Nostromo provided a pretty good list of reasons why people choose to drive. People think it is more comfortable, convenient, safe, and practical than the alternatives (and it's a status thing for many).

You provided some reasons why you cycle. You included showers and safe bike parking in your list. Those are deciding factors for some people. I didn't mean to suggest they were the main factors.

Most people seem to agree the main reasons why people don't cycle (even when they have a bike and fitness to burn) is the volume and speed of peak hour traffic - it's unpleasant and possibly dangerous. That's the big thing that has changed over the last 20 years.

What to do? In the UK there is a 5-step Hierarchy of Treatments used by city planners trying to design for cycling.
1 - Reduce Traffic Volumes
2 - Reduce Traffic Speed
3 - Traffic Management
4 - Reallocation of space (e.g: bike lanes)
5 - Specific Cycle facilities
Mayor Ken Livingston has shown how effective the first 3 measures can be. You might argue he forced his measures on the public and that is a bad thing. But it's no different to forcing people to give up smoking. Nearly everybody is better off for it, and in the long run people thank you for it.
The libertarian approach of giving people what they want

The Dutch are even more successful - their CROW guidelines list the following requirements for cycling routes:
1 - Coherence
2 - Directness
3 - Attractiveness
4 - Safety
5 - Comfort

The libertarian approach of giving people what they want should be a part of the solution, but in that regard, the easy gains are to be made by getting recreational cyclists out of their cars (ie: by providing for all cycling needs, even showers).
As far as the majority of drivers go, a mix of carrot and stick is required - better public transport and pedestrian facilities AND less parking, lower speed limits and taxes that cover all the costs of driving (roading, health, and environment).

Kev Livingstone is a mong, one of the recent top gear episodes the Peel P50 jeremy was driving (50cc moped powered micro car) had to pay the congestion charge, nb: you can pick it up with one hand and wheel it like a suitcase into your office... but the camera vehicle (giant lexus suv) didn't have to cause it was a hybrid

Halo24 wrote: Kev Livingstone is a mong,

No disagreement here. I can't believe he got voted back in.

I'd have voted for Boris Johnson. That could have led to some interesting times!

Jeremy Clarkson is a mong. Fuck him and the P50 he rode in on.

And I think we'd all agree that NO politician is going to be all things to all people, but at least Ken Livingston is trying to effect change, even if the execution is slightly lacking.

Dead right Oli.

so Halo24 thinks a system that generates a radical change to the transport habits of a city of 15 million people should cover every eventuality a car-obsessed, nit picking arse like Clarkson could throw at it?

Now back in the real world...