The infamous Sliema-Gżira bus lane has given some reprieve to cyclists who would otherwise prefer to break the law and ride on the promenade along pedestrians.
According to a recent bike count, less than 20 per cent of the cyclists heading towards Gżira opted for the promenade, compared to half of the riders going in the opposite direction.
The Bicycling Advocacy Group noted that The Strand was a fast road with a known ‘dooring’ risk from cars opening their doors and double parking that was dangerous for cyclists. However, the controversial bus lane has provided “reasonable protection” for cyclists.
When offered a chance to use some sort of bicycle-friendly infrastructure, pavement ridership fell to just 18 per cent. However, those who did not have this option took safety into their own hands and opted for the promenade that was meant to be out-of-bounds for cyclists.
The group has just released figures of its third bike count, which were collected in October and limited to three counting stations, as opposed to six in 2014, because of lack of resources.
The cyclists were counted by some three volunteers at each of three major intersections: near the Luqa airport roundabout, on the Sliema Strand and in Balluta, St Julian’s. The count took place between 6.30am and 9am and they also noted helmet use, which direction they were headed, gender and pedelec use.
Helmet use – which is a negative indicator of a rider’s perception of road risk – was very high at the airport roundabout. Even though it is not required by law, four fifths of the cyclists passing through Luqa wore the helmet, when compared to less than half of the riders in Sliema and St Julian’s.
The count also looked at commuting trends such as normal clothing as opposed to spandex gear, which indicates the acceptance of cycling as a normal way of getting around, rather than the preservation of cycling as a sports activity.
Overall, the count recorded 90 bicycles across the three stations compared to 118 bicycles across six in 2014 during the rush hour period.
Considering data from the same three counting stations, this would mean an overall increase of 20 per cent in the airport, Sliema and St Julian’s intersections, which for BAG spells out as a “fairly healthy rise that could be much better”.
The highest increase was around the Luqa roundabout – this was up by 23.5 per cent when compared to 2014, followed by a 23 per cent increase in St Julian’s and an eight per cent increase in Sliema.
Still, Sliema Strand saw the highest number of commuters – an average of 15 every hour.
Of “serious and deep concern” for the group was the almost total absence (only two) of pedelec users, indicating that from a commuting point of view the incentives to overcome restrictive legislation on pedelecs was not working.