Kyoto Nijo Castle Area Bike Lane

自転車専用レーン京都二条城

Along the southern edge of Nijo Castle a bike "lane" has sprouted.

It is yet another joke, a bad joke, perpetrated by the geniuses in Kyoto City Hall. (Actually, the joke is the work of the Department of Construction, Bicycle Planning Division, which in Japanese is: 京都市役所建設局自転車政策課).

The city has painted the words "Bike Lane" on the street. That's it.

Paired with a flimsy police sign telling cyclists that they must ride on the left side of the street, it does not make for a compelling ride.

And, of course, trucks and taxis were parked in the lane.

On the return trip, we rode the lane on the other side, and once again taxis were idling in the lane.

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Tokyo Skytree

自転車で東京スカイツリ

Tokyo Skytree is the tallest structure in Japan. It is 634 meters (2,080 feet) high and, for the time being, the tallest tower in the world.

It is also the second tallest structure in the world after Burj Khalifa (829.84 meters, or 2,723 feet) in Dubai.

Skytree is a broadcasting, restaurant, and observation tower located in the old downtown area of Tokyo, not far from the Sumida River.

The group of investors that planned and built the Tokyo Skytree includes Tobu Railways, NHK, and other broadcasters. (NHK and other television stations have been relentless in their coverage and promotion of the Skytree.)

Tokyo Skytree opened to the public on 22 May 2012 under rainy skies.

To get to the observation deck, reservations are required.

There are 4 ways to purchase tickets to TOKYO SKYTREE Observation Deck.

1. "TOKYO SKYTREE Web tickets" may be purchased in advance online. Please be reminded that only credit cards issued in Japan are accepted for online reservations.
2. Tickets from May 22 to July 10 are by Advance Reservation Only. No day tickets will be sold during this period. Day tickets will go on sale from July 11.
3. "TOKYO SKYTREE Group Reservation Center" accepts reservations for groups of 25 or more.
4. Use the travel plans of various travel agencies or the accomodation plans offered by TOKYO SKYTREE Official hotels/TOKYO SKYTREE Friendship Hotels.

According to news reports, tickets have been reserved months in advance.

We took a cheaper and more leisurely approach: strolling through the streets of Ueno, there are many views of the tower.

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Cycling Shibuya Tokyo

東京渋谷自転車

Shibuya is amazing.

Even on a quiet Sunday morning in late spring, it crackled with energy.

And the people watching was stellar.

The population density in Shibuya is intense, and per capita number of hipsters - many of them on interesting bicycles - must rival certain areas of Brooklyn.

The biking scene in Tokyo is in many respects not that different from Kyoto: lots of mama chari all purpose neighborhood shopping vehicles that only get a tune up when they are about to fall apart.

However, once inside trendier burgs - Omotesando, Shibuya, Daikanyama - and the bikes and the people change dramatically.

Lots of hats, lots of fixies, lots of brands we should probably recognize but do not.

The legendary Shibuya Scramble - the intersection in front of JR Shibuya Station into which pedestrians, bikes, and cars pour in from multiple directions - would be a source of tension in the US. In Tokyo, it just works.

Even bicycles salmoning their way through the crowds caused no stares, glares, or aggravation.


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Kyoto Fixie Bicycle in front of Bibliotec Cafe

カフェビブリオテク前のフィクシー自転車

The fixie craze is slowly filtering its was down from Tokyo to the provinces.

In front of one of Kyoto's better machiya cafes, Cafe Bibliotec, there was a white fixed gear bicycle parked.

The cafe is a grand old building that was renovated and reborn as a cafe and restaurant.

In keeping with its name, it is full of books and magazines.

Based on the customers there at the time, we suspect the culprit - that is, the owner of the bike - was one of the chefs.

Bibliotec is located on Nijo Dori several blocks west of Teramachi.

Information

650 Seimei-cho, Yanaginobanba higashi iru, Nijo Nakagyo-ku

075 231 8625

Hours

11:30 am - midnight



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This Week in World Cycling News 27 May 2012

今週のサイクリング２０１２年０５月２７日

Los Angeles Lives by Car, but Learns to Embrace Bikes New York Times

Shanaze Reade says Worlds are harder to win than Olympics BBC

Cyclists At Center Of Bitter Debate Over Bike Lanes NPR

Paris - Nice 2012 Cycling News

York's naked bike ride pedals into its seventh year Guardian

Le vélo sur ordonnance à Strasbourg Libération

Retratos en bici: Ioannes, pequeña bici en la gran ciudad #BikeMad El Pais

北京将扩大差别化停车收费区域 改善步行自行车设施条件 财经网

自転車車載動画ハンドルマウントとフレームマウントの比較 YouTube

Whitten wins stage, American Armstrong falls Yahoo

Last Week's Cycling News


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America's Top Ten Bicycle Cities

米国のもっともサイクリングしやすい都市ベスト１０

In Carlandia, a.k.a., the United States, May is National Bike Month.

To celebrate that, Walk Score, a website that rates neighborhoods and cities for their “walkability,” published a list of the top 10 most bike-friendly cities in the United States.

Cities were rated by the "number and quality of bike lanes and trails, destinations and road connectivity, and number of bike commuters and hills."

Scoring was out of 100, but the top-rated city this year, Minneapolis, only managed 79.

America’s Most "Bikeable" Cities:

1. Minneapolis
2. Portland, Oregon
3. San Francisco
4. Boston
5. Madison, Wisconsin
6. Washington, DC
7. Seattle
8. Tucson, Arizona
9. New York City
10. Chicago

Here is Kyoto, we doubt - no, we know -  not a single Japanese city would be ranked anywhere near the top ten based on these criteria.

However, in a broader sense of the depth of bike culture, Kyoto, Osaka, Tokyo, Hiroshima and other Japanese cities should fare very well.


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自転車で京都岡崎と南禅寺へ

自転車で京都岡崎と南禅寺へ

日本語ご希望の方。

This Kyoto cycling route takes in Okazaki, which is where many of the city's museums are located.

The area also is home to Heian Shrine and is close to other temples such as Nanzenji.

For more information, in Japanese (with a link to an English page), here is a page on cycling in and around Okazaki.

Ride Okazaki ride.

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Pedal Asia Podcast

ペダルアジアポッドキャスト

And now a site for those who need to talk, or rather listen to, cycling.

If riding the bike, visiting bike shops, planning the next trip, and browsing online aren't scratching that itch, it's time for PedalAsia.

PedalAsia is a new podcast where guys talk bikes, talk bike trips, talk life.

And it's very well done.

It is the brainchild of Gavin Dixon, cyclist and raconteur, and TokyoByBike founder Byron Kidd.

The first episodes recount adventures in Malaysia and South Korea.


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Mount Shigi Nara Traditiional Inn Sweets

奈良信貴山旅館のお茶と和菓子

Divine.

On a Golden Week trip to an inn atop Mount Shigi in rural Nara, we were served sweets and tea while waiting to check in.

The area of Shigi-san is east of Osaka City and in the southern part of Nara Prefecture.

The mountain is more than 400 meters (1200 feet) high and has many inns and a large temple complex.

The area is known for its hot springs, Shigisan Temple, and a great battle.

In 1577, the general Oda Nobunaga laid siege to Mount Shigi.

He defeated the castle there that was held by Matsunaga Hisahide. Following defeat, Matsunaga committed ritual suicide. His son, Kojiro, then jumped from the castle walls - his father's severed head in hand, and his own sword piercing his own throat.

With that in mind, we tucked into the exquisite sweets and then headed for the healing waters of the hot spring.

It would be a hell of a bike ride for even the very fit.


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Kyoto Homeless Shelter Under Kamo River Bridge

京都鴨川橋下のホムレス村自転車

Homelessness is not as obvious in Japan as in the United States.

Japanese homeless people do not beg, are not threatening, and tend to be very tidy.

Certain areas of large cities - Airin, in Osaka - have a high concentration of former day laborers who sleep in flop houses.

Still, though run down, these areas do not look or feel significantly different from other, more upscale, areas of urban Japan. (Compared to the US and Europe, Japan has no crime ridden slums.)

The make-shift shelter pictured at right is under a bridge along Kyoto's Kamo River.

Homeless people have stored various necessities - including a couple of old bicycles - under the bridge to keep them dry.

At night, they will return and sleep nearby.

Still, the river is safe and used twenty-four hours a day by the residents of the city.


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Kyoto Bicycle Delivery Man

京都自転車配達

The delivery man makes his rounds in Kyoto on a souped up bicycle.

At least two of the major national delivery companies use bicycles in Kyoto: Sagawa and Yamato.

The city is compact, flat, and automobile parking is at a premium.

It is in short made for cycling.

On a near perfect late spring day, a Sagawa delivery man rode south from the Imperial Palace, down Teramachi, and then turned right onto an east-west street.

His tricycle is tricked out with a plexiglass rain cover, electric engine, and large carrying case.


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This Work in World Cycling News 20 May 2012

今週のサイクリング２０１２年０５月２０日

Running and Cycling Above the Clouds New York Times

Giro d'Italia: Mark Cavendish wins stage 13 at Cervere BBC

In America's 'Most Bikeable' Cities, Bike Lanes Rule NPR

Ten Dam out of Amgen Tour of California Cycling News

Why the IAM red light survey annoyed me more as a cyclist than as a pollster Guardian

VELO AU BOUT DU MONDE Libération

¿Cuánto cuesta un atasco? El Pais

宝宝学骑自行车 Daily Motion

東京自転車グリーンマップにようこそ！ Tokyo Green Map

Georges wins stage, Zabriskie leads Tour of Calif Yahoo

Last Week's Cycling News


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Annular Eclipse Kyoto May 21

金境月食５月２１日２０１２年京都

For the first time in 282 years, an annular eclipse will be visible in Kyoto.

For non-astronomers, an annular solar eclipse takes place when the moon's apparent diameter is smaller than the sun. This causes the sun to look like a ring (in Latin, "annulus"), blocking most of the Sun's light.

At that time, the sky will become slightly darker, and there will still be a blindingly bright ring, which is dangerous to look directly at.

This annular eclipse will be visible from most of Kyoto, early Monday morning, but parts of the north and west of the city fall just outside the viewing area.

Those north of Kamigawa Shrine or west of the JR Torokko train station, in Arashiyama, need to head farther in towards the center of the city.

If you have your viewing glasses ready - do NOT look directly at the eclipse with sun glasses or any other material not made expressly for the purpose of looking at the eclipse - the partial eclipse begins at 6:17 (41 seconds) am Monday morning the 21st. At that point, the moon will touch the sun's edge.

The climax begins at 7:30 am. The peak of the annular eclipse will take place at 7:30:35 am. The peak will end at 7:31:09.

The annular eclipse ends at 8:55:17, when the moon leaves the sun's edge.


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Young Japanese Couple Cycling Kamo River Kyoto

京都鴨川自転車で二人乗り

Spring in Kyoto is perfect for a slow ride along the banks of the Kamo River.

A young couple headed south on the east bank of the river, just north of Shijo Ohashi bridge.

They continued under the bridge, which crosses the river just east of the city's main intersection, Shijo - Kawaramachi.

The paving continues until about Shichijo.

Both sides are good for cycling, and a good way to avoid the dreaded automobile.

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The Efflorescence of Heian Court Culture Kyoto Art Exhibit

「王朝文化の華―陽明文庫名宝展―　宮廷貴族近衞家の一千年 」自転車で京都国立博物館へ

The Kyoto National Museum is currently exhibiting works from the Yomei Bunko Collection until May 27.

The special exhibition displays works or early books and documents from the Konoe Clan, one of the five Fujiwara regent families.

There are eight National Treasures and sixty Important Cultural Properties.

The area is full of great places to go and see: Sanjusangendo Temple and Chishakuin Temple are both a very short ride.

Information

Hours: 9:30 - 6:00 pm (Fridays open until 8 pm; last entry 30 minutes prior to closing)
Admission: 1300 yen adults; 900 university and high school students; 400 for junior high and elementary school students
Telephone: 075 525 2473


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Traffic Fatalities Japan 2011 Bicycle

二輪車の死亡事故統計自転車

The Tokyo Metropolitan Police has compiled traffic fatalities for 2011.

Two wheel vehicles include all type of motorcycles and scooters. Four wheel covers cars and trucks.

Bicycle fatalities totaled 658 last year, or 13.5% of the total of all traffic fatalities.

Data is for 2012　or（2011）
	Tokyo		Japan
	Fatalities	Percentage	Fatalities	Percentage
Two Wheel	72（58）	33.5%（28.3）	871（886）	17.9%（18.0）
Four Wheel	16（25）	7.4%（12.2）	1,602（1,600）	32.9%（32.6）
Bicycle	41（45）	19.1%（22.0）	658（695）	13.5%（14.1）
Pedestrian	85（77）	39.5%（37.6）	1,714（1,717）	35.2%（34.9）
Other	1（0）	0.5%（0.0）	18（16）	0.4%（0.3）
Total	215（205）	100%（100）	4,863（4,914）	100%（100）

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Tokyo Cyclists Unaware of Rules

交通ルールを知らない東京人

In 2010, according to the Universal Traffic Management Society (UTMS) of Japan, 4,863 were killed in traffic accidents in Japan.

This is half of the number killed in 1995, in which 10,679 perished on the nation's roads.

Yet, aside from the occasional story pertaining to a dramatic accident - bus driver falls asleep, plows into barrier killing many onboard; young unlicensed kid, also drowsy, piles into a group of children and parents walking to school, killing several - this rarely makes the news.

Simple math: more than 13 people died every day in traffic accidents in 2010.

Though the share of the total fatalities involving cars and trucks is decreasing - and accidents involving cyclists increasing - the vast majority of those deaths involved cars.

Still the story emanating from the police and their handmaidens in the media is that cyclists are terrorizing Japanese road ways.

The latest from the right-wing, pro-nuclear, pro Liberal Democratic Party Yomiuri Shinbun - the newspaper with the highest daily circulation in the world -  is that Tokyo cyclists are not aware of the rules of the road.

In a shocking scoop, the Yomiuri recently reported that only "65% of people know children under 13 are required to wear a helmet while riding a bicycle."

Stop the presses.

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Kamo River Path Construction

京都鴨川道整備

Work on the path on the bank of the Kamo River appears to be complete.

The new, smoother service extends on the west side of the river - the downtown side - almost to Shijo Bridge (the picture at right was taken several hundred meters north of Shijo and is looking north to the Sanjo Bridge in the distance). South of that and it reverts to the old bumpy surface.

This means that one can cycle, jog, or stroll on a smooth surface - with the some variation (hard sand, paving stone, etc.) - from Shijo to the far north of the city.

If one crosses at Kitayama, or another bridge, to the opposite bank (east side) it is a car-free ride all the way to Kamigamo Shrine.

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This Work in World Cycling News 13 May 2012

今週のサイクリング２０１２年０５月１３日

Cycle of Fear New York Times

Giro d'Italia: Mark Cavendish wins stage five in sprint finish BBC

Philadelphia's First-Ever Bike to School Day Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia

The price worth paying for New York's bike share Guardian

Plan interactif de Marseille pour cycliste malin marseilleveloutile

El Festibal 2.0 El Pais

茂林國家風景自行車線路 交通部観光局茂林国家風景区管理処

【日本科学技术】自行车的制作流程【Japan Science and Technology 】bike YouTube

Schools Added to 2012 Bike to Work Month, Week, Day: Fan's View Yahoo

Last Week's Cycling News


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Book Review Roads Were Not Built for Cars

自転車の書評

Roads Were Not Built for Cars

Roads Were Not Built for Cars is a sermon for the converted.

Below is a review:

It is a free e-book about roads history, focussing on the period 1880-1905, which saw the Bicycling Boom and then burst because of auto mania.


Motorists are the johnny-come-latelies of highway history. The coming of the railways in the 1830s killed off the stage-coach trade; almost all rural roads reverted to low-level local use. Cyclists were the first group in a generation to use roads and were the first to push for high-quality sealed surfaces and were the first to lobby for national funding and leadership for roads.


Without cyclists, motorists wouldn't have hit the ground running when it came to places to drive this new form of transport.


'Roads Were Not Built for Cars' is a history book, focussing on a time when cyclists had political clout, in Britain and especially in America. The book researches the Road Improvements Association - a lobbying group created by the Cyclists' Touring Club in the 1880s - and the Good Roads movement organised by the League of American Wheelmen in the same period.


The book will be published in Summer 2012 and, thanks to research grants and advertising support, will be free to read online and free to download to Kindles, iPads, iPhones and other e-book readers. The free distribution model will be used in order to get the book seen by as many eyes as possible.

Amen.


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Bicycle Lane Uji Kyoto

京都宇治市自転車専用レーン

A bike lane has sprouted out in suburban Uji.

While driving back from a night in an inn deep in rural Nara, we were headed back to Kyoto via central Uji.

This part of Uji is Okubo and is an exurban area of factories and bypasses and the local tax bureau.

It is not an area one would associate with cycling beyond short, local trips to the supermarket or convenience store.

However, the busy street that runs west from Okubo Station past the tax man and onto the Nissan factory has a bike lane.

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Kyoto Tofu Seller with his Bicycle

自転車で回る京都豆腐やさん

Every once in a while one can spot a tofu seller on a bicycle in Kyoto.

They are a dying breed.

We have spotted, or rather heard, this older man in and around Nishijin.

The other day he was setting out along the pavement on Imadegawa Dori, west of Horikawa.

He usually rides or walks, slowly, on neighborhood streets bleeping his old horn.

People who hear the doleful wail of the horn, and are in need of tofu, come out and buy from him.

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自転車で京都西陣へ

自転車で京都西陣へ

日本語ご希望の方。

This Kyoto cycling route takes in Nishijin, the old weaving quarter.

The area still has many operating looms and larger weaving businesses, but it is but a shadow of its former self.

Fewer and fewer Japanese wear kimono on a daily basis; moreover, the yen is simply too high to export.

However, the area has lots of old houses and temples, and is a good and flat day out.

For more information, in Japanese (with a link to an English page), here is a page on cycling to Nishijin.

Ride Nijo, ride.


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Young Mama Cyclist Kyoto

自転車で買い物中の若い母さん

At the northwest corner of Kawaramachi - Imadegawa, down the street from the Kamo River, a young woman checked her mail in front of the Mitsubishi Tokyo UFJ bank branch.

She is standing next to an all-purpose mama-chari bike that is the most common form of transportation in Japan (fact checker: is this true? No doubt).

It was a Saturday, so it is doubtful that she has just dropped the little one at day care. But she appears to be out on errands on what was a glorious day.

The montage of her - white sporty sneakers, black tights, pink pantaloons (?), checked coat, surgeon's mask (she has pollen allergies or a cold), and her hair pulled back into a tight mini-pony-tail - framed by the silver bike on the tiled sidewalk is pure Kyoto.

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Bicycle Fatalities USA National Parks

米国国立公園事故死２００７年−２０１１年

According to National Geographic, the leading cause of accidental death in US national parks is drowning. That accounted for 37% of all fatalities, in American national parks, between 2007 - 2011.

Every year some 275 million visitors head to US national parks.

Last summer, two of those were mauled to death in bear attacks in Yellowstone. While animal attacks generate big headlines, they account for just 0.6% of all deaths.

The other causes were:

23%: Motor Vehicle Accident
18%: Fall
4%: Exposure (to either heat or cold)
3%: Plane Crash
2%: Avalanche
1% Bicycle Accident
0.9%: Poisoning
0.6%: Animal Attack

Ride safe, be prepared.

The deadliest parks in terms of fatalities were:

65 fatalities: Lake Mead Recreation Area
42: Grand Canyon
42: Yosemite
31: Glen Canyon Recreations Area
29: Golden Gate Recreation Area
28: Denali

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This Week in World Cycling News 6 May 2012

今週のサイクリング２０１２年０５月０６日

Bike to Work Day Transportation Alternatives

Tour of Britain: Route chosen is the toughest yet, say organisers BBC

Cycling notebook: City rolls out bike program downtown Houston Chronicle

Cycling initiatives are favourite green policies of Greater Manchester candidates Guardian

Route Verte Vélo Québec

Invitación: Flashmob por un aire limpio Bicitekas

商务部：欧盟对华自行车反补贴调查属滥用贸易救济措施 Caijing

幅３メートル未満の歩道、自転車通行原則ダメ　警察庁規制強化 Sankei

New Giro director wants to make race more friendly Yahoo

Last Week's Cycling News


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Kyoto Fixed Gear Bicycle

京都のフィクシー

Whenever we see a fixed gear bicycle, we realize, again, that we are old.

No, not old old, but we are a middle-aged bourgeois commuter riding a mass-produced reasonably-priced Taiwanese cross bike.

And we love it. It takes the rain, the beating, and even our clumsy attempts at tuning it up.

Aside from replacing the tires once, periodic derailleur adjustments, brake pad replacement, we have done no major repair work. It keeps on rolling, day in and day out, six years on.

A fixed-gear bicycle, or "fixie," is a bicycle with no freewheel.

Simply translated, that means it cannot coast; without pedaling the bike will stop.

Thus, when the rear wheel turns the pedals will and must move in the same direction. Braking is thus done by stopping pedaling; as a result, many fixies are sold without brakes (the Japanese police frown on this).

It is also apparently possible to ride backwards.

The bikes have a clean look - no derailleur, no brakes, no wiring - and popular among young men but we still don't get it.

No coasting? No handbrakes?

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Kyoto Kamo River Spring

京都鴨川春

Spring finally came to Kyoto last weekend.

And the city poured outside, to parks and the Kamo River.

These photos were taken just north of the bridge that crosses the river at Imadegawa, east of the Imperial Palace and Doshisha University.

It is where the Takano River and Kamo River come together and form the Kamo River (different Chinese characters, same pronunciation).

It is moreover a popular spot for picnics and cycling.

The picture above right shows the place where the two rivers join. There are small concrete steps in the river, which children (and adults) use to hop across the water.

Below left shows the path in the foreground, Mount Yoshida in the distance.

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Kyoto Traffic Public Awareness Campaign

交通安全啓発活動実施中京都上京区

In front of Kitano Tenmangu Shrine, a battalion of middle aged men in bright yellow reflective vests were passing out public safety packets aimed at cyclists.

Of the fifty or so men working the street, the man who sidled up to me was polite and chatty and funny. He was a Lions Club member - as they all were - and explained the purpose of the campaign and then handed me not one but two packets.

The package included the de rigueur tissue pack, a reflective sticker, a pink and white pen, a pack of Q-tips, and the pamphlet pictured at right.

The pamphlet features the Kyoto Asto Dreams women's baseball team's star pitcher Kawabata Yuki riding a bike and making a pitch for the use of helmets.

The campaign is co-sponsored by the Lions Club, the Kamigyo Ward Kyoto Police, Kamigyo Ward Office, and the Juraku Center for the Severely Disabled.

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Kyoto Bicycle Storage Lot

京都三条乗千本保管所

The dreaded bike grave.

Near the intersection of Senbon - Sanjo, just south of JR Nijo Station (the rail line runs above the fence), is the storage area for towed bicycles.

Back in the day, we made three trips to the deep south of Kyoto to retrieve our beloved mountain beater bike after it had been towed.

We paid a fee, were told which section of the storage area the bike was parked in, and set out under the hot sun to find the bike.

It appears that the city now has a lot more centrally located.

Parking in Kyoto is still a problem - for pedestrians mainly, who have to navigate around bicycles piled up on sidewalks - but is much much improved compared to even five years ago.

Moreover, the city still posts advanced warning notices telling of the arrival of the tow truck, usually two or three days prior.

Still, there is nothing quite like returning to the place the bike was parked, find it gone, and then having to make a trip to the tow lot, tail between legs, and fork over 2300 yen to get back the bike.

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Kyoto Mt. Hiei from Takano River Bridge

京都比叡山高野川自転車

The Takano River and the Kamo River join north of downtown Kyoto, at Demachiyanagi, and form the Kamo River (different kanji).

Both photos were taken on a bridge that spans the Takano River near Kitaoji.

The day was blustery and cold for late April.

The photo above right shows Mt. Hiei, on top of which sits Enryakuji Temple.

The photo below is looking straight up the river towards the hills to the north.

The area is close to Kitayama and other points in northeast Kyoto, such as Shugakuin Villa.

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Mount Hiei