Why is cycling in Prague so bad? (READ DESCRIPTION)
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- čas přidán 6. 07. 2024
- **CORRECTION**
At roughly 1:58 in the video I said that bikes weren't allowed in the pedestrian zone. They actually are, because the sign says that all vehicles up to 3.5 tons are allowed, which applies to bikes too.
Sorry for being an absolute bellend.
Urban cycling in Prague sucks. It consists of constantly weaving through traffic, praying that you don't get hit. It is dangerous, and you have to breathe in car fumes and suffer the noise. In this video we'll explore the reason, why is cycling in Prague so bad?
sources: docs.google.com/document/d/1X...
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0:00 Intro
0:47 Automotive hell
2:57 Hills
4:04 Lack of cycling infrastructure
4:39 Out-of-Prague commuters
6:05 Outro
#cycling #prague #urbanplanning
Nah, Svoboda is planning to make it worse here
He's been deleting bike lanes.
Yeah, definitely great joke at the end. :-# One of the most carcentric political figures...
@@jakub.kubicek Why would that be done? It displaces a lot of short local transit trips.
2:20 Bicycles are vehicles under 3,5 t (vozidla do 3,5 t) in Czech law so they are allowed there.
Oh, thanks for informing me!
I actually didn't know that.
Gonna add that to the description.
Mmm Czech urbanist channel, something I missed dearly. Thanks and keep it up 😉
This channel is going to blow up
Cars are a problem, but this problem is insignificant when compared to the real problem, the lack of cycling infrastructure. It's not like people in Amsterdam don't have cars, there's hundreds of thousands of cars in Amsterdam too, you know.
Yeah, I agree.
Probsbly should've phrased it a little better in the video, but I still stand by the opinion that cars are an absolute scourge on prague
That’s not true, the problem is connected, if there are a lot of cars, there will be no space for bike infrastructure. This should be solved by first getting rid of the cars and building bike infrastructure instead of it, and everyone will then cycle
@@alph5230 It is true. I can name plenty of example which are a lot more car infested than Prague, yet they have wonderful cycling infrastructure at the same time. Antwerp in Belgium is one of them. I grew up there in the 90ies. Car traffic is insane, yet I was able to cycle almost everywhere on dedicated cycle lanes. So no, there is no need to get rid of the cars in order to have proper infrastructure for cycling. I do agree with the fact that there need to be less cars in city centers, but it's got nothing to do with having proper cycling infrastructure.
@@SlosII I agree with your example and I would know others myself, but Prague is just not the same, it's a historical city, and in the city centre there is just not enough space, the cars have to go to have bikes
@@alph5230 There's nothing special about Prague. Most European towns and cities are historical. And when I compare Prague with other cities in Europe, Prague has by far the widest streets. Look around Dejvice for example, the streets are so wide you can fit bike lanes easily everywhere, along with the cars. But hey, there are no bike lanes to be seen. Again, car use needs to be discouraged but as I said before the problem is not the car, it's the lack of infrastructure and lack of will of building the infrastructure for cyclist. It's sad. The Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, they did not 'remove' cars. They just discouraged the use of em. In fact, I'd argue there is more cars in those places compared with 20 or 30 years ago, yet at the same time cycling infrastructure has been added and improved. What they did is BUILD the infrastructure, not remove the cars. The cars are still there. I do think cars should be banned from Wenceslas Square and from that crappy little street which passes in front of Charles bridge. That needs to be chopped.
Have a look here, see what Ghent did...
stad.gent/en/mobility-ghent/circulation-plan/principles-circulation-plan
Please don't forget about those thieves in Prague. 😠 I had the bikes parked in Hradec Králové for almost a year, just locked on the street near the main station and no one touched them. In Prague, the first day on the street and they were gone.
Dang not even a complete river path across the entire city. I don't think you can bike on sidewalks either unlike in some US cities
Thanks for the video, I was about to come to Prague with hopes to get my way done with cycling. But do you think we, the cyclists, can actually change the stereotypes?
I think so. Even though cycling in Prague kinda sucks, there has been some incremental progress. If we push lawmakers to actually do something, I believe Prague can become a good cycling city.
(if you want to do some recreational cycling in Prague, I recommend going to the south of the city, there are some nice recreational trails along the river!)
