Going Dutch? Berkshire site tests Netherlands cycling model
Experiments gauge how British pedestrians and motorists react to pioneering Dutch-style bike infrastructure
"It is a sunny morning in the Berkshire woodland and a small group of men and women clutching clipboards are lurking behind trees or amid the ferns, looking alert and expectant. Then the object of their attention comes into view: not a shy songbird or a rare mammal, but a cyclist clad in a fluorescent bib.
Followed closely by a small car, the rider stops by traffic lights at a road junction set somewhat incongruously amid the trees. Another bike-and-car duo rolls into view at the other side. The various lights turn green, and everyone heads cautiously on their way.
This is the test ground of the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) near Bracknell, and the closely watched traffic flows are part of a pioneering project that could fundamentally change Britain's inner cities over the next few decades.
TRL, formerly part of the Department for Transport but now a world-leading independent research group, is conducting a £4m test programme for Transport for London (TfL) to see how Dutch-style cycling infrastructure, such as segregated lanes and cyclist-priority roundabouts, can be adapted to British road conditions.
Work has already begun to reshape some London roads and junctions, part of a grandiose £900m plan unveiled by Boris Johnson earlier this year. Campaigners hope other areas could follow suit, tilting life in urban Britain away from decades of car dominance..."
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/aug/26/going-dutch-berkshire-tests-netherlands-cycling