Segregated cycling facilities are controversial, in particular concerning safety. Proponents tout segregation of cyclists as necessary to the provision of a safe cycling environment, as recent research has suggested. A 2010 Montreal study found that cycle tracks resulted in fewer injuries when compared to comparable parallel roads with no cycling facilities. In contrast, opponents argue that research implies increases in the rate and severity of car/bicycle collisions due to such segregation.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXw_t172BKY&w=600]

Safety data on segregated cycling facility is still incomplete and difficult to draw definite conclusions, though some evidence is pointing towards the lower risk of cycling-specific infrastructure. A 2006 report by the National Cooperative Highway Research Program in the UK concludes that “bicycle safety data are difficult to analyse, mostly because bicycle trip data (and thus accident probability per trip) are hard to uncover” (see NCHRP Report 552, 2006, “Guidelines for Analysis of Investment in Bicycle Facilities”, National Cooperative Highway Research Program, Transportation research Board of the National Academies, page F-1). One major reason for the inability to draw definite conclusion may be that facilities with different risks are often categorized together so that off-road paths – paved or unpaved, bicycle-only or multi-use – were lumped together, as found by research at the Cycling in Cities program at the University of British Columbia.

Also watch on YouTube by user Mikael. BetterHouston does not take credit for this video.