Sometimes it helps to leave Los Angeles and gain inspiration from other cities. I’m doing that right now as I sit at a sidewalk café here in Downtown Vancouver in Canada. Streams of people and bicyclists cruise by me – everyone seems to be out on this warm, sunny day. 

 

In the 1970’s, Vancouver was one of the few decent-sized North American cities that decided not to build freeways. Instead, they invested in public transit, bikeways, downtown redevelopment and park creation. This intentional investment has created a very livable city, enjoyed by a diverse population. 

 

I’m especially impressed by the diversity of people riding bicycles around town. This city boasts an interconnected network of bicycle boulevards – residential streets transformed to facilitate comfortable and speedy riding across town. These streets include round-abouts instead of stop signs so cyclists need not stop, car traffic limiting features such as an intersection that is designed to let bikes through, but isn’t big enough for a car to drive through, signal prioritization when you get to a big intersection and need to cross and well-designed signage. I can’t help imagine what a similar network in Los Angeles would look like on streets like 4^th St., Heliotrope and countless others.