From the Netherlands to Denmark, up to Great Britain, there are many countries that introduced the motorways for bicyclesnew types of cycle paths. The goal is to encourage the environment, impacting this as possible. The idea of motorway It takes us to mind long roads, often intensely busy, under the warm summer sun, with the boiling asphalt that sets the tires. If this image features cars, well, know that the highways are also dedicated to bicycles, designed for long and fast and fast -handed travels, far from traffic and with an eye to sustainability.
Bicycle motorways: description of the design idea
The idea was born from the desire to encourage transport on two wheels with the use and use of bicycles whose environmental impact is minimal. The bicycle motorways are completely separated from the roads for carsoften with dedicated paths or very large lanes, to ensure maximum Safety and fluidity. In the design phase of the cycle motorway strokes, you tend to minimize or eliminate crossings with vehicular traffic, using underpass or overpass to avoid stop and slowdowns. This allows you to maintain a higher average speed.
They also have an area smooth And well maintained (often asphalt or concrete) for optimal driving comfort, reducing friction and facilitating the speed. In particular, the width is crucial to allow the overtaking and transit of multiple cyclists supported safely. Take, for example, a unidirectional cycle path on a highway. In this case, to maintain the safety, the width of the same should remain between 1.75 And 2.00 m For lane.
Another cardinal element in the design phase, as we have advanced, is that relating to the reduction of intersections and crossings. This goal is achieved with a degrees separation of the levels on which the design elements insist. Usually elements such as underpaid, well enlightened and without excessive slopes (max 4-5% per 100-200 meters, ideal <3%) are usually used. In addition, traffic light systems are often programmed to give priority to cyclists ("cycle green wave") or to have minimal waiting times. Inductive sensors in the road surface detect the arrival of cyclists to activate traffic lights.
Where are the bicycle motorways
THE Netherlands They are considered pioneers in cycle mobility since they have a vast network of “Fietssnelwegen” (cycle highways). The same goes for the Denmarkand in particular Copenhagen, which has invested a lot in these infrastructures.
Also in Italy the concept of “national tourist cycle paths” is developing, which although not always real “bicycle highways”, aspire to create long distance routes separated from traffic to encourage cycle tourism and daily movements with the use of bicycles. Some examples are the Ciclovia Ven-to (Venice-Turin), the Sun cycle path (Verona-Florence) and the Grab (Large cycling ring road) in Romewhich despite being more urban, shares some principles of connectivity and separation. The goal of these infrastructures is to make the bicycle an alternative increasingly competitive to the carespecially for home-work travel or for medium-long distances, helping to reduce traffic, pollution and improve public health.
The critical aspects of bicycle highways
Although interesting, the cycle motorway projects have some critical issues that certainly determine a general slowdown in their diffusion. First of all the high costs. The construction of high quality infrastructures, with separation of levels (underpassing, overpass), large widths, lighting and optimized surfaces, is expensive. This can represent a significant barrier for many local and regional administrations.
A common mistake is the realization of isolated sections that do not effectively connect to the existing cycle network or to the main points of interest (residences, workplaces, stations). The lack of an overview and a “Biciplan“(Plan of cycling mobility) integrated with Pums (urban plan of sustainable mobility) can frustrate the effectiveness of the investment.
From a strictly technical and design point of view, the crossings of high traffic roads, railways or waterways remain critical points that require complex and expensive engineering solutions (bridges, tunnels), or traffic light management that can reduce fluidity. Although, then, they are designed for speed and efficiency, the bicycle highways They must remain accessible and safe even for less experienced cyclists, children or the elderly. Excessive slopes, brusche curves or insufficient width in specific points could in fact create problems.
