29.03.2024

In Novosibirsk, they offered to organize bike paths, but the mayor’s office did not agree

With the advent and a sharp increase in the popularity of electric scooters in Novosibirsk, a lot of problems have arisen. Even the rules for using new means of transportation do not always help the townspeople.

A month ago, the Novosibirsk branch of City Projects sent a letter to the mayor’s office with a detailed explanation of how plans to build a bicycle infrastructure could help Novosibirsk.

However, the mayor’s office did not agree with the proposals.

What City Projects offered

The team of the Novosibirsk branch of «City Projects» wrote a letter to Anatoly Lokt with a proposal to reduce the construction time of cycling infrastructure from ten years, as originally planned, to five. She also explained why the city needs it.

According to the supporters of the project, the choice of a bicycle or an electric scooter «has a positive effect both on the traffic situation in the city and on the environment.» In a conversation with an NGS correspondent, the head of the Novosibirsk branch of City Projects, Sergei Kosov, said that the project is more aimed at building bike paths on the roadway.

— Even in Russia, this is a common practice. There are new projects in Moscow and St. Petersburg — they make temporary bike paths with regular markings. We want the markings to be made in Novosibirsk on the roads — there is so little space for pedestrians in the city, — he explained.

In a letter to the mayor, supporters of the project noted that «building a cycle road network from scratch is cheaper than building a road» and «if bike lanes are marked on existing roadways, it will be cheaper than public transport.»

Now the mayor’s office plans to organize bicycle paths with a total length of 170 kilometers until 2030. But, according to the Novosibirsk branch of the project, these terms can be significantly reduced.

— It is unreasonable to stretch the creation of 170 kilometers of bike paths for 10 years. Our proposal is that it is necessary to identify streets on which markings can be dispensed with, and to make them already in 2021. We will have to slightly change the organization of traffic on the selected streets and mark them differently, but upon completion of the work, the safety of the streets and their carrying capacity will increase, ”the letter to the mayor says.

Some of the streets where it will be necessary to build a full-fledged cycle path separately from the carriageway was proposed to be included in the Safe and High-Quality Roads program.

What did the city hall answer

The mayor’s office noted that the idea of ​​building separate bike paths from the carriageway will be considered only in 2022-2024, taking into account technical capabilities and funding.

Other ideas of the local branch of City Projects were not supported.

— It is not possible to organize bicycle paths on the street-road network using markings without losses for the traffic capacity of the streets, which has decreased due to the construction of the 4th bridge, and with ensuring the proper level of safety in these conditions for the cyclists themselves, — the mayor’s office said.

Also, the mayor’s office referred to paragraph 18.2. Traffic rules, according to which «cyclists are allowed to move on lanes for route vehicles if such a lane is located on the right»:

— On Red Avenue (section from Pisarev St. to Kolyvanskaya St.) and on the street Voskhod (section from Voskhod st. To Zyryanovskaya st.) The necessary conditions have been provided to control the observance of the Road Traffic Regulations by drivers of vehicles as regards lanes for route vehicles. Cycling is possible in these areas with an acceptable level of safety.

Along with the popularity of electric scooters among Novosibirsk residents, discontent is growing rapidly: it is difficult to regulate their movement and they are constantly involved in road accidents. The NHS in the cards answered the most important questions about electric scooters in the city.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *