shkodra cycling city great tradition-bright...
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Shkodra Cycling CityGreat tradition-Bright future
Presented by: Entela Shkreli GO2 NGO
Shkodra General data
114.000 inhabitants
flat and compact city
proximity to Shkodra lake
three rivers
25 km from Adriatic Sea
40 km from Albanian Alps
near Montenegro and Kosovo
Shkodra – Northern Albania
Shkodra: lake, mountains, plane , seaside
Shkodra: tolerance & culture
Shkodra: urban pattern, topography and urban travel distances are ideal for walking and cycling
2 km
2 km
Boulevard structureShkodra’s urban identity
Cycling is still mainstream travel mode within the city and in the flat areas of the Shkodra Region
44 %24 %
29 %
Shkodra’s Cycling Culturein the “early days”
First bicylcle introduced by Consul of Sweden at end of XIX century
Cycling instantly adopted by citizens as a way of Moving and posing
Mostly Italian bicycles and French bicycles
First woman to cycle employed in Austrian Consulatein 1910’s
Shkodra’s Cycling Culturein the “early days”
Cyc
ling
inst
itutin
aliz
edShkodra’s Cycling Culture in the ‘early days’
Mobility Revolution (Communist Era)
Car ownership was forbidden
Cycling everywhereIn Albania
Shkodra remained“the Capital of Bicycles”
Mostly Albanian and East European BicyclesAfter 60-s a lot of China produced bicycles
Mobility Revolution(Communist Era)
Wide Boulevards:
• Wide sidewalks for walking
• Asphalt for cyclists
• Zebra crossings made no sense
Mobility Revolution (Communist Era)
Tirana 1987
Mobility Revolution (Communist Era)
Shkodra 1987
From Revolution to Repollution?
PostcomunistEra (after1991)
Open Market
Trying to Modernizethe Country
Car seen as status, asWestern, as Freedom, as Progress
and Bicycle as a symbol of poverty and non-modern
Everything done during Comunism times became “outdated” and wrong
From Revolution to Repollution?
Postcomunist Era (after1991)
Economy in Transition
Tirana and other cities lost their cycling culture
Mercedes everywhere and the raising number of cars became a matter of pride
Car oriented policies
From Revolution to Repollution?
Why Shkodra did preserve its cycling culture?
established cycling culture
excentrism and selfconfidence
Pragmatism
But also : lack of economic development
Floods in Shkodra 2010
From Revolution to Repollution?
Local government : lack of confidence and confusion regarding policies on mobility
Proud of cycling, but investments in road s modernization (car oriented)
Extention of promenades, but not seeing urban mobility as a city wide challenge
Road infrastructureseen as a magnetfor investments
Municipality of Shkodra 2010
Shkodra’s modal split , 2011
44 % Walking29 % Cycling3 % Public Tranport
73% Active, Clean and sustainable transport
44 %
24 %
29 %
Household travel survey School & company travel surveysand BYPAD Audit REPORT
Shkodra’s phenomenon of
Sharing urban streets
Sharing urban streets in practice in Shkodra
Sharing urban streets: a matter of equilibrium between two opposites
respect & tolerance
survival of the fittest (strongest)
arroganceself –confidence & pride
Sharing urban streets: a matter of equilibrium between two opposites
Perceived safetyFlexibility
Sharing urban streets: a matter of equilibrium between two opposites
to active modes streets belong to cars
Sharing urban streets : a matter of equilibrium between two opposites
stressed behavior
relaxed behavior
Sharing urban streets: a matter of equilibrium between two opposites
Semi-segregating
integrating
Sharing urban streets : a matter of equilibrium between two opposites
Behavior by prescribed legal rules
Behavior by social adaptation and mutual respect
Sharing urban street rules in Shkodra
Cycling on sidewalks perceived as ‘rude and unpolite behavior’ !
Parking on sidewalks is OK! (plenty of bike racks)
Cycling on the promenade full of people is arrogant
Counter flow cycling is accepted by police
Don’t cycle too fast
Shared space rules in Shkodra
Zebra crossings looks nice on asphalt
When you’re totally wrong, raise your hand (as a sign between “sorry & hi”) and smile.
You see the driver, but pretend you don’t see him, so he will care for you (he will stop and let you go).
This license plate is dangerous
Respect drivers! (not cars)
How does it work?
Are these informal “strict” rules effective?
How does it work?
Are this “strict” rules effective?
There is still space for improvement, but they rock as Hell!
How does it work?
What does the traffic planners pretend...
ped
estr
ian
s
par
kin
g
cars
cars
par
kin
gca
rs
cars
ped
estr
ian
s
How does it work?
What does the traffic planners pretend...
ped
estr
ian
s
par
kin
g
cars
cars
par
kin
gca
rs
cars
ped
estr
ian
s
How does it work?
Cyclists “squat” what already is theirs!
par
kin
g
bik
e
ped
estr
ian
s
bik
e
cars
cars
cars
bik
eb
ike
bik
e cars
How does it work?
Shkodrans takes traffic very personally!
Everyone is a cyclist, pedestrian and often driver too (if not himself, friends and relatives)
How does it work?
They believe in (traffic) tolerance
In general the drivers in Shkodra are respectful and understanding due to high cycling share and culture
Cu
ttin
g th
e m
ain
sq
uar
e (d
esig
ned
as
a ju
nct
ion
Sharing urban streets (Strength)
Transforming junctions into squares
Conflictual in appearance, but very communicative
City center functioningfine
Sharing urban streets (Strength)
Sharing urban streets (Strength)
Fits perfectly well with local culture of cycling
Traffic engineers tend to introduce segrating measures
Sharing urban streets (Threat)
Car traffic growing
Problems with parking and raised number of accidents
Sharing urban streets (Threat)
EnforcementNo “immunuty” against irresponsible drivers
Sharing urban streets (Threat)
Cyclists may be soon on defense Cyclists may be soon marginalised (cf Tirana)
Fragile co-existence at growing car traffic
2000 2012 2020
?
Future urban mobility scenarios (1)
Segregated urban travel behaviour ?or Sharing urban streets? or Semi segegration?
Future scenarios – Existential dilemma for our cycling culture
Preserve the sharing urban street behavior in the city centre?within the city center
or ?
Future scenarios – Existencial dilemma for our cycling culture
Go for segregation ?(Naively popular solution)
Future scenarios – Existencial dilemma for our cycling culture
Why not segregation?
It’s not actually working
Will definitely raise the conflicts in road traffic
Road accidents’ number will rise
Future urban mobility scenarios (1)
Segregated urban travel behavior ?or Sharing urban streets? or Semi segegration?
• Sharing space in car restricted city centre + 30 km/h
• Seperated cycle network towards the city and on ring road
• safer ring road crossings
Future urban mobility scenarios (2)
Trend scenario ? (doubling / trippling of cars)or
SUMP scenario ? • preserve ‘compact city ‘• car access restriction• maintain high ‘active modes’ level• Public space rehab • Paid parking & parking management • Ring optimization
Other challenges...
Still the economy is going low
Local cycling team is practically ran by passion. No wages for sport cyclists.
The same thing for our mobility NGO “GO2”
Still waiting if Shkodra wins an IPA project for SUMP
Modernization of cycling infrastructure needed
Thank you!
For choosing bicycle to fly in our city!
Shkodra Cycling Airways