Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

[KLizotte]

Follow up article on biking in Rotterdam. Lots of pics!

http://bikeportland.org/2013/06/06/in-rotterdam-a-peak-at-dutch-road-design-in-an-american-style-city-87873

[lordofthemark]

Thats the kind of bike culture and attitude I’d like to aspire towards – old bikes, riding in regular clothes with no need to shower. I don’t expect to see that in the USA (outside of a few places – hey, is it possible for OLD people to retire to Portland?) in my lifetime, and of course NL has a terrain advantage over most US cities, but its at least a vision to heard toward.

[KLizotte]

The Netherlands and Denmark are very flat and generally have a temperate climate both of which help a lot. However, I was in Copenhagen for vacation one summer and it was in the upper 90s and as humid as the worse days in DC. I was shocked and very uncomfortable due to the lack of air conditioning. But people biked on….

I thought the article on Rotterdam to be the more interesting of the two because Rotterdam was destroyed in the war then rebuilt like an American city (a.k.a. car centric) and is now trying to become bike friendly. They have come up with some clever infrastructure improvements and wouldn’t you know, if they build it they will come.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]3433[/ATTACH]

I love the signs that say “Bike street, cars are guests”.

[ShawnoftheDread]

Looks like they put a sweet jump in there, but I think it needs to be steeper to clear that distance to the landing ramp.

[MRH5028]

The cycling infrastructure in the Netherlands is truly on another level. From small towns to the larger cities there are dedicated, well maintained bike lanes everywhere. Granted they have the right terrain and temperature for it, but it is also a cultural mindset. Some US cities are slowly starting to adapt and the residents in many areas are starting to come around. We may never fully get to the level of the Netherlands, but we can certainly use them as an example and strive towards what they have.

[DismalScientist]

@ShawnoftheDread 60436 wrote:

Looks like they put a sweet jump in there, but I think it needs to be steeper to clear that distance to the landing ramp.

Note the direction of the grates in the middle. That’ll punish all them American wannabees with there 23 mm tires.

[KLizotte]

@DismalScientist 60448 wrote:

Note the direction of the grates in the middle. That’ll punish all them American wannabees with there 23 mm tires.

I’m pretty sure bikes aren’t supposed to be crossing through this “crossing” at this point. Note the lack of cutouts in the curbs.

[DismalScientist]

Just saying that one hump without the grating or two humps (not jumps) with a crosswise grating would be better in case of cyclist error.

[Terpfan]

I was down in Nicaragua last week and cycling is quite popular there as well. The difference being that it’s a primary mode of transit for many folks due to income levels rather than something they may necessarily choose to do. Also interesting was watching how many of them could carry a baby in one arm (once a baby and a machete in one arm) and ride. They also generally did not have any lights on them and rode on the road, although moving over when cars came. Interestingly enough, I got the impression that there was sort of a mutual understanding between drivers and riders to avoid each other and that it worked. Oh, and I saw the best market imagineable that sold all sorts of bike equipment in different stalls. If I only I had a few minutes at it, I may have loaded up on some stuff.

I’m beginning to think it’s just the US where drivers treat cyclists like crap.

[Drewdane]

Buncha hippy-dippy stoners is why, Dadgummit!

[Author]

Posts