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Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

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Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#191

Post by revelation »

rollingpebbles wrote: post #129

I did a casual bike tour through hundreds of miles of Netherlands and Belgium. We wore helmets, obviously. Not wearing a helmet is inconsisent with having many standards for reflectors and traffic planning. Although someone maybe slightly more careful, falling on a bicycle means a risk for head injuries. Why not take reasonable precautions, including instructing people that helmets do not add safety to anything besid…

Well you can just as much slip on that oil patch and crack your head open as a pedestrian.. Of course those scenarios are very far removed from what actually causes injuries and death.

The Netherlands has a much much lower incidence of head injuries not because they wear styrofoam hats but they realized it's better to stop the trucks and cars from driving into people than in vain trying to soften the impact. Creating secure bike routes just has a tremendously higher return on investment compared to convincing people to wear helmets that bringing them up just labels you a shill in many peoples eyes, a concern troll distraction.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#192

Post by FooBarWidget »

chrisper wrote: post #24
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?

I put on a rain cape for bicyclists: https://www.geekalerts.com/u/Red-Cycling-Bicycle-Bike-Rainco...

Unfortunately these things are not common in the netherlands. It seems people just choose to get wet.

China sells many high-quality rain capes. You can probably find webshops that sell them.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#193

Post by icebraining »

davidw wrote: post #40
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…

It does mention that: > The famously flat Dutch terrain, combined with densely-populated areas, mean that most journeys are of short duration and not too difficult to complete. The problem in the US is, in no small part, due to zoning. I've been making my way through this: http://amzn.to/2tkSbsH - "Zoned in the USA" And the detailed look at how other countries do things is interesting - they're certainly no "libertop…

I like this lecture by Andres Duany: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL01072BB79369B705

The most relevant part: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1X5uVR5NxY&list=PL01072BB79...

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#194

Post by mnm1 »

mercer wrote: post #106
ocschwar wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Japanese have the perfect answer. They don't zone by use. They zone by nuisance level. You can build whatever you want in the cement-plant-district. But you have to deal with having that kind of nuisance nearby. You can also build whatever you want in the no-nuisance district. But you can't impose any kind of nuisnace.

How do they deal with the tension of having bars/clubs in residential areas? Or do these areas just not exist in Japan?

Probably the same way SF deals with it: by not dealing with it because it's not an issue. I lived in an apartment building on the same block as at least one club and multiple bars, all open till at least 2am and it was never a problem. Some of the sound will leak into the street, especially with bigger clubs, but it's not loud enough to be a problem inside apartments because air is a terrible conductor of sound. Also, a city is already noisy and that's to be expected 24/7.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#195

Post by Freak_NL »

giobox wrote: post #94
lucb1e wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> essential accessories - clothing, panniers, lights, helmets, locks, new tires and tubes, CO2 cartridges, chains, cassettes, lubricant, wheels (eventually), brake pads/disks. Mine came with a lock and lights. Tires last 10 years and aren't that expensive. Pumping tires has to happen a few times a year, come on. Never replaced a chain before the rest of the bike was due for replacement anyway. Never heard of anyone r…

You've edited my post rather substantially to suit your own end in your "quote" - at no point does my original post describe that entire list as essential - I merely gave examples of the kind of things that _can_ need maintenance. > Tires last 10 years and aren't that expensive > New brake pads aren't expensive and they last years Ride 20 miles a day and lifespans like these are nigh on impossible. Especially if you…

I commute daily, and I can count the number of times I've put on my rain pants in any year on one hand. A bit of rain just means my jeans get a bit damp; nothing that won't fix itself long before lunchtime. Other than that, what special clothing is there? I have a raincoat, and a winter coat, but I would own them even if I didn't ride a bicycle.

Most modern Dutch commuters bikes are either single speed, or three/seven-speed without a derailleur; instead the gears are housed inside of the rear wheel's nave. This makes them well protected and very durable. My seven year old bicycle is still on its first three-speed gear set.

