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If They Build It, You Won't Come
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I live near the streets in question in this article, two large, pretty heavily traveled streets that are also extremely steep. A couple of weeks ago, I noticed that they were restriping the road and reducing the traffic from two wide lanes to one narrow lane, but I wasn't sure why. Now I know: they're putting in bike lanes. Now, I have some personal knowledge of the story, and I can tell you that I don't believe I've ever seen anybody ride a bike on those streets. Their way too steep to be safe. They also have shopping, schools, and apartment complexes on either side. Putting bike lanes on these streets is both pointless and stupid. So, why did they do it? Well, for one thing, there's a state law that requires cities to designate streets for bike lanes. Second, as a city councilman's aide indicates, they don't care whether people actually use them, the idea is that by putting the lanes in, they're "encouraging" people to ride bikes. Necessity has nothing to do with it. Not when there's social engineering to be had. (Daily Breeze, Torrance)
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