Dublin Bicycles on The Universityhouse Channel April 10
The Velo-City Bicycle Conference in Dublin, Ireland, is featured on Episode 105 of "Perils For Pedestrians". The program will be carried on The Universityhouse Channel (DISH Network 9411) on Tuesday, April 10, at 9:30 PM Eastern time, 6:30 PM Pacific time.


    /Bicycling News Articles/ - BETHESDA, MD, April 07, 2007 - Every second year, bicycle experts from around the world get together for the international Velo-City Conference. The 15th Velo-City Conference was held in Dublin, Ireland. John Z Wetmore, host of the television series "Perils For Pedestrians", traveled to Dublin to talk with conference organizers and participants.

The first interview is with Oliver Hatch, the Velo-City series director. The series started as a single conference in Bremen, Germany, in 1980. The second was in London, followed by Groningen, Copenhagen, and Milan. Over the years, the conference has advanced from basic technical issues to the broader challenge of including cycling as an integral part of the transportation system. A highlight of the Dublin conference was an evening ride of thousands of bicyclists through central Dublin.

Next, Wetmore talks with Michael Aherne with the Dublin Transportation Office, who was the Dublin conference director. The theme was "Delivering the Vision". Dublin hoped to learn from conference attendees and be inspired by the vision of a better city for bicycling.

The third interview is with Damien O'Tuama, discussing the Dublin Cycling Campaign. The Dublin Cycling Campaign works to make the streets safer for cyclists and to raise public awareness of the benefits of cycling. Issues of concern to Dublin cyclists included the large number of Heavy Goods Vehicles serving the port, vehicle speed, the design of bicycle facilities, and bicycle parking.

Mary Crass, with The European Conference of Ministers of Transport (ECMT), was also at Velo-City. ECMT published a study, "National Policies to Promote Cycling". The study looks at the current role of national governments in cycling, barriers to good policies, and what good national policy can do. Although bicycle facilities are often built and maintained by local governments, national governments set policies that determine the regulatory, legal, and fiscal environment in which local governments operate. Coordination across government agencies, and across levels of government, are necessary to clearly define roles and responsibilities, and move bicycling out of the margins of transportation policy.

Finally, Wetmore interviews an advocate from Italy, Giuseppe Caprarelli. In Rome, neighborhood "Bicycle Workshops", or Ciclofficine, are grassroots organizations that promote cycling. They recycle abandoned bicycles, and put them in the hands of people who cannot afford to buy a bicycle. The recipient helps in the restoration of the bicycle, thereby learning how to maintain it once they own it.

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