Seven Bad Arguments Against Bike Lanes 

"People make choices on how to get around based on the infrastructure available to them." I've never heard the law of induced demand explained so succinctly! Really terrific work!

My grandmother is heavily opposed to new bicycle infrastructure being built because she thinks that it's a waste of money and "no one really rides bikes anyways". Where she lives however (fake London) she can't get around because her neighbourhood is completely unwalkable and she gave up her car a year ago. Now she's completely reliant on my mum and dad to do everything for her because to lose your car in fake London means losing your independence.

About the second point: i was arguing with a guy against less car centric cities and he actually said something like : how are the elderly, the blind or the disabled going to ride a bike? I was like: how are they supposed to drive a car???

The bike lanes are never empty in this part of town. They're always full of parked cars.

More on number 4. Vancouver planner Brent Toderian is fond of saying, you cannot justify a bridge by counting the number of people who currently swim across the river. You can't or shouldn't be removing sidewalks from the suburbs when there are hardly any pedestrians there. The same goes for accessibility for disabled people.

"bike lanes wouldn't help disabled people" excuse me an uninterupted and safe route to get to destinations on flat ground is EXACTLY what wheelchair users need thank you for this video!

Number 5 is fatally flawed from the beginning in the US. I don't know what Canada does, but in the US local streets are paid for from property taxes, and bicycle riders pay the exact same taxes as people driving cars. The difference is that cars are heavily subsidized while bicycles rarely get anything for their money. If the people on bikes are paying the same property taxes they should have the same level of service.

Not everyone can cycle, but safe bike paths are also great for people in mobility scooters, wheelchairs, handcycles and microcars. What space on the road is allocated for old and/or disabled people in car-centric cities exactly?

I'm 100% in favour of better bike infrastructure even though I don't bike much, its mutually beneficial that cars and bicycle are kept separate from each other.

As someone that have made the choise not to even get a driving licens and live in a subartic region, the worst argument I have ever heard why I should get a car instead was from a neighbour, he said that it just took to long for me to get home from work. I biked for approximately at most 19 minutes in one direction (during winters). The same distance took 11 minutes by car. So I asked him, how many minutes per day did he exercise and how many minutes should I work just to finance a car. I prefer a healthy lifestyle, where I don't spend time working just to pollute the planet.

If someone is really adamant about point 3, tell them that bike lanes keep cyclists off the "real road" leaving it free for cars. What's not to love?

For argument #4 and the picture showing the bike lane "not in use", it can also be showing a super efficient bike lane where users breeze through and disappear and only in comparison to gridlocked cars visibly taking up massive amounts of space does the bike lane seem unutilized.

5:08 Bike lanes like this require a level of braveness that I definitely don't have. Fantastic video!

From my perspective, the majority of arguments against improving cycling infrastructure boil down to "we shouldn't spend the money because the existing cycling infrastructure isn't used." The flaw being that they never ask why is that infrastructure going unused.

When watching, I think "how obvious", then I remember how ignorant I used to be before watching Not Just Bikes. Amazing and necessary video.

"Not everyone can ride a bike" So those who can, should be hindered in doing so, because a few can't? I know someone who can't drive a car, so by that logic, all roads made for cars, should be removed.

It's frustrating seeing how a car centric mindset affects people in North America today considering that we've lived without cars for thousands of years and cars are a recent invention that has brought more costs than benefits in the form of pollution, road deaths, and congestion. Cycling and public transit is more efficient in cost and time and it's arguably better for the climate as well.

While I don't cycle, I use my longboard to get around and so having bike lanes in my city makes me happy. It's so nice and smooth, unlike the sidewalk which is full of bumps and cracks. It makes me feel safer when riding, and it makes the city feel overall more modern and people-friendly

Dutch guy here. Had to laugh on 6 out of 7 arguments against good bicycle infra. A dogma is NOT an argument. If anything it is a reason to think again on what you are saying.

The "they don't pay taxes" argument is as bad as "I don't have any kids, so why should I pay for education??"