@@TheTramly How do you plan to push legislatives with exactly 0,4 % of population using bike. I use bike often, traveling from Černý Most to Staroměstská too school and i have no problem with car traffic. I understand that not all to routes are that fine, but still we live in democracy and there is obviously no demand for biking in Prague (except of twitter bikers.)
@@matyasmed3721 Existing usage is based on existing conditions. It's not the same as potential demand. Do you think every biking city started out that way from day one? Did every car-based city start out that way?
@@MichaelSalo The usage and demand is based on altitude profile of PRG. Basically in a hilly city like PRG, bicycle would never be 'regular' mode of transport to work or shopping like, say in Amsterdam...... like 90% of people would be sweating like pig and needing shower if you go to office from home in the morning (if not working super-close to home or lucky with some rare home-work altitude profile).
And not that many people would want to do this regularly even if super-dense cycle path system would be in place;)
I agree that the biking infrastructure in Prague sucks and the city government obviously doesn't do enough to improve it.
I just want to point out that it's also not all so bleak - I believe the number of people biking daily almost doubles in the past years, Czech Republic also has a plan on how to interconnect the whole country with bike paths and as for the numbers like in Vienna: The chart you shared says 25% use cars, 38% use public transport. In Prague, at least according to Wikipedia, it's also 25% for cars but 52% for public transport (22% for walking). That includes people coming to Prague like you said at the end of the video. I'd say one of the problems is also that Prague is a way more condensed city than Vienna where there simply isn't that much space for cars and makes it look like they're everywhere, where the arguably much wider streets of Vienna have advantage. Of course that doesn't excuse that the newer parts still have terrible biking infrastructure.
E-bike definitely helps with all these hills and the general speed of traffic, however I've realized I've been in fact using the e-bike as an underpowered moped. That makes me wonder why are there all these tin cans with a single person in them occupying 2x more width and 4x more area than necessary, and not nearly as many motorbikes, certain kinds of which are legal to ride with a car license.
The map of separated bike paths in Prague is still better than Chicago 🥺
I agree that Prague still needs to work on making the infrastructure better so everyone can feel safe to cycle in the center and also not have tourists riding e scooters on the sidewalks. However compared to how it was in the 90s and early 2000s it is actually pretty good. I cycle and ride a scooter in Prague all the time and there are only a few parts in the center that are narrow and I am uncomfortable to ride there but otherwise it is not that bad
Jako pražák bez auta jsem zvažoval, že si pořídím kolo, a pak mi došlo, že bych s ním po Praze jezdil jen na nádraží, protože bych ho reálně používal teprve, až bych vystoupil z vlaku.
Pak jsem si říkal, že bych si pořídil skútr. Jenže znovu, po Praze by s ním jel tak max. 2x týdně někam na nákup (což zvládnu i MHD) a jet někam 100 km po dálnici na skútru (i kdyby byl dost výkonný pro dálnici) fakt nechceš.
Takže zůstanu u osvědčené kombinace chůze/MHD a na nějaký experimenty s kolem můžu hodit bobek.
Mám to prakticky stejně.
Chtěl bych jezdit po Praze víc na kole, ale bohužel to asi nepůjde
O skútru jsem taky přemýšlel ale přesně, maximálně bych s ním jezdil v Praze na nakup
asi tak, nic s sebout netaháš, nic neřešíš, prostě jdeš kam chceš
There's more cars every time I come back. I also consider bringing my folding bike then remember how bad the cycle infrastructure is.
Yeah.. it's quite sad, hopefully it'll improve in the future
@@TheTramly I'm still debating whether to bring the bike in August for a family wedding. I know it's a bad idea!
Thanks for this, I have the choice of working in Prague and am an avid cyclist (not commuter). But reading below seams road are not that safe. I see nice 100k circuits out of town and to the nearby hills (like Lanska Obora) but not sure how safe that would be if there is no cycling culture there.
As an occasional recreational cyclist, I can say that recreational cycling on trails like Lánská Obora is very popular and safe.
