20.5.16

 

Cycling Fallacies

Cycling Fallacies is a handy reference from The Cycling Embassy of Great Britain. A sample entry is copied below. Spotted by Ewen Maclean.

Your cycling fallacy is…

“If you put in a cycle lane, or pedestrianise a road, shops will get less business.”


The Response

Cycling infrastructure (or pedestrianisation) does not restrict access to shops – it can actually make the streets and roads shops are on nicer places to visit, increasing footfall, and overall demand.
Many studies – from the Netherlands in the 1970s, to big US cities in the 2010s – have found that installing cycle infrastructure does not have a negative effect on income of businesses, and in most cases has a positive effect.
It's a popular myth that people who arrive by car spend more. People who arrive at shops on foot, or by bike, may spend less per visit, but they will visit more often, and they will spend more money overall. And being able to access a shop easily by foot or by cycle means that more frequent trips involving smaller ‘baskets’ become more convenient.
The headline message is: well-designed streets that make cycling and walking attractive are good for business. And in any case, cycling infrastructure won't stop people driving to shops, or parking near them and walking a short distance.

Further reading

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