Some police officer and a council member wanted to abolish the new bike lanes in my city because "it would be unfair to motorcyclist and they will demand lanes for motorcycle". Bike to work was disallowed few days ago because "it would be unfair to bike to sport".

St. John’s, NL is currently going through a walker vs cyclists battle as the city is trying to implement a cycling transportation network but plans on repurposing existing walking trail infrastructure. Walkers and drivers are extremely anti biking here. So I really appreciate these videos that have a canadian context👏

#7 deserves way more attention. This is the very soul of the problem with most bike infrastructure in Metro Vancouver (outside the downtown core I mean). If you are going for a ride greater than 15 km to get from one end of the city to the other, you quickly discover most bike paths are clearly designed with hobbyists and families in mind and to have a hope of actually reaching your destination, you will be forced to either take a massive time penalty or brave the car traffic on arterial roads.

So much yes to young people being able to get around without relaying on their parents!! I grew up on the countryside where I had to ask my parents to drive me every time I wanted to go somewhere. It's super isolating in a way that's really hard to describe.

I mean, let's be real here. Drivers who oppose bikelanes are very selfish. The idea that cars should need to have 2 to 4 lanes to get around each direction. While bikes shouldn't be allowed half a lane per direction, seems very petty.

YES! I especially love the point that "if cycling is inherently a dangerous way to get round in your city then you're basically asking for only risk-taking and adventurous people to engage in it." I've been making that point for years! So when drivers complain about all these cyclists engaging in risky riding and breaking laws, this is the main reason why! There's also the fact that experienced cyclists get accustomed to the risks, and thus, what may seem safe to an experienced cyclist can seem completely reckless to a driver that is always safely ensconced in tons of steel. I really loved riding in Montreal! Lots of biking infrastructure and lots of everyday riders. I've ridden in the Netherlands, and I have to say that I actually felt uncomfortable with the sheer number of cyclists, because so many were obviously comfortable riding in that congestion, and I was on a borrowed Dutch bike that I was uncomfortable riding when I've ridden road bikes almost exclusively for many years. Of course, the bike infrastructure was both excellent and nearly ubiquitous.

Hi guys. Some random swiss fellow here. The big algorythm just threw your video at me and for some strange reason I decided to have a look at it. In exchange you get my 5 cents in return: As a car driver, passionate motor- AND "move by your own power" kind of cyclist I naturally endorse the existance of bike lanes. It bemuses me though that the whole issue sometimes seems to be presented as a kind of "cyclist vs motorist" kind of thing - which is outright silly in my opinion. Bike lanes not only help cyclists but motorists too to ease the flow of traffic - if they are propperly implemented that is! Unfortunately, they often really come as a cheap excuse rather than a propperly thought out concept. One sad example to me is Berlin in Germany. City authorities there answered the call for bike lanes by just splitting sidewalks in one half for pedestrians and the other for cyclists. This results in frequent emergency braking and other close calls between the two groups. Cyclists with electric bikes or sportive cyclists that otherwise would easily be able to travel at an average speed above 30 kph are forced to switch into granny gear and sqeek along barely faster than walking pace evading texting bystanders, chatty housewifes and window-shoppers left and right. If they decide to hit the road and go along with cars instead they get exposed to all sorts of road rage because "Oy - there's a bike lane over there maaaan!!". So I am all for bike lanes, but they must be done propperly and be attractive for all kind of cyclists - not only those travelling at 15kph average - and they should not be used as a cheap substitute to ban cyclists from roads. If that can't be established, I prefer staying on the roads and go along with cars - which usually aren't going much faster within city limits anyway.

My father had parkinson, diagnosed with about 65. He stopped driving the car with 70. He stopped bicycling with 82 (electric bicycle).

