no one in the US has even considered this very simple idea.

As gas prices rise, so do 2-wheeler deaths.

As gas prices continue to rise, more and more people across the country are turning to motorcycles, scooters, and bikes as a form of transportation. Unfortunately, this trend has also led to a dramatic increase in 2-wheeler deaths. In my home state of North Carolina, motorcycle fatalities have tripled in a decade - it seems like every time I open up a newspaper there is a new story of someone being killed on a motorcycle or bike.

If motorcycles, scooters, and bikes had their own, exclusive lanes, most if not all of these deaths could have been avoided. In my opinion, the best way to curb this disturbing trend is by bulding a network of EMLs. No matter how careful of a rider you are, you can not prevent what would only be a minor fender bender accident between two vehicles from turning into a fatality if one of those vehicles is a motorcycle, scooter, or bike.

Estrada proposes exclusive lanes for motorcycles

A bill has been filed in the Senate that seeks to establish motorcyle lanes along busy roads and streets across the country to minimize motorcycle accidents. Authored by Sen. Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada, Senate Bill No. 2076, known as "Motorcycle Lane Act of 2008," requires the construction of one-half-meter lanes on both sides of the road for exclusive use of motorcyles.
Under the bill, the Department of Public Works and Highways, in coordination with local government units, is tasked to construct the motorcycle lanes.

If passed into a law, motorcycle drivers who do not use the lanes will be penalized by a maximum of six years imprisonment or fined of not less than P5,000 but not more than P20,000, or both at the discretion of the court. The DPWH and any local government unit which violate any provision of this Act shall be fined of not less than P10,000 but not more than P20,000 at the discretion of the court. The penalty does not prohibit any motorcycle driver who met an accident due to the absence of the lane from filing damage claims against the DPWH and the local government units that violated this Act.

The bill seeks an appropriation of P10 million to construct the lanes. In his explanatory note, Estrada said accidents involving motorcycles continue to increase. Citing data from the Metro Manila Development Authority, Estrada said there were 116 deaths and injuries in motorcylce accidents in Metro Manila in 2006 alone. He said this represents a 26.6 percent increase over 2005 figure. Estrada said Congress had passed a law requiring motorcycle drivers tp wear helmets but it was not enough to minimize deaths and injuries to motorcycle riders.

Source: http://www.senate.gov.ph/press_release/2008/0310_estradaj1.asp