Come to think of it, all I've replaced thus far is the chain (which will need replacing again in a year or so) one light bulb, the elastic bungee cords for luggage, and a spring for my saddle.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#196

Post by mercer »

giobox wrote: post #94
lucb1e wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> essential accessories - clothing, panniers, lights, helmets, locks, new tires and tubes, CO2 cartridges, chains, cassettes, lubricant, wheels (eventually), brake pads/disks. Mine came with a lock and lights. Tires last 10 years and aren't that expensive. Pumping tires has to happen a few times a year, come on. Never replaced a chain before the rest of the bike was due for replacement anyway. Never heard of anyone r…

You've edited my post rather substantially to suit your own end in your "quote" - at no point does my original post describe that entire list as essential - I merely gave examples of the kind of things that _can_ need maintenance. > Tires last 10 years and aren't that expensive > New brake pads aren't expensive and they last years Ride 20 miles a day and lifespans like these are nigh on impossible. Especially if you…

I think the issue here is that other posters are describing things that I have no doubt are factually correct in Holland or wherever they're from. Your perspective is biking in a broader sense, and I have no reason to believe you're wrong about that. It's just very different from the specific situation in Holland: we rarely have snow or ice, and while it might seem like a rainy country, it's usually rain showers interspersed with dry periods. We take that into account in our bike rides, just as we do the public transit timetable.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#197

Post by cowsandmilk »

cdnsteve wrote: post #84

Just came back from a week in Netherlands and stayed in Amsterdam. What a cool place to hang out and take in the sights. Cycling there is huge indeed. The big difference I noticed from Canada was the dedicated infrastructure they have in place. Dedicated cycling lanes everywhere, it's a proper form of transportation. As a tourist, this was weird, I nearly got mowed down a few times but because I was in the wrong and…

> I don't really see if implementing what they have because it's already built in.

It is worth remembering that it wasn't built in 40 years ago. Cities can build the infrastructure, they just have to systematically make that choice for years. It is just many cities outside the Netherlands prioritize expanding car infrastructure rather than bike. Many places will push developers to add underground car parking, Netherlands pushes you to have the 10,000 bicycle underground parking garage mentioned in the article.

The main difference in the Netherlands is its consistency of commitment to cycling infrastructure over decades as roads naturally came up for renewal.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#198

Post by kabes »

cr0sh wrote: post #144
LeonM wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Depends on your definition of "really" expensive, but as a Dutch citizen I can tell you that: - On average new cars are about twice as expensive compared to the USA, mostly due to tax. (A Mustang GT starts at 119.500 EUR, about 133k USD). - Insurance is mandatory - For each car you own you pay a monthly road tax (between 30-100 euro per month, depending on the car) - fuel prices are also quite high (~6,5USD per US ga…

A basic Mustang GT is only about 40k USD - so you're talking about 3-4x as expensive...?

A GT would set you back around $60k in the US, which is the v8 5 l which LeonM. The 2.3 ecoboost would cost around $60k usd in the Netherlands.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#199

Post by Freak_NL »

outside1234 wrote: post #5

Amazing infrastructure for cycling (at least in Amsterdam). Its also pan flat, so it is very practical to get anywhere by bike, in the way that San Francisco's hills makes it very impractical.

> Amazing infrastructure for cycling (at least in Amsterdam).

It's actually even better outside of Amsterdam. Not nearly as crowded, not as many tourists trying to ride a bike for the first time ever, no pedal-driven saloon floats blocking the paths, and pedestrians and cyclists actually do stop at red lights.

Re: Why is cycling so popular in the Netherlands?

#200

Post by jacquesm »

collyw wrote: post #183
jacquesm wrote: post #162

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Cold spray and a hammer is faster and much less noisy and does not come with a free pyrotechnics display.

Does that work? And what do you mean by cold spray exactly? Ralgex?

If it wouldn't work I wouldn't write it.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=cold+spray+bike...

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