Bike lanes that actually aren’t are a severe problem. The hawthorn bridge in Portland Oregon has most of the bike traffic, but the “bike lane” that suddenly ends on the off ramp from the bridge so that an exit for cars can happen is a real danger. As were the water grates that were parallel to the traffic and wider than most bike tires. That has been fixed, but the right turn off ramp is still a problem. There is an alternative now that lets bikes off the ramp for cyclists heading north or south but going east is still terrifying

My city is working on repaving 4 lane collector roads as 3 lane roads with unprotected/exposed bike lanes in a hope to create a large enough network to encourage biking. They are also turning 6 lane roads into 3 lane roads with exposed bike lanes and parking. This is a step in the right direction, but the problem is that only a small percentage of the bike infrastructure are buffered lanes/shared use paths/cycle tracks. The city also considers sharrows and signed shared roads a part of their cycling infrastructure system, which I find concerning. Edit: The 6 lane roads actually don't get parking, and are 5 lanes instead of 3.

"Bike lanes cause pollution" is just so wrong. It assumes that ever person that is currently driving is going to keep driving and that every trip will continue to be made with cars. That is just illogical, if you driving becomes a option and not a necessity then some people will choose to not drive or choose to not use their car for certain trips. For example going to school. Let's ignore the fact that most Americans will still choose to bring their children to school, because Americans have a exaggerated view on how dangerous it is for kids to be alone, because that's a totally different subject that deserves it's own in depth look. For going to school, there is just no reason that every child needs to be driven to school every single day, children aren't going to school with 10 bags worth of groceries, so you don't need the space that the car provides. Most kids live within a easily bike-able distance from their school, so there is no reason that the kids can't go to school on bikes along with their parents. Parents bike to the school with their children, the children get to school park their bikes and then parent turns around and goes back home and can then get in their car for their much longer drive to work.

3. Those people are the type of person that demands that cyclist should pay a road tax or aren't allowed on the street at all. Vehicle tax don't pay enough for streets to maintain them and aren't a qualification to use them.

As a pedestrian I'd also rather by next to a bike lane than by a heavy road. Being right by cars feels unsafe as they're large, fast and powerful and I'm just a flimsy human.

All of these arguments can be countered by just saying "look at the Netherlands or Denmark"

'The idea that roads are for cars is nonsensical; roads aren't inherently for any particular mode' -- those utterly awful STROADS, on the other hand...

People in urban areas pollute less because everything is in walking distance or easy bus distance

I've heard "roads are for cars" before too and I was just speechless. It's so stupid.

“They don’t pay taxes”. Since we are in a country with Universal health care, car drivers should pay higher taxes as they have will have more health problems (cardiovascular, diabetes etc) from sitting in traffic as opposed to having a healthy lifestyle which utilizes active mobility.

So glad you showed all the Canadian deathtrap bike lanes. I'm in Ottawa and I go on side streets as much as possible and avoid maybe half the bike infrastructure. I've almost gotten ploughed over more times in the bike lane than on any other surface.

Great compilation of the "Greatest Hits" of your average motorist on social media!

Having recently moved to Ottawa I couldn't agree more with your point at the end of the video. You can bike all over the place but all the routes take you nowhere you would want to go other than for a recreational bike ride.

"Roads are for cars" Sorry folks, the parade is cancelled PERMANENTLY

The main argument of course is that more cyclists will improve congestion, and thus benefit the people who still have to drive a car. Bike lanes have a much much higher capacity than car lanes, and in my experience good cycling infrastructure drastically improves road congestion. When I have to drive, I'm always happy for people cycling, because that's another car less on the road.

5:10 - Goodness me, I'd not use that sorry excuse for a 'bike lane', either. Just LOOK at that stroad! 😱 Where's the adequate width? The addition of street trees & furniture to encourage slower driving speeds (&, thus, safer cycling)? For a good example of how to de-stroadify a stroad, complete with good bike lanes, compare this mess to West Rosedale Street in Fort Worth (get on Street View just west of 6th Ave for a good vantage point) & look at how it looked in 2013, to how it looks now (as of this comment, most recent SV is May 2021). I would, & in fact do, use that bike lane. 🙂 ~ Mesyn

Added content for #5 - Tax A car owner will NEVER pay enough tax on its vehicle to maintain any infrastructure. Tax is paid by everyone through VAT, income tax, council tax, etc etc... ALL the money that goes into treasure is distributed back to public service and infrasturcture. A cyclist who is shopping, work and simply... exist pay money that the goverment spend to create logistical infrasturcure so lorries and emergency services reach its destination. Doesnt matter how expensive your fuel or emission tax is, it is a miniscule contribution to the treasury in the big picture. The same way as a fully healthy person pays to treat the drug addict or the surgery accident anyone have a cyclist contributes to the road what a car is using. But if we want to go the other side: Who is damaging the road more creating potholes? A few ton heavy vehicle or a 15-35kg bicycle?