Cycling here is seen as a recreational activity, not something practical that you would do day to day
so if you want to go out on a ride to the countryside, do it!
it's just that cycling in most big cities is iffy, but outside of cities, there are a lot of great trails and paths
I have come Prague from Turkiye for work and as a cyclist (not a triathlon candidate but just a regular commuter) I'd like to point out some of my observations
1 It is not that bad really. I went to the high speed traffic areas and followed the bike routes even in the rush hours and no one tried to push me out
2 I tried to go almost everywhere in the city over the bike and mostly I found as a problem is
* Old town roads really needs to renew. I don't care how historic a stone one a road but they are not comfortable. Not even for walking or cars. (Plus I don't think cars should be around there withthe exception of the buisness requirements or emergency situations.)
* Bike routes needs to be secured. I know when there is no bike route the road becomes a shared route and to be fair most of the drivers feel responsible and none of them dares to drive close to you. Nevertheless you feel like you are on a danger zone.
You are doing great people. Do not ruin it keep it up. I remember how many times I become face to face with dead because of the minibus drivers in Turkiye. This is never happened to me here. Not even once. This city is on the right path. It is not a biking heaven but to me it is way more better than the cycling experience back in my hometown.
I agree with it feeling like the danger zone, like when I was biking from Anděl to Smíchovské Nádraží once and I felt like I was going to die almost constantly haha
And you're right, we're still better off a lot of cities, but we still need to improve further
@@TheTramly In Istanbul there are only two major bike routes. Both of them are only covers the cosatal areas. Minibuses on the other hand operates inner routes and they don't care no one. Not even the police. Even drivers they just go out call for backup (literally) beat the shit out the driver and continue because they are simply mafia.
I was getting one of them one day as a pedestrian and other one behind it got angry. The distance between me and my minibus is long enough to fit another minibus there so the angryone push the full gas to kill me out.
I don't think police here ever allowes such an action ever happen.
Everybody knows, that we can't have bike lanes, because every single car transports a piano and two bags of cement every single day, while you drive your grandma to the maternity hospital, on your way to/from work. As simple as that.
Absolutely, I mean, who among us don't carry a Steinway & Sons piano with us every day?
You forgot to mention the main factor: PRG has very different altitude profile than cities like Amsterdam or Berlin and ALSO Vienna! ...... Prague is all hills. And hills are not gentle like in Vienna, plus hills are everywhere 'on the way'....up-down-up-down......
That is why it could never be practical(fo more than few % of population) to use bicycle as regular mode of transport to get to work, to do shopping etc. Typical person would need a shower after each bike ride to work.
So extensive system of cycle lanes would not be practical for anybody else than for recreattion/sporting ..... but NOT as 'regular' mode of transport
So even when they put cycle lanes everywhere, they woul not be used for 'regular transport' as in Amsterdam or Berlin or.... cities with completely different altitude profile than PRG. Hence no massive public demand for cycle lanes. (also the factor is that we have great public transport system)
So this is the point you have missed.
Being dissapointed by lack of cycle lanes compared to Amsterdam is like being disappointed by lack of beach bars compared to Rio De Janeiro.... there is very few beach bars in PRG compared to Rio, but then, its sort of result of geography. If municipal authorities wanted, they could build beach bars to match Rio.... but.... I guess the same demand would not be there because there is a difference between river and sea
lol, according to the graph at 0:16, more people travel by aeroplane than by bike in prague
They probably counted private flights between the smaller airports of Prague as "trips" (which technically, they are)
@@TheTramly I am still waiting for that future with airships everywhere 😀
Thanks, and the ride out through the city to get out there is ok?
Mostly, yes. You can take the cycle tracks A1 or A2 (A1 is for the left bank of the Vltava River, A2 is for the right), those are mostly segregated from the road, and those lead outside the city
Additional tip: if you want to travel a bit further, you can take your bike on trains, however, make sure to buy a ticket for your bike, it costs 40CZK (like 1.8USD)
nc video, hopefully in the future our cities will have better cycling improvements...
from Türkiye
It doesnt help either that the "pražský okruh" isnt build yet.
I would be curious to hear of examples of strong bike culture in the Eastern Europe countries. Or if it's mainly a Western Europe thing at this time.
Supposedly Warsaw has decent cycling infrastructure.
Pardubice or even Břeclav are some bright examples in Czechia
2:05 🤣
what can I say? prague planners are probably smoking crack, to be honest
Greta video
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed the video
The new ODS city government is making and going to make the problem worse.
Or do they strike you as less car-friendly than the Pirates?
It's a shame that the Pirates are kind of the best there is in Czechia regarding environment policies, but they still don't do enough for bicycles.. :(
ODS are just commies painted to blue
3:14 this map is missing around 40 % of Prague’s population.
