INTEGRATING THE BICYCLE INTO THE TRAFFIC MIX: THE NORTH AMERICAN EXPERIENCE

During the past decade, the United States has witnessed a tremendous increase in bicycling. Citizen demands for action have made federal, state, and local officials increasingly aware of the need for bicycle-transportation planning. As a result, in the 1970s and 1980s, at the height of the bike boom, many agencies proceeded simultaneously with planning and design projects. Many planners and engineers involved in planning, design, and operation of bicycle facilities were motor vehicle-oriented. Thus, many bikeway master plans and programs were developed that tended to separate the motor vehicles from the bicycles. The difficulty of finding suitable locations for bikeways in cities led agencies to build them where opportunities were available, rather than where the demand was. This article details what information should be made available to planners and engineers so that they may better plan the bicycle's integration into general transportation.