Thomas van Laake
@tvlaake.bsky.social
300 followers 240 following 14 posts
Cities, infrastructure, cycling CDMX/Manchester/Toronto Doctoral researcher at the University of Manchester
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tvlaake.bsky.social
Capping off 4 years of work in 2 hours is always a challenge, but I thoroughly enjoyed discussing my thesis with Paola Jirón and @natemillington.bsky.social today.

Many thanks to all those who made this research project possible - supervisors, interlocutors, and interviewees!
ctemenos.bsky.social
Proud supervisor alert! Congratulations Dr. @tvlaake.bsky.social who defended his thesis: Between processes and instances: comparing the intra-urban differentiation of cycling policy & infrastructure provision in Greater Manchester, Mexico City, and Toronto.
Reposted by Thomas van Laake
jm-mcgrath.bsky.social
NEW: Looks like CycleToronto won in court. Justice Schabas finds Ontario's law (AND version 2) to remove bike lanes infringe S7 of the Charter and is not saved by S1, in large part because the govt had no evidence to back up its claims.
Reposted by Thomas van Laake
davidzipper.bsky.social
From @alexsammon.bsky.social an acerbic takedown of the Hummer EV, Detroit's stupidest electric vehicle.

Me, on the Hummer EV's superfluous acceleration:
“Why an SUV needs to get zero to 60 under three seconds is a question with no answer."
It’s the Car That Explains Everything About America Right Now. Elon Musk Only Wishes He Made It.
In Florida, on the country’s most dangerous roads, I had a 9,500-pound revelation.
slate.com
Reposted by Thomas van Laake
Reposted by Thomas van Laake
gabrielzucman.bsky.social
A long long time ago, in a far away galaxy... the US used to tax the rich
Reposted by Thomas van Laake
ianwalker.bsky.social
Leeds and Lancaster have several funded PhD places going in mobility, car ownership, etc. Great opportunities in-fuze.org.uk/research-at-...
tvlaake.bsky.social
A brief and intriguing history of the Netherlands' first urban cycling path, designed 50 years ago!
karenromme.bsky.social
With all the attention for our Dutch cycling infrastructure because of climate change I decided to finally share the story (sorry its a longread) about why the first red cycling path was built in Tilburg and how it became red.

#sustainability #climatechange
The story of the first Dutch red cycling path
The story of the first Dutch red bike lane Last december Vienna's very first red cycling street was opened. With the help of a Dutch cycling consultant (yes we have those). An article about the Vie...
www.karenromme.nl
Reposted by Thomas van Laake
modacitylife.com
50 years ago, Tilburg initiated the Netherlands' first high-quality demonstration cycle route.

The 10 kilometre project proved to be a pivotal moment in Dutch street design, introducing many engineering elements used today—including the now-ubiquitous red asphalt.

www.karenromme.nl/the-story-of...
Three people in casual spring attire ride bicycles along a red asphalt cycling street lined with residential buildings in Tilburg, The Netherlands.
tvlaake.bsky.social
Many thanks to the organisers of the Ciclovía 50 event at the Universidad de los Andes for providing the space to think through the history of this event.
tvlaake.bsky.social
Out now in @rtpiplanners.bsky.social North West review: an article with my reflections on cycling policy in Greater Manchester.

I position the city region as a 'model' of pro-cycling reforms across heterogeneous urban agglomerations.

Find the article here: www.rtpi.org.uk/find-your-rt...
www.rtpi.org.uk
tvlaake.bsky.social
Cycling infrastructures and their (informal) uses in the southwestern peripheries of Bogotá
Road crossing busy with cyclists and pedestrians with public works in the background Cyclists on a wide bike path between apartment blocks Motorcycles closely passing mother and son on cycling bridge Dozens of bikes parked along a field
Reposted by Thomas van Laake
martyn.bsky.social
Beautiful sight. Toronto residents protesting Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s recently-passed Bill 212 that aims to spend millions of taxpayer dollars to rip out bike lanes across the city and the province. Time to fight back. #ONpoli #TOpoli #BikeTO
Reposted by Thomas van Laake
ctemenos.bsky.social
Manchester is ~10 years behind Vancouver. I lived it there and it feels like dejavú here. MCR hasn’t gotten over it’s 2nd city syndrome and has embraced the ‘any development is good development ethos.’ There’s still a chance to actually do things differently 1/2
davehaslam.bsky.social
Copies of this poster appearing in Manchester this weekend.

Worth a read.

Applicable also to other British cities I am sure.

Too many vested interests have talked up the emerging urban model.
tvlaake.bsky.social
2. Efforts to promote cycling must recognize and respond to people's lived experience

and, 3. Delivering effective infrastructure requires planning capacity at the council level, not only the city-region
tvlaake.bsky.social
Building on the insightful perspectives and incisive arguments of speakers at the even, we make three points:

1. Addressing inequalities requires planners and advocates to work across different contexts and offer appropriate solutions

For an example, see:
www.walkridegm.org.uk/2024/07/01/m...
Micromobility and the city region
Evaluating ways to promote active travel for ‘last mile’ journeys across Greater Manchester Guest blog by Thomas van Laake, Postgraduate Researcher at the University of Manchester Introduction The …
www.walkridegm.org.uk
tvlaake.bsky.social
On cycling, Greater Manchester hasn't been held back by a lack of ambition.

In a second blog about last month's conference on cycling policy organised by @walkridegm.org.uk, Dr. Graeme Sherriff and I reflect on challenges of turning plans into reality:

blogs.manchester.ac.uk/mui/2024/11/...
Cycling policy and practice in Greater Manchester: Between ambitious plans and the realities of delivery
blogs.manchester.ac.uk
tvlaake.bsky.social
Bus stop in Valveralla, Catalonia