Many motorists assume roads were built for them; that asphalt is a relatively recent creation designed to speed them along; and that non-motorised road users have lesser rights. None of this is true. Motorists are the johny-come-latelies of highway history. […]
Continue ReadingIn 1903, Main Street in Colywn Bay in Wales was a street that could happily accommodate both people and traffic. The folk of the day are seen here treating the street as part of the town, not merely a thoroughfare […]
Continue ReadingThe League of American Wheelmen was a highly influential organisation in the 1890s. It was non-partisan, bestowing its favours on whichever politicians would promise to support its Good Roads campaign, started in the 1880s. In the 1896 Presidential election campaign, […]
Continue ReadingThanks to Todd over at M-Bike.org for the heads-up on this footage, shot in 1899, at a factory in downtown Detroit. This was before Detroit became Motor City. In fact, Detroit was at the epicentre of the bicyclist-led Good Roads […]
Continue ReadingThat’s a famous Mark Twain quote. It’s actually the last line from a short piece called ‘Taming the bicycle’. Twain wasn’t referring to a Safety bicycle, he was talking about an Ordinary, a high-wheeler. The quote is often, er, quoted […]
Continue ReadingI’m writing a book about roads history. I’m focussing on the period 1880-1905, which saw the Bicycling Boom and then – pop – the start of Motoring Mania. You can learn more about this e-book in the eight-page pitch below. […]
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