3 ms·

Ironically (perhaps?) I think in the US the cities are often doing a good job but suburbs are awful. At least where I live, I can bike in my own neighborhood b

by throwaway2016a 9y ago

Ironically (perhaps?) I think in the US the cities are often doing a good job but suburbs are awful. At least where I live, I can bike in my own neighborhood but to get from my neighborhood to the commercial districts where the actual jobs are I need to essentially go on a highway and share the road with 40 MPH cars. When neighborhoods are spread out it makes biking hard. Where I am at least, neighborhoods tend to be connected to main (high speed) roads like Christmas lights. Thing is they aren't even far away... work to my house is 5 miles. An easy bike ride. Except part of that ride is a highway that I'd need a death wish to bike on and there are no back roads.

pc86 9y ago
In my state it is illegal for anything but a motorized vehicle to be on the highway (and rightfully so as most traffic is 70 mph+ outside of rush hour). With rare exception I've seen cyclists on most of the busy multi-lane surface streets where it is 45+ and traffic is going 10-15 faster than that. What metro area are you in? It seems odd that there are no surface streets at all between two points just a few miles away.
- throwaway2016a 9y ago
  I'm in New Hampshire. Part of the Manchester-Nashua metro region or the Boston metro depending on which survey you use. I think the word highway might have some regional nuance. Around here there are often open highways (highways with stop lights and connected side roads) and bikes are allowed to go on them. Although I wouldn't feel safe doing it. Bikes are not allowed on the kind of highway you are thinking of here either. The speed limit on those roads tends to be 35 or 40 MPH. Not 65 like it would be on a large highway. Edit: Here's an example from Nashua, NH (for privacy I found a place similar to where I live but not actually where I live). Notice how the residential on the left is completely separated from the commercial on the right by "Daniel Webster Highway"... one could easily bike on that road if there were bike lanes but it is an extremely busy road and there is no safe way for a bike to take a left hand turn to get to the other side. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Daniel+Webster+Hwy,+Nashua,+03060/@42.7293831,-71.4611499,2521m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m13!1m7!3m6!1s0x89e3ba75d16d96f7:0x261a0b96112fbe5b!2sDaniel+Webster+Hwy,+Nashua,+NH!3b1!8m2!3d42.7225921!4d-71.4440401!3m4!1s0x89e3ba75d16d96f7:0x261a0b96112fbe5b!8m2!3d42.7225921!4d-71.4440401 https://www.google.com/maps/place/Daniel+Webster+Hwy,+Nashua...
- maxerickson 9y ago
  "highway" has lots of definitions. Lots of people don't mean a limited access road when they say highway.

pc86 9y ago

In my state it is illegal for anything but a motorized vehicle to be on the highway (and rightfully so as most traffic is 70 mph+ outside of rush hour). With rare exception I've seen cyclists on most of the busy multi-lane surface streets where it is 45+ and traffic is going 10-15 faster than that. What metro area are you in? It seems odd that there are no surface streets at all between two points just a few miles away.

throwaway2016a 9y ago
I'm in New Hampshire. Part of the Manchester-Nashua metro region or the Boston metro depending on which survey you use. I think the word highway might have some regional nuance. Around here there are often open highways (highways with stop lights and connected side roads) and bikes are allowed to go on them. Although I wouldn't feel safe doing it. Bikes are not allowed on the kind of highway you are thinking of here either. The speed limit on those roads tends to be 35 or 40 MPH. Not 65 like it would be on a large highway. Edit: Here's an example from Nashua, NH (for privacy I found a place similar to where I live but not actually where I live). Notice how the residential on the left is completely separated from the commercial on the right by "Daniel Webster Highway"... one could easily bike on that road if there were bike lanes but it is an extremely busy road and there is no safe way for a bike to take a left hand turn to get to the other side. https://www.google.com/maps/place/Daniel+Webster+Hwy,+Nashua,+03060/@42.7293831,-71.4611499,2521m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m13!1m7!3m6!1s0x89e3ba75d16d96f7:0x261a0b96112fbe5b!2sDaniel+Webster+Hwy,+Nashua,+NH!3b1!8m2!3d42.7225921!4d-71.4440401!3m4!1s0x89e3ba75d16d96f7:0x261a0b96112fbe5b!8m2!3d42.7225921!4d-71.4440401 https://www.google.com/maps/place/Daniel+Webster+Hwy,+Nashua...
maxerickson 9y ago
"highway" has lots of definitions. Lots of people don't mean a limited access road when they say highway.