Testing Bikelash : A phenomenological approach to community opposition of bicycle infrastructure development

Sammanfattning: The concept of Bikelash is a term that describes community opposition towards new cycle infrastructure. This aim of this study is investigating the otherwise undertheorized concept of bikelash as an implicit critique to techno-centric traffic planning. By using a phenomenological approach in identifying different lifeworld perspectives and perception of an incident of bikelash in Sweden. The study examines aspects of bicycle planning and underscore the importance in integrating a social and political understanding of bicycle planning by using the term bikelash. The study concludes that integrating a reconceptualized collaborative approach to public participation can help to avert bikelash in planning and policy making. This is achieved by using a method consisting of on-street interviews to test the local communities for potential opposition for new bicycle lanes and integration of residents into the planning process.