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Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

bbc.com

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Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#21

Post by TulliusCicero »

jmcphers wrote: post #8

One thing the article doesn't mention is how long the bicycle trips are. Surely the relative compactness of their cities are a major contributing factor! I live in America and commute on my bicycle almost every day. For me the biggest obstacle isn't the hills (which there are plenty of) or even sharing the road with cars (which is admittedly extremely unpleasant) but the fact that in the quasi-suburban area in which…

This is definitely a major factor, although even in less dense areas, biking can be useful if there's protected bike lanes/paths.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#22

Post by jandrese »

advanderveer wrote: post #19
jmcphers wrote: post #8

One thing the article doesn't mention is how long the bicycle trips are. Surely the relative compactness of their cities are a major contributing factor! I live in America and commute on my bicycle almost every day. For me the biggest obstacle isn't the hills (which there are plenty of) or even sharing the road with cars (which is admittedly extremely unpleasant) but the fact that in the quasi-suburban area in which…

what would be the kind of distance you're talking about? When growing up in the Netherlands it was common for kids from my town to cycle 20 km every day going to school.

That's an hour each way at a fairly decent clip on a bike[1]. In my book that's a long commute.

[1] At roughly the speed I can bike in moderate to cool temps without getting excessively sweaty.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#23

Post by ricardobeat »

jmcphers wrote: post #8

One thing the article doesn't mention is how long the bicycle trips are. Surely the relative compactness of their cities are a major contributing factor! I live in America and commute on my bicycle almost every day. For me the biggest obstacle isn't the hills (which there are plenty of) or even sharing the road with cars (which is admittedly extremely unpleasant) but the fact that in the quasi-suburban area in which…

What do you consider a long trip? In my case I cycle 6.8km each way everyday, which is probably slightly above the average.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#24

Post by chrisper »

Theodores wrote: post #7

From having completed the London to Brighton bike ride at the weekend I have a good idea of what really makes the difference and that is having roads closed to motor vehicles. The London to Brighton route is closed to traffic and some of the rural stretches are as wide as a Dutch bike path. Up until now I have believed sharing the roads is how to go but now I know that cycling infrastructure is needed. It is the expe…

How are you going to get to places in heavy rain or snow?

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#25

Post by dep_b »

mc32 wrote: post #13

Southeast Asia is heavy on bikes, and used to be more so than now, and they didn't have infrastructure or culture --it was need. Japan is heavy into bikes too, and there aren't dedicated lanes, not that I'd object, but it's not necessary to make it popular. The one thing in Japan, where accidents aren't as regular as in southeast Asia, is that both bikes and cars obey traffic signals --I think that helps a lot. Also…

All this special infrastructure wasn't so predominant in the 80's in The Netherlands either, this is something of the last 20-30 years perhaps. First people started to use their bicycles, then the roads and rules improved.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#27

Post by the_gastropod »

jandrese wrote: post #22
advanderveer wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

what would be the kind of distance you're talking about? When growing up in the Netherlands it was common for kids from my town to cycle 20 km every day going to school.

That's an hour each way at a fairly decent clip on a bike[1]. In my book that's a long commute. [1] At roughly the speed I can bike in moderate to cool temps without getting excessively sweaty.

20km is ~6 miles each way. Unless there are significant obstacles (hills, many stoplights, etc), an hour to go 6 miles seems excessive.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#29

Post by ricardobeat »

joeyo wrote: post #6

Grade separated bike lanes.

Most of them have no grade, and the ones that do are very low height. The safety feeling actually comes from sharing spaces, and not from being shielded - a result of road design, parking spaces and general city/street layout.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#30

Post by TulliusCicero »

vondur wrote: post #20

Aren't cars really expensive to purchase in the Netherlands? Also, pushing biking at the expense of cars certainly helps. People in the US would go nuts if the Government starting reducing car lanes to install dedicated bike lanes.

People in the US go nuts when you remove car lanes or car parking for literally anything.
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