The roads were paved for autos, and the sidewalks are for walkers. Bikers should stick to designated paths.
“The roads were paved for autos, and the sidewalks are for walkers. Bikers should stick to designated paths.”
The trouble is, that statement is wrong.
Bicycles have always been considered vehicles, from the time before they had pedals. They were paved for everyone, all vehicles. No law ever passed said “only for cars”.
Tell me, were roads not paved for tractors? Motorcycles? Amish buggies?
>>The roads were paved for autos...<<
No. Roads were being paved before the invention of the automobile, but those roads DID cater to bicycles. The bicycle actually predates the automobile regarding road usage. Roads are as robust as they are now because that is the way they best accomodate the needs of cars. Two or three inches of blacktop just won’t do for most four+ wheeled vehicles.
I’m not aware of a single bike route in my area, except US Bike Route 1, and US Bike Route 76 which happen to intersect not far from home. But guess what? Even though these are designated bike routes, there isn’t a marked lane or extra pavement. Just some signage. Does that mean I can’t ride?
The League of American Wheelmen started a movement for good roads in the 1890s long before cars existed in any numbers. Without them, there would have been few paved roads for the horseless carriages to drive on. So originally the roads were paved for bikes.