京都細い街路安全に歩ける？自転車乗れる？ Kyoto Bike Lane Test

京都自転車専用レーン実証実験

A recent story in the Asahi Shinbun (in Japanese) caught our eye.

Around the Takakura Elementary Elementary School in downtown Kyoto, the city is doing a test run for new pedestrian lanes and bicycle lanes.

The car lane has been reduced from 4 meters (13.2 feet) down to 3 meters (9.8 feet).

In that extra room, pedestrian lanes have been widened by 50 cm (20 inches), on both sides.

In the remaining space, a bike lane 0.6 meters (1.96 feet) wide has been painted on the asphalt. (The photo above right gives an idea of just how narrow the "lane" is. The photo below is a wider view.)

We are not joking.

This appears to be yet another bad joke, and the test is running until March 22.

Then the city will parse the data, and decide what if any action to take.


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Oike Dori Bike Lane Test Run

御池通自転車実行環境整備にかかる実証実験

The city of Kyoto appears to be testing out the possibility of installing bike lanes on the sidewalks of the wide boulevard that runs, east-west, at the north end of downtown.

Oike Dori is home to City Hall and leads to Nijo Castle. Underneath it runs the Tozai subway line and there is a shopping mall.

Above ground, the streetscape is wide and heavily concrete.

The sidewalks however have always been good for cyclists: wide and flat and easy to cohabit with pedestrians.

The city however is going to set up a test run - lines have been painted on the sidewalk along with new purple bike marks - with an eye towards creating a permanent lane. The test will last from November 12 - 18, from 7 am - 5 pm. It will extend from Oike Kawaramachi, at the corner of City Hall, to Karasuma.

Fingers crossed.

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Bike Lane
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Oike Dori