Cycling world reacts to Gino Mäder's tragic death at Tour de Suisse; Cyclists blast Berlin's "scandalous" decision to "suspend bike lanes if even one car parking space is lost"; "Dangerous" claims about LTNs by Oxford Mail + more on the live blog

Paris bike lane (c) Twitter user WeelzFr.png

I had shared an interesting dichotomy pointed out by transport researcher Giulio Mattioli between the cycling infrastructure policies between Paris and Berlin in the morning. Both European capitals, but with a significantly different approach to traffic.

While on one hand, Paris announced in 2020 that it was building 650km of cycle lane by removing 72 per cent of the car parking spaces, reports from Berlin today revealed that the Senate has decided to suspend any bike lane building, if it means even a single car parking space will be lost.

I don't know about you, but I feel that whenever two ideas are at such an odds with each other, more often than not it usually means that one is the correct way to go, and the other, not.

And in a completely coincidental case, academic David Zipper shared the French daily Le Parisien's report that in 2021 and 2022, for the first time in ten years, the firefighters' average response time has fallen below seven minutes, and the cycle path network in the French capital is one of the explainations.

In Paris, emergency response times have fallen b/c firefighters can use the city's growing cycle lane network. (H/t @theoverheadwire)

Something to share with bike lane opponents who claim to be worried about emergency access. https://t.co/g2quhTzLFC pic.twitter.com/t3fxrKufvY

— David Zipper (@DavidZipper) June 15, 2023

Well, I always thought cyclists  would be easier to disperse than drivers for some reason, don't know why but maybe I was right? But I'll leave you all to discuss whether the French way is right, or the German.

Let me see if I can find some escargots escyclegots for dinner...

Guess who's not winning any Parent of the Year awards...

36-year-old Blossom Kirby from Indianapolis arrested last July after a string of witnesses called the police to report the shocking situation. One of the witnesses allegedly believed she had toys in the crate until he saw one of the babies move an arm.

The man and his coworkers at a pizzeria approached Kirby and found two unrestrained babies laying in the milk crate. The witnesses called medics and told officers that Kirby struggled to stay awake as they waited for police officers to arrive.

The Independent reports that she has now been jailed for a year for neglect, and will spend another year on probation.

Court documents state that Kirby told officers that she transported the babies in the crate as she did not own a car and that she did not see what was wrong with it.

Police said that the crate was attached to the front of the bike with a bungee cord and that the babies were wearing only diapers, despite temperatures being around 30°C.

Medics told investigators that the infant girl had “sunburns, abrasions on her left hand, and minor scratches to her body.” The infant boy also had sunburns and minor scratches, a wound to the groin and an extreme rash.

Both babies were taken to a children's hospital in the city for treatment, and the Department of Child Services had been notified of the case.

Tour de Suisse organisers have announced that today's stage 6 has been neutralised to commemorate the 26-year-old Swiss rider Gino Mäder, who passed away today morning after his horrific crash yesterday.

The stage had already been shortened following a landslide. Now, the peloton will ride the final 30km of the course together, as per the wishes of Mäder's family. The expected finish will be in Oberwil-Lieli.

We are heartbroken! Gino you've been an excellent rider but even more a wonderful person! Always smilling and making people happy arround you! Rest in peace! Our thoughts are with Gino's family!

Below you can find the official statement of @BHRVictorious pic.twitter.com/hqLF8FF5nQ

— Tour de Suisse (@tds) June 16, 2023

If you are just tuning in now, the cyclist was involved in a very high-speed crash at the descent of the Albula Pass towards the end of yesterday's stage, where Ineos' rider Magnus Sheffield also crashed and sustained serious injuries

World champion Remco Evenepoel had yesterday criticised the race organisers, saying that "it wasn't a good idea to let us finish down this dangerous descent".

Cycle lane in Berlin (Hannu Makarainen via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0)

Berlin has devised an ingenious way to stop drivers from parking on cycle lanes with their latest policy announcement: "No more bike lanes if it means even a single car parking space is lost".

According to German daily Der Tagesspiegel, emails from the Senate of Berlin's Traffic Administration Department to the borough of Lichtenberg reveal the new decision, which cyclists have called "evil", "scandalous" and "likely to cause more road deaths".

"The new management of our Senate administration will set different standards for the street layout in the future," says the mail. "All projects that endanger even one car parking space or result in the loss of one or more lanes are to be temporarily suspended."

In addition, the 30 km/hr speed limit introduced last year in the city is also said to be suspended for long journeys or when closing the gap, and only special applications such as those from daycare centres and schools will continue to be considered for implementation.

