Bike Commuting in the Netherlands

[majl]

Now here's a community that seems to know something about commuting by bicycle: http://www.wimp.com/rushhour/

Apologies if this has already been posted, but I just received it today from a friend.

[zott28]

Now here's a community that seems to know something about commuting by bicycle: http://www.wimp.com/rushhour/

Apologies if this has already been posted, but I just received it today from a friend.

Mike, were you inspired by the media coverage of "Bike to Work Day" here in the bay area?

My normal route that I pass about 3 cyclist on was littered with "bike commuters", tents set up on the route called energy stations, and free bike repair.

I don't mind cause I know that 99% of the people will be back in their cars tomorrow and I'll have my peaceful trail back tomorrow.

[majl]

Mike, were you inspired by the media coverage of "Bike to Work Day" here in the bay area?
Yeah, I think that's why my friend sent me the link today.

[flydhest]

I don't mind cause I know that 99% of the people will be back in their cars tomorrow and I'll have my peaceful trail back tomorrow.

Indeed. It's like . . . I told my mother that I loved her on Sunday. That should last her until next year.

[Onno]

That is fantastic. Gives one hope, in a way.

[endosch2]

I spent two weeks in Maastricht in the southern part of the Netherlands. Rented a bike and did a lot of riding with the locals. There are not a lot of overweight people there..... Very cool video! I wish you could buy Gazelle bikes here - they are the type that everyone rides, they are the biggest dutch bike brand.

gazelle.nl I think is their site.

[Karin Kirk]

That's a neat video, thanks for sharing!
In addition to the amazing quantity of bikes, notice the plentiful forms of mass transit. Europe is certainly a different world in this regard, and I love it.

[Birddog]

31 sec.s into the video there is a guy riding a bike and deadheading a 2nd bike.
Birddog

[Mike748]

31 sec.s into the video there is a guy riding a bike and deadheading a 2nd bike.
Birddog


In Holland that is normal practice. I got pulled over by the cops in NJ once when I was a kid for doing this - thought I was stealing the bike. Had to convince him both bikes were mine!

Note the correct form... hold the second bike at the stem for proper control.

[gemship]

That is awesome video. Thank you for sharing.

Despite riding my bike more I still feel like another product of my environment. :(

God bless America.

[bzbvh5]

This would happen in America if nationallly there were 600 per square mile population and it was pancake flat like the Netherlands.

[gemship]

This would happen in America if nationallly there were 600 per square mile population and it was pancake flat like the Netherlands.


Upon reading your post I googled "how many Americans live in a square mile" and came up with this answer from the Wiki answers site.

The total area of the United States is 3,794,066 square miles.
The total population (offical 2009 estimate) is 306,955,000.

That gives an average of 80.9 people per squaremile

[Steve in SLO]

Nice video. Living close to a town center and jobs, flat geography and social acceptance make it a bike commuters paradise.
Who else noticed nobody is wearing a helmet?

[Karin Kirk]

This would happen in America if nationallly there were 600 per square mile population and it was pancake flat like the Netherlands.

I don't think that's what's stopping us. Think of all the places in the US that fit your description.

[Climb01742]

another thing that makes it work is...notice how people lined up at the light? there's a degree of cooperation, manners and desire to make the thing work evidenced in that film. nice to see. think we have that here?

[gemship]

another thing that makes it work is...notice how people lined up at the light? there's a degree of cooperation, manners and desire to make the thing work evidenced in that film. nice to see. think we have that here?


Good observation. I noticed the same thing and thought of all the controversy with civilian flaggers at road details here in Ma.

[majl]

another thing that makes it work is...notice how people lined up at the light? there's a degree of cooperation, manners and desire to make the thing work evidenced in that film. nice to see. think we have that here?
I think this is what struck me most about the clip - everyone just seems to know what to do. There were bikes and scooters cutting across other riders in what looked to be pretty tight spaces - riders stopping for the trolleys and waiting their turn to go - and yet no apparent cases of "rider rage." Granted it was only a 2-minute clip, but still, I couldn't help but think that if someone were to film a similar clip here stateside over a 2-minute period where you have this much traffic moving amongst each other, you'd have a number of folks giving others the bird for feeling they were wronged in some way.

Steve in SLO - good catch on the helmets (or lack thereof) - I had completely missed that. One thing I did notice though - I don't think there was one single drop-bar road bike. Everything looked like an upright city commuter rig.

[Karin Kirk]

I flew through Amsterdam last week, and the in-flight KLM magazine had an article about how the Dutch manage the fact that their country is mostly underwater. A national-scale cooperative effort is required to maintain the tricky balance of land use, engineering, and policy. The article attributes this as the reason that the Dutch enjoy a culture that is unusually good at working together and allowing compromise for the greater good.

So maybe bike commuting in an organized fashion is easy when you've had lots of practice dealing with cooperative problem-solving. Either that or they are all mellow and happy after their morning pot. :)

I have to say, though, that the Dutch manage to look oh-so-elegant while riding their bikes. The women especially, seem to have no problem riding in fancy clothes and high-heeled shoes, with a cup of coffee in one hand and a cell phone in the other. Admirable!

[oldpotatoe]

I don't think that's what's stopping us. Think of all the places in the US that fit your description.

What is stopping mass commuting by bicycle then?

IMO, a safe place to ride, meaning shoulders or bike lanes. Remove me from the path of cars, less accidents, less conflict but in the vast majority of the US, the car is King, the roads are for cars, not people on 'toys'(the attitude in many communities).

I have tried riding in places like Tampa, Phoenix, Colorado Springs..down right dangerous.

[gemship]

What is stopping mass commuting by bicycle then?

IMO, a safe place to ride, meaning shoulders or bike lanes. Remove me from the path of cars, less accidents, less conflict but in the vast majority of the US, the car is King, the roads are for cars, not people on 'toys'(the attitude in many communities).

I have tried riding in places like Tampa, Phoenix, Colorado Springs..down right dangerous.


Gov't. If they subsidize paths we will ride on. :)

[endosch2]

Couple of other things they have going for them as far as bike go, it is flat as a pancake there for the most part, it is a small country, there is no suburban sprawl, it does not snow there, and there is a great rail system that accomodates bikes.

[endosch2]

I have to say, though, that the Dutch manage to look oh-so-elegant while riding their bikes. The women especially, seem to have no problem riding in fancy clothes and high-heeled shoes, with a cup of coffee in one hand and a cell phone in the other. Admirable![/QUOTE]


The typical dutch woman is 6 feet tall and thin as a rail, they all have the height and build of supermodels. I think that the dutch are collectively some of the tallest people out there.

I just found the below quote on google.

Statistically, the tallesttallesttallest peoplepeoplepeople in the world, as measured by country are the Dutch. The average heightheightheight for all adults for the Netherlands is