That is probably the case..
I couldn't find better easily readable topographic maps, but I think that the point still stands that prague is relatively hilly, with the exception of the riverside areas
A painted line on a 4 lane road? Why? I cycle on a similar road occasionally and I have found almost all drivers give me the full lane when overtaking and I've yet to have anyone threateningly close, if they painted a line I'd get boxed in. It should be called a close-pass line because it psycologically encourages them! It would be great if that road remained a 2 lane like it does for all but that very short stretch where a whole motor vehicle lane on one side is just blocked with parked cars and the additional lane on the other side just seems redundant- add in the median and I salivate at all the space for cycling and transit infrastructure!
the painted line on a 4-lane road is probably some planner trying to meet the bare minimum standard for "cycling accessibility" or whatever lol
4:35 tá značka napravo ? WTF ?
u nás na vesnici zase cyklostezka končí doslova v křižovatce kde je taková kolona aut že má člověk problém se přes ní dostat, někdy tam prostě někomu musim skočit, jinak bych se na druhou stranu nikdy nedostal 😀
I don't really like cars, but I think to use bikes in Prague is really not ideal, firstly - so many really long hills that you just need e-bike and try to let it at street, you will find just your lock there with no bike later. 😀 And second - year pass for public transit is that cheap that literally all praguers have it, so why cycling somewhere when you can just hop on bus or tram? Ofcourse in some specific parts of Prague, cycling is possible and good way how to move, but generally in Prague? I don't think so. I will get faster from Prague to Dresden then you get from one corner of Prague to other corner of Prague on a bike. 😀 Prague is really a big city, it's totaly crazy idea that you would commute from let's say Zbraslav to center. And ofcourse, in crowdy historical center, it's mostly better just to walk and then jump to tram or metro again whan ride on a bike and risking that you will end under car or someone will beat you just because of hate against cyclists.
I still don't understand why taxis are allowed to drive where cars are normaly banned, it doesn't make any sense to me.
3:42 - I've been to Vienna and I would not call it literally safe when you are a pedestrian and you accidentaly step to some "bike highway" like it happened to me many times, some people go like 30+ km/h there on their bikes. :-D
I walked and traveled in Vienna a lot and I would call it traffic hell to, center is highway the same as Prague center, few wide bike lines make some difference, but generally, Vienna is still car hell with smoke and noise everywhere.
BTW, most of Praguers I know don't have a car and many of them don't even have driver license, most of those cars are people commuting to Prague.
As someone who has lived in Prague for my whole life I agree that cycling mostly is not worth it because the terrain is mostly only suitable around the river which is why biking infrastracture is great there. I find it weird that you dont know many people from Prague who drive though. Im 19 and me and all of my friends all have a license and drive quite often so its interesting to hear what you said. That said, we still all have a lítačka as the public transport is just worth it so much even if you have a car.
hear me out, 4:23 is actually bad practice. it confirms that bikes should go here and nowhere else, because the rest of the street is purely for cars and trams. the good practice is closing the waterfront for transiting cars. that way, you dont need no shitty 300m bikepath. cars could still park there, and bikes would ride on the leftover asphalt.
both the west and east waterfront were meant to be closed for transiting cars 10 years ago, after the opening of Blanka tunnel system. >70% of residents currently agree with this, yet politicians are just daft and refuse to limit cars, because that would be communism and gulags would pop up immediately or something.
so, to sum it up, consensus is waterfront should be closed for cars, that didnt happen, mistake number 1. since that didnt happen, this bikelane was built, only 300m and pretty much useless, cost a lot of money, mistake number 2. since now there is this bike lane, the politicians can argue that they dont need to block transiting cars to ride bike there, since you can just use the bikelane.
its a damn mess
Yeah, I agree, it's just a bandaid solution.
Our politicians are just painfully pro-car, so they adopt these solutions (which are better than nothing, sure, but still, they suck)
This video is NOT about cycling but about chronic hatred for cars.
I resent cars
Fuck cars! The war on cars INTENSIFIES 😈
And that’s a good thing, as it’s the only thing that can save Prague
bike lanes are pretty everywhere in prague, but cyclists rather using motorways to piss off drivers , Doesnt know traffic rules, without insurance, no registration...