The number of bicycles in japan has been increasing steadily, and there are now more than 66 million bicycles in use, or one bicyclefor every 1.8 Persons. However, facilities to accommodate bicycle transport, such as bicycle roads and bicycle parking spaces, are either nonexistent or limited, and so are laws and regulations to deal with bicycle transport. The lack of bicycle facilities and poor bicycle transport policies generate various problems associated with bicycles such as illegal parking in the vicinity of railway stations andtraffic accidents involving bicycles. The historical background andcurrent issues of bicycle transport in japan are reviewed with regard to traffic laws and regulations, bicycle road conditions, parkingfacilities, education, and the public attitude toward bicycles. Case studies involve reduction of illegally parked bicycles and field observations of cyclist performance that resulted in intersection design changes. This paper appears in transportation research record no. 1294, Nonmotorized transportation 1991 .
Abstract