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Post by kerouac2 on Feb 1, 2019 19:37:04 GMT
I am hating myself for looking at the Vélib bikes every day and taking the metro instead. Most mornings it is not even freezing in Paris when I go out, but I am getting weak. Also, I must confess that my metro ride is normally when I read the newspaper. I can't even wear earpods on a bike because I need to hear the traffic around me.
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Post by rikita on Feb 13, 2019 8:34:36 GMT
got a call from mr. r. yesterday if we left a's bike somewhere else than usual before leaving on vacation - and removed the basket and left it lying around. trying to remember if we did, but the most likely answer is that it got stolen - even though it was quite old and didn't really look worth stealing ...
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Post by lagatta on Feb 14, 2019 0:42:13 GMT
I really can't cycle this winter. Usually now there are thaws and it is very cyclable, but the sort of ice storm we got earlier made it practically impossible for me.
I know a fellow born in 1937 who cycles year-round here.
I hate not cycling. I dream of cycling.
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Post by rikita on Feb 22, 2019 0:37:53 GMT
well, it turned out agnes' bike wasn't the only one that got stolen, some of our neighbours lost theirs, too (and those were better locked than agnes' bike) ... she has a nice new bike now, though (well, second hand, but new to her), so she got over the loss pretty well. currently carrying the new one up four flights of stairs after using it, though, and keeping it in the apartment ...
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Post by kerouac2 on Feb 22, 2019 4:44:19 GMT
Some of my former student neighbours used to carry their bike up three flights of stairs and lock it to the railing on the landing, and it got stolen anyway.
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Post by kerouac2 on Aug 3, 2019 17:31:46 GMT
I know that my bike sharing statistics are not accurate since they say that my average ride is 35 minutes, and I have used a bike for 35 minutes only once this year. I would estimate my real average to be more along the lines of 18 minutes since my most common trip is from home to Les Halles or the reverse (the reverse less often since it is uphill!).
imagizer.imageshack.com/img923/4892/MoWxWt.jpg
My "bonus minutes" allow me to use the electric bikes without having to pay extra (they charge 30 minutes of bonus for an electric ride). I am not at all sure yet how I manage to accumulate so many bonus minutes. |
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Post by casimira on Oct 9, 2021 16:01:20 GMT
I had been meaning to post this after reading it last week in the Sunday NYT.
It was a lengthy piece on the cycling in Paris and how of late it was causing major problems because of the vast numbers of cyclists and the problems it is causing for pedestrians (a lot of "jaywalkers") but, cyclists not adhering to the rules .
I was wondering if Kerouac had some perspective/information on this.
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 9, 2021 16:16:51 GMT
Yes, I do have my own perspective on this. I have been cycling much less because there are too many cyclists on the bicycle paths. Most of them go much faster than me, so I don't feel as safe anymore.
My yearly bike subscription just ended and I hestitated before renewing it. But then I decided to renew it anyway.
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Post by casimira on Oct 9, 2021 16:48:00 GMT
We have our own set of problems here in NOLA. The designated bike lanes are constantly occupied by delivery trucks, be it UPS, Amazon etc. they block the lane which forces the cyclist to either go around them which puts the rider into the adjacent lane of vehicular traffic or stop and wait for the delivery person to return to their truck. I have cursed out many a delivery truck driver in these instances.
Never once have I seen this violation enforced.
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 9, 2021 16:53:37 GMT
Delivery trucks are a problem in Paris, too. Luckily, a lot of the paths are protected by raised curbs that discourage vehicles from invading them.
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Post by casimira on Oct 14, 2021 15:19:18 GMT
It has become much, much worse since Covid. Amazon, FedEx, UPS etc. everywhere.
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Post by onlyMark on Oct 17, 2021 20:52:41 GMT
I have a bike in Spain and one in Germany but I realise I hardly use them. I'm thinking I might use the one in Germany more, mainly to go into the city, if I had an electric bike as it is quite a way. Problem is the regulations about what is or isn't a 'pedelec' are quite strict and if it isn't, you need insurance and in some cases they are treated as mopeds where you need a licence etc. Things like an eScooter needs Insurance and I'm trying to avoid all the bureaucracy, but an electric bike, as long as it is within certain parameters, doesn't need anything like that. It's just treated as a bike and can be ridden in a normal way on normal paths.
The bike cannot have a throttle, the motor only be activated by turning the pedals. It is restricted to a speed of 25km/h with a motor power of 250 Watts. They are the main things but there are a couple of other specifications as well.
Nevertheless I've been looking at them and seen the prices - jeez. Nope not buying one.
But, I've also seen kits to convert a normal bike and seeing as I've already got two bikes, why should I buy yet another one?
So my Christmas present to myself will be a conversion kit, and for a reasonable quality one it is a third of the price of buying a complete new electric bike.
I'll see how I get on with that but don't be surprised if I report back that Christmas dinner never got made as I was busy.
If it goes well then I may buy a high power kit and do the one in Spain as well. No idea what the rules are there but I'm sure it won't be as strict as in Germany.
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Post by kerouac2 on Oct 17, 2021 21:08:38 GMT
More than half of the municipal bikes in Paris are now "electric assistance" bikes because that is what people want. Obviously the rates are not the same as for "normal" bikes. I still use the manual bikes which are free for 30 minutes (and you can change bike every 30 minutes if you want). The electric bikes are 3 euros for 45 minutes if you have not subscribed to the luxury contract. It's 3.10 euros a month for the basic manual bikes or 8.30 euros a month for 60 minute periods of manual bikes and 45 minutes for the electric ones. This would have been a good deal a few years ago, but as the years go by, I have noticed that I only use the bikes maybe 2 or 3 times a month -- not because I am too old to ride but because I feel less and less comfortable with the bike traffic, even on the protected lanes. Bike usage has gone up in Paris 30% in the last year and a half, mostly young people who go FAST.
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Post by onlyMark on Oct 18, 2021 4:55:24 GMT
That's one of the things I've noticed in Bonn, the speed. There's more electric bikes usage now than you can shake a stick at and I think, apart from a Sunday, most just want to get where they are going as quick as they can.
I did think about joining a bike scheme and financially it make could well make sense but yet I still won't bother.
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Post by kerouac2 on Dec 22, 2021 15:26:45 GMT
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Post by bjd on Dec 22, 2021 16:40:52 GMT
That's interesting, Kerouac. My daughter who lived in Paris for years and cycled everywhere, including to work in Issy-les-Moulineaux from beyond Bastille, went to Paris this fall for the first time since 2016. She was really impressed by all the changes and bike lanes that have been put in since she was there.
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