Lyon is the third-biggest city in France, having 520 000 inhabitants in a metropolitan area of 2,3 million people. As in many French cities (think of my reviews of Paris and Bordeaux), recently a massive effort has been implemented to make the city more livable for its inhabitants, reducing dangerous air pollution, reducing harmful noise, and creating room for active mobility and attractive public spaces. Let us look at some great steps that Lyon has made recently.
The left picture shows a common intersection design: curbs force cars to slow down and take the curves carefully, while cyclists are constricted to predictable, clearly defined and visible trajectories. A huge difference to the Italian intersections, where car drivers can cut corners at high speed and pedestrians and cyclists do not follow predictable trajectories. The middle picture further exemplifies good intersection design: bollards block cars from parking near the pedestrian crossing, which improves visibility, so that pedestrians do not step out into traffic unexpectedly from behind parked cars. Finally, the picture on the right contains at least three important elements. First, note that the one-way street is open to cyclists in the opposite direction – indicated by a sign AND by markings on the asphalt. Second, note that bicycle parking is strategically places just before the pedestrian crossing, serving a double purpose in improving visibility, the way it is achieved in the middle picture through bollards. And third and very importantly: the sidewalk bulbs out into a waiting area at the crossing. So pedestrians can wait at the front close to the street where they are well visible to approaching drivers. Much better than waiting two meters back in a poorly visible location. And again, this has a double purpose: since the sidewalk extends at the crossing, it avoids cars parking in a gap on the crossing.
On the next three pictures, we have three views of the same recently rebuilt street. This is a high traffic road which shows many important elements. First, there is a decidated bus-only lane. Well, not bus-only, it also admits cyclists, even though there is a bi-directional bike lane on the other side. So cyclists have the choice, depending on their needs and destinations. The bus stop is clearly marked by the chess-board pattern. And moreover, there is absolutely no parking. As it should be: a high traffic road should be dedicated to moving traffic, not resting traffic. In the middle picture, we have a closer view of the bike lane: it is bi-directional and has a solid protection. Makes you feel safe, even if cars pass on the other side at high speed, doesn’t it? Moreover, trees were planted, which will eventually shade the bike lane. And then in the third picture, a very interesting element: dedicated delivery parking – but for cargo bikes only!
In these four pictures we see some more residential streets. What can we take away here? First, the top left picture. This is very impressive: an entire big intersection was converted into a park. Cars can still pass, but not straight through (so no short cuts through residential quarters), only turning right. Residents can reach their destination, but through-traffic is stopped. No more traffic noise from fast cars cutting through the neighborhood! In the top-middle picture we can see the conversion process creating space for trees and for orderly parking of shared e-scooters. The result of the street improvement is seen on the top right: the one-way street is open to cyclists against the main direction. Many parking opportunities for bicycles and shared e-scooters were created, strategically before the pedestrian crossing to enhance visibility. Similarly the big picture: the street has been opened to all residents, not only those in cars, green areas slow down the traffic, and the yellow line indicates a parking limitation (which apparently is also enforced – wink at Italy).
Here we have two pictures of road works. Of course, the conditions are not perfect for cyclists here, but at least they were not completely forgotten. Instead space was temporarily reserved for people moving on bikes, on the left with a painted line, on the right even with yellow plastic barriers. A very important and welcome contribution that made me feel safer on the city bike.
Here we have three more things to learn about infrastructure for active mobility. From the left picture: bike lanes have to be protected. Just give them some barrier to avoid illegal invasion of cars! The middle picture shows a great example for designing safe pedestrians crossings: the street is narrowed down, so that cars can only pass in one direction at a time. Compare to scary pedestrian crossings in Italy over 4 lanes of bi-directional traffic! And: cyclists were not forgotten, they can pass on the sides, without being forced onto the car trajectory. Very simple – very safe. Finally the third picture: they did not just build a bike lane through the tunnel. They converted the entire tunnel into a pedstrian-bicycle tunnel. Clean and well-lit to feel safe. With a bike lane wide enough that it can be used by emergency vehicles (ambulances, fire trucks) to reduce response times. Very smart design!
Let’s conclude with two bike-free pictures. The left shows how Lyon achieves fast and reliable trams: by reserving tracks exclusively to trams – no buses, no bikes, no taxis, no cars – there is a definite barrier to keep everyone out who is not in a tram. Very smart again. Finally, on the right: e-scooters can be a problem when parked on sidewalks or bike lanes. Lyon solved the problem by obligatory parking in designated spaces. Here, just one car spot was removed, creating space for 20 e-scooters, thus keeping the side walk free of obstructions. And again, the scooter parking serves a double purpose, blocking cars from parking before the pedestrian crossing where they would obstruct visibility.
To sum it up: Lyon is a great example how in a short time, cities can become much safer, livable, beautiful, and accessible if a clear focus is set on pedestrians, cyclists, and trams, in a reasonable mix with cars, instead of permitting public space to be completely dominated by dangerous car traffic.
By the way: in the 1960s, the mayor of Lyon wanted to have a highway built right through through the middle of the historic center. Luckily, luckily, this was stopped thanks to the movement La Renaissance du Vieux-Lyon. Thanks to this success, Vieux Lyon is UNESCO world heritage today.