Just discovered your channel and I love it. You guys have a level-headed approach to life in the big city (and surrounding area) with a sharp sense of humour to match. As a cyclist, I'm particularly fond of the way you capture in words the myriad frustrations (and plain old bureaucratic bs) I have had to put up with, over the years. Kindly keep up the good work.

OMG so much space at 5:05! You can't make the argument that there's not enough place for a bike path in that particular place!

I had an argument with someone. He asked: - Why do you need a continuous bike network. I asked I return: - Why do you need a continuous car network?

"sky, Ottawa" love this 😂😂

I recently transported an entire door by bike so bikes can be really useful for transportation of stuff

After living in Japan and using a bike as my primary means of transport for 8 years, coming back to Toronto was quite disappointing. It's gotten a bit better in the 3 years since I've been back, but I still can't regularly bike to get groceries etc like I did in Japan. And the closest supermarket isn't even that far, it's just too dangerous to dare. :(

1:09 i’m finding “Sky, Ottawa” way too funny

Since you guys cover Montreal and are strong advocates for bike lanes, I figured you should be aware of this news. Montreal's mayoral election is taking place in November. And ex-mayor Denis Coderre, who's running again this year, and seems to have an anti-bike lane agenda. He recently promised that he would remove half of the bike lane on Bellechasse Street, to replace it with street parking for cars. Might be worth making a video about, if you guys want to keep using Montreal's bike lanes.

There is a synergy with walking, cycling, and mass transit that optimizes a good land use pattern. I have heard all of these as a cycle commuter, which by the way, took less time than driving.

I don't know how to ride a bike. Learned half a decade ago and never used it again, so that skill has LONG since atrophied. But I would learn if I could go places by bicycle. I'd love having that freedom.

These videos are incredible thank you

The "bike lanes cause pollution" one is my favourite. It's so disingenuous. If they really cared about pollution, they wouldn't drive cars, would they?

My grandfather is 91 and he rides a bike lol He's not a sporty guy, either.

I actually legit one time had someone who drives an electric car, a Nissan Leaf, tell me that bicyclists shouldn't be allowed to ride in the street because we don't pay the gas tax that helps maintain roads. I simply asked her if she caught the irony in her statement.

This was such an excellent excellent video!!! Thank you for putting this together. It’s so clear and nails all the points concisely. 🙏🙏

Love the channel! Its nice to have urban analysis from city I've actually lived in for a change!

Since the addition of many bike lanes across Toronto, I've been converted to an advocate. I used to think that reducing traffic to a single lane would be a traffic disaster, but this has been proven false. As far as I can tell congestion hasn't changed, but driving is generally less stressful because you no longer have to share lanes with bikes (or parked cars).

On a country road, I slowed looked both ways and continued on at a stop sign. About 500 meters away a car saw me do it. The driver came along side and proceeded to chew me out for not stopping. You should have seen his face when I said, "My license is suspended for doing that in cars. What makes you think I'm going to stop on my bike?"

Great content, thank you! We’re seeing all the typical backlash here in Halifax as the city works on their Integrated Mobility Plan, linking parts of the city with decent and safe infrastructure.

I am 60 and ride 140 miles a week

People dont use bike lanes here because of the rampant theft. You cant ride downtown if you have to separate from your bike, because it will be stolen in minutes. And it dosent matter how expensive your lock is, if they want it, they will take it. I would gladly do without bike lanes, if they would put that money towards several places downtown that you could place your bike and get a ticket, with surveillance and a security guard . I can ride any stretch of mud, gravel, or pavement, freeway included, I couldn't give a shit about "bike lanes". I want to ride downtown and shop, or go to a movie, with the reassurance that my bike will be there to ride home.....Yes, if you ride a junk bike, it probably wont get stolen, but I dont ride junk. My bike is worth $5,450.00, and I'm not losing this one. We really need security for our bikes, PERIOD !.....I have no problem with riding inches away from traffic, been doing it for 25yrs.