Paris (left): "We will remove 72% of on-street parking spaces to create room for cyclists" https://t.co/wtGNFxtjZs

Berlin (right): "We will not build bike lanes if that means taking away even a single on-street parking space" pic.twitter.com/WlVsTrVvER

— Giulio Mattioli (@giulio_mattioli) June 15, 2023

Senator for Transport Dr Manja Schreiner had said that she will question the cycling infrastructure projects after assuming office in April. "From my point of view, it does not always make sense to deprive motor vehicles of lanes in order to transform them into cycling facilities across the entire width. In any case, it must be analysed how this affects the traffic flow," she said.

Cyclists, road safety campaigners, academics and even a few politicians, have naturally, been gravely disappointed at the new developments from the Senate jointly run by a coalition of CDU and SPD.

Lichtenberg's transport councillor Filiz Keküllüoğlu criticised the decision during the district assembly on Thursday, saying that she was "concerned for the most vulnerable road users".

"In Berlin, cars take up MUCH more space than bicycle lanes. In Mitte there is 23 times more space for cars than for bicycles. And yet more distances are covered by bike than by car. What the senator is doing is pure ideology without facts." https://t.co/7kQmL74Cti

— Bookowlnews (@BOOKOWLNEWS) June 16, 2023

Another Berlin councillor Saskia Ellenbeck tweeted: "I've been stunned since yesterday! Every year 30-50 people die on the streets of Berlin! Main roads need protected cycle paths! And now projects that have been planned, politically approved and backed with a lot of funding are to be stopped!? This is madness!"

Meanwhile, the Berlin-based urban mobility think-tank tank Changing Cities lambasted Dr Schreiner. "The new senator has turned out to be a car traffic senator. She calls for safer coexistence of all road users, but her heart clearly beats for the car-friendly city," said Ragnhild Sørensen from the think-tank.

Cyclist and campaigner Pascal Striebel wrote: "It is an evil, dangerous policy that
@SchreinerManja and the government of @cduberlin and @spdberlin are implementing here. Safe cycle paths and a speed limit of 30 are not an ends in themselves, but protect the lives and health of Berliners. The CDU prefers to protect parking spaces."

Es ist eine üble, gefährliche Politik, die @SchreinerManja und die Regierung aus @cduberlin und @spdberlin hier machen. Sichere Radwege wie auch Tempo 30 sind ja kein Selbstzweck, sondern schützen Leben und Gesundheit der Berliner*innen. Die CDU schützt lieber Parkplätze. https://t.co/XnIdbFv9u7

— 🌻 Pascal Striebel 😷🚲 🏳️‍🌈 (@PascalStriebel) June 15, 2023

Jakob Zimmer wrote: "It is a scandal that the CDU & SPD are stopping all cycle path projects. Many new, protected cycle lanes, some of which have already been arranged, will thus be blocked."

Another transport safety campaigner said: "A policy against road safety! Dangerous to life for pedestrians and cyclists and certainly not a new coexistence, let alone the best for Berlin", while another cyclist lamented: "A city worth living in with safe cycle paths for children and adults? Not with the @cduberlin!"

Germany has a notorious weakness for automobiles that by now is not only a pain but a real danger in terms of hitting climate goals. Berlin has a progressive soul but the new CDU mayor is a conservative. 🤷🏻‍♂️

— Slow Travel Berlin (@slowberlin) June 16, 2023

More briefings from the Alpines...

⚠️START 6. ETAPPE IN CHUR⚠️Official Statement of TdS Organisation regarding rock avalanche in Brienz (GR) pic.twitter.com/2aUjo6VCgW

— Tour de Suisse (@tds) June 16, 2023

The stage, which was supposed to be the longest, starting at the foot of the Albula Pass and and tracing the descent which was the site of two frightening crashes and has been called "dangerous" by world champion Remco Evenepoel.

Instead, the race will now begin at Chure, eliminating both the Albula Pass and the Lenzerheide climbs, making the first 55 kms of today's stage a very low-gradient descent.

The decision to shift the start was taken after the village Brienz — which was evacuated last month due to an avalanche threat as well — had the warning meter moved up to the highest danger level.

Team Q36.5 doesn't seem to be minding the views though...

🇨🇭 #TourdeSuisse

Stage 6 @tds has been modified and shortened due to a landslide. The new parcours will link Chur to Oberwil over 143km.

We’re on our way to the start and the views aren’t half bad 😍#RacingTheFuture pic.twitter.com/ArLjX9Xg0Q

— Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team (@Q36_5ProCycling) June 16, 2023