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Berlin is a very bad place for cyclists right now. The governing SPD is a car maker party, always was and always will be. Working in Wedding near my work wher

Berlin is a very bad place for cyclists right now. The governing SPD is a car maker party, always was and always will be. Working in Wedding near my work where the SPD governed since forever there is a bicycle lane on the pavement but unmarked for a decade with countless run ins with pedestrians. After doing nothing for 50 years there was a referendum and the SPD did a 180 and painted themselves as a cyclist party. Some - funny - images of the bike situation in Berlin http://www.tagesspiegel.de/mediacenter/fotostrecken/berlin/galerie-mit-leserbildern-abgefahren-ihre-unbeliebtesten-radstrecken/4031388.html http://www.tagesspiegel.de/mediacenter/fotostrecken/berlin/g...

delackner 9y ago
I’m curious if you have seen more about the plans the article discusses? Talk of proper physical segregation of bike traffic using bollards sounds very nice. Copenhagen’s concrete curb separating bike lanes from car lanes is the gold standard I hope to see more places adopt.
- _Codemonkeyism 9y ago
  Copenhagen is a dream, whenever I'm there I admire the bicycle infrastructure. Berlin often cites Copenhagen for their plans, but call me a pessimist, as this would mean taking away streets from cars, I can't see a lot of this happening. It was mostly to get the SPD voted into power.
rorykoehler 9y ago
Half the drivers in wedding think they're acting in Tokyo drift. You can quite safely take back roads however to get anywhere in Berlin.
- _Codemonkeyism 9y ago
  A lot of streets in the old-east are cobblestone :-(
  - rorykoehler 9y ago
    That's why i ride mountain bike with slicks in Berlin. Not the most comfortable on the cobbles but it's workable.
Fnoord 9y ago
The public transport in Berlin (I've been in Mitte only though) is amazing compared to Amsterdam. Far easier to get around to the locations, clean communication (simple German), and you don't need a stupid RFID/NFC card. Only thing I disliked was the heroin junkies at some places. And, well the traffic lights for pedestrians go from green to red like poof while in The Netherlands they will blink green before going to red. Germany should adopt that system from us, it informs pedestrians about their situation.
- _Codemonkeyism 9y ago
  I agree with the green lights, or we should use a countdown as some countries do. My biggest gripe with pedestrian green lights is how short they show green here in Berlin. Might be ok for younger folks, definitely a huge pain for older people.
  - Fnoord 9y ago
    Yep, we got those in Amsterdam as well in some locations (not everywhere), but one problem is that people start walking early. So they made them hide the number at 5. I also like it cause it gives the pedestrian info on how much they're going to lag behind on their walk, or allows them to take an alternative route. In Amsterdam though, the pedestrian isn't king; its the cyclist. And they ignore all kind of traffic rules such as zebras. Absolutely horrible. I see people here and there cheer about how Amsterdam is cyclist friendly, but the pedestrians are a victim of their popularity and rude behavior. Zebras are just one example. Another is people apping on their bicycle (youth especially), and cyclists driving on the wrong side of the road because else they need to use two traffic lights instead of one. Heck, I admit I even do it myself at times... I saw a very nice traffic light in Amersfoort the other day: the pedestrian was a girl. I like diversity like that. As for Berlin, did also notice the green traffic lights weren't on long, and my partner's 7 months in so did cause some trouble sometimes. So not only a disadvantage for the elder. Also for young kids, the disabled, and various other minority groups such as pregnancy. To end on a positive note, I like how in Germany the traffic light becomes red + orange before it becomes green. Maybe adds to complexity but it wakes people up as well.
urlwolf 9y ago
I had to stop biking to work (40 min each way) because I realized that I will have an accident if I continue, and I cannot afford the downtime.

delackner 9y ago

I’m curious if you have seen more about the plans the article discusses? Talk of proper physical segregation of bike traffic using bollards sounds very nice. Copenhagen’s concrete curb separating bike lanes from car lanes is the gold standard I hope to see more places adopt.

_Codemonkeyism 9y ago
Copenhagen is a dream, whenever I'm there I admire the bicycle infrastructure. Berlin often cites Copenhagen for their plans, but call me a pessimist, as this would mean taking away streets from cars, I can't see a lot of this happening. It was mostly to get the SPD voted into power.

rorykoehler 9y ago

Half the drivers in wedding think they're acting in Tokyo drift. You can quite safely take back roads however to get anywhere in Berlin.

_Codemonkeyism 9y ago
A lot of streets in the old-east are cobblestone :-(
- rorykoehler 9y ago
  That's why i ride mountain bike with slicks in Berlin. Not the most comfortable on the cobbles but it's workable.

Fnoord 9y ago

The public transport in Berlin (I've been in Mitte only though) is amazing compared to Amsterdam. Far easier to get around to the locations, clean communication (simple German), and you don't need a stupid RFID/NFC card. Only thing I disliked was the heroin junkies at some places. And, well the traffic lights for pedestrians go from green to red like poof while in The Netherlands they will blink green before going to red. Germany should adopt that system from us, it informs pedestrians about their situation.

_Codemonkeyism 9y ago
I agree with the green lights, or we should use a countdown as some countries do. My biggest gripe with pedestrian green lights is how short they show green here in Berlin. Might be ok for younger folks, definitely a huge pain for older people.
- Fnoord 9y ago
  Yep, we got those in Amsterdam as well in some locations (not everywhere), but one problem is that people start walking early. So they made them hide the number at 5. I also like it cause it gives the pedestrian info on how much they're going to lag behind on their walk, or allows them to take an alternative route. In Amsterdam though, the pedestrian isn't king; its the cyclist. And they ignore all kind of traffic rules such as zebras. Absolutely horrible. I see people here and there cheer about how Amsterdam is cyclist friendly, but the pedestrians are a victim of their popularity and rude behavior. Zebras are just one example. Another is people apping on their bicycle (youth especially), and cyclists driving on the wrong side of the road because else they need to use two traffic lights instead of one. Heck, I admit I even do it myself at times... I saw a very nice traffic light in Amersfoort the other day: the pedestrian was a girl. I like diversity like that. As for Berlin, did also notice the green traffic lights weren't on long, and my partner's 7 months in so did cause some trouble sometimes. So not only a disadvantage for the elder. Also for young kids, the disabled, and various other minority groups such as pregnancy. To end on a positive note, I like how in Germany the traffic light becomes red + orange before it becomes green. Maybe adds to complexity but it wakes people up as well.

urlwolf 9y ago

I had to stop biking to work (40 min each way) because I realized that I will have an accident if I continue, and I cannot afford the downtime.