Skip to Content
Streetsblog Los Angeles home
Streetsblog Los Angeles home
Log In
Streetsblog CA

Charmingly Didactic: An Illustrated Guide to Why Biking Can Be Scary (But Doesn’t Have to Be)

Vreni perfectly captures how it feels to ride in the new protected bike lane at Lake Merritt in Oakland. All illustrations by Vreni

Illustrator Vreni just posted a short illustrated treatise at The Nib on the importance of designing streets to make biking feel safer so more people will bike. The image at the top of this post captures another reason why this is key: pure joy.

Vreni's post begins with her dilemma as a new resident in Oakland who wants to ride a bike but is frightened by statistics, bad driving, and helmet-shaming drivers. She throws in a little bit of education about infrastructure, and even finds a way to illustrate some safety statistics. And her post celebrates some of the changes that are coming to cities--like Oakland's newest protected bike lanes, above, and road diets and bike boulevards.

false

The Nib posts nonfiction comics on political and current events, and if you head over there to check out the rest of Vreni's work, I can't be held responsible for the time you spend looking at all the other posts.

By Vreni via The Nib
false
By Vreni via The Nib
false
By Vreni via The Nib
false
false

Hat tip to Robert Prinz, and thanks to The Nib.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog Los Angeles

Why Cities Need More “Agile” Streets

When projects are routed through a full capital-improvement workflow, solutions tend toward expensive, permanent interventions - not alternatives that might achieve 80 percent of the benefit at 10 percent of the cost

March 25, 2026

Wednesday’s Headlines

ICE, speed cameras, Ohio Avenue, North Metro K Line extension, SB79, streetlight repair, DIY, Olympics, car-nage, L.A. River path gate, and more

March 25, 2026

Monrovia Seeks Input on Draft Bike Master Plan

The deadline for public comment is this Friday, March 27 2026

March 24, 2026

This Week In Livable Streets

Metro board K Line showdown, L.A. mayoral debate, westside bus lanes, L.A. City Council Transportation Committee, SB 79, and more

March 23, 2026
See all posts