People used to walk. I see even sidewalks going away for extra car lanes.

Top notch video - thanks for making this! I live in Abbotsford, BC and unfortunately these bad arguments seem to be the backbone of popular opinion about bikes around here.

The plane footage is captioned "Sky, Ottawa"

I bike everywhere in my city in the Netherlands for as long as i can remember (accept when the weather is really bad, or if i'm lazy ) But i wouldn't use my bike in most of the 'bike lanes' i see in this video. Just a few lines between speeding cars seems both dangerous and a good way to inhale exhaust fumes..no thanks .

2 notes on this. In regard to "bike lanes are empty", the other point is that they aren't. They are just more efficient, people on bikes take up much less space then a car, so the bike lane though it's smaller moves people smoother & is less likely to get congested. Pictures of "empty" bike lanes next to "busy" roads often show more people in the bike lane then the car lane. Then onto rule breaking cyclsits, it depends what study you look at as to what specific result you get, but they typically all show cyclists break the rules either less or the same amount as drivers, not more, and that when they do, they do it typically to improve their safety, and don't pose a risk or cause crashes as occurs when drivers do.

"Driving for recreation and tourism is extremely common" - Fantastic point!

Sometimes the argument against bike infrastructure is the bike infrastructure itself. Sometimes the infrastructure somehow manage to check all the wrong boxes. No cyclists ends up using it, advocates would rather it not be built at all, and motorists point at it as a reason to why those kind of infrastructures are useless.

Drivers have to remember; the enemy of the car is other cars. Bikes are the solution because they take other cars off the road.

A very good Video to get started with the topic. Really glad that I found it. If you have anyone in your social circal who stated any of those arguements, don't hesitate to show them this Video.

I love my truck. Love to take it on road trips and camping. That being said, I live 4 miles from my work. If it was safe I'd ride my bike 80% of the time to work. Unfortunately, I'd probably die on the first trip. The road I take is a "stroad" and is very dangerous for walkers and bikers.

Great points! So happy to think that I have come from the perspective of those arguments when I lived in a gated exurban community to now being a recreational and functional cyclist 100% of the time.

Great video content, that just kinda...ended. When an ad started playing, I had to go back to see what happened, but it was really the end of the video.

What about in places like Hong Kong, where public transit ridership is 90%+ and bike lanes are laid everywhere outside the city center, and government reason for not extending the bike paths into city center is "There are no space"?

Excellent video! You guys are making some super high quality content. Love to see it :)

Not everyone can ride a bike. Well not everyone can drive a car

If you convince a large proportion of people to cycle then it will make driving better for those who want to do it since the roads will be less congested. Bikes are far more efficient in terms of the space requirements to move large numbers of people than cars, so adding (good) bike lanes, even at the expense of car lanes, will normally increase the capacity of a road.

As someone in a wheelchair I can't drive a car (at this moment) but I do have a handbike. Without bike infrastructure I need a taxi for everything but with my handbike I can do everything within a 5km rage comfortable

Another great video!! Thanks you guys!

It’s when watching these videos that I can proudly say: laughs in Dutch bike lanes!

Great video as always. Ottawa’s bikes infrastructure looks rough

In my area of Melbourne Australia we have this bike/ walking trail along a creek and most just see it as a jogging route to stay fit but for me its one of the only ways to get home without being exposed to 60kmph traffic. I wish there was more of that around Melbourne, completely separated tracks.

The "People don't use bike lanes" argument is one that particularly annoys me. I've heard it so many times from so many drivers, and if I actually try to explain why people aren't using the lanes, they get annoyed with me and try to end the conversation. Where I live has pretty decent cycling infrastructure, but most of the segregated bike lanes are specifically built around schools. So if you're not actively going to a school, the lanes don't connect to anything and aren't that useful.

Clear and well balanced. Great job. I cycle in London (the UK one, not Ontario) and I also drive occasionally, using a car club where you pay hourly for using a vehicle. I've definitely noticed an increase in cycling uptake as infrastructure has improved, especially where they are trying to improve safety. No doubt the current plague situation has also played a factor in moving people off trains and onto bikes. It's probably also moved people from public transport into cars, so Covid giveth and Covid taketh away. I would also take a proportionate road tax in a heartbeat if it was matched by dedicated and properly maintained public facilities.

Let's remove all car roads cause not everybody can drive a car!!! Great logic... I live in the Netherlands and am flabbergasted that people actually use these "reasons" seriously. Cycling is just for recreation, fine then cars aren't obviously so we don't use them anymore for recreation. I mean it's obviously impossible te use a means of transportation for both. God people are stupid...

I have been a bike commuter for 7 years now, and I have watched my community grow exponentially but not cycling. Many drivers don't believe we should share the road. We bike riders should just go on the sidewalks. Many major roads here in O-Town, do have bike lanes, but the vehicle traffic is unbelievably fast to bike safely. Many ride on the sidewalk just to keep away from the onslaught of degrading remarks by drivers. I subscribed to your channel..Thank you for your cycling informative report .

Great video thanks, really cogent arguements and well presented. I'm never sure why cycling and cycle lanes are such an emotive issue for many people. This provides some well constructed responses to them.

Great video! The rebuttal to the car-specific tax argument was perfect!

3:30 AAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I genuinely was confused when you mentioned that there was a bike lane in the photo. I thought maybe it was a joke, that there really wasn't. But apparently car dependent suburbanites think this is actual infrastructure rather than an insult! As someone who lives in the graph from 2:00 I can confidently, and more importantly; honestly, say that there's no bike infrastructure in that photo. Take it from someone living in a country where people bike for their commute ages 8 to 80 (or more closer to 4 to 80+ ). Finally, how do car groups not realize this simple fact; Right now, with incidental exceptions, everybody drives a car. Now assume that a ridiculously low percentage like 20% of the population, would take a bike if it was a genuine option. As long as you accommodate those bikers by taking away less than 20% of your car capacity you have effectively increased your car capacity. Or in other words; in a normal healthy society, only those that truly must take the car and those that like taking the car, would take the car. But in nearly every city on the NA continent you now have not only those 2 groups, but also those that would like to take the bike. And those that would like to walk. And those that would like to take the bus. And those that would like to take the train. You're actively making driving a worse experience by not only having the car lovers, but * [everyone gif from Leon the Professional] * on the road!

On #4: I used to live in Calgary, a city that has lots of recreational paths for cycling/walking, and relatively few for practical use. While out on a ride once, I got hopelessly lost and actually ended up on one of the major roadways (can't remember which, just that it went past the old stadium, lol) and I actually found myself on a dedicated bike path! Marked out, separated from road traffic by a concrete divider, even had a lane for both cycling directions. As someone who had been run off the road, and almost into a streetlight, by a motorist the month prior, the bike lane was a godsend. While I was biking back into downtown, I was passed by a half dozen other cyclists, on the road, not the bike path. I was deeply confused... like, here is one of the few lanes on a major thoroughfare that's ideal for safe, fast travel across large swaths of city, and you're on the road anyways?

Shout out from the streets of Montréal which we see in the video. We replaced our service business truck fleet with cargo bikes and trailers. We'll never go back!

it might be good to sum up all your points in a conclusion paragraph/slide

Don't forget to bike and subscribe..! 😉

Within the first minute you speak absolute truth! I live in DC and while I manage to get around on my electric scooter just fine, I know people who are scared (rightfully so) to use the streets without bike lanes meaning they look for other transportation options. Being a city with a good metro network the choice is usually that, but it doesn't run late into the night so we are forced to drive or take cabs.

This video would translate so well to my country, using local examples. Nearly everything said in this video, the bad arguments and exhibit examples, as well as the responses, they are all part of the ongoing discussion here, in Bogota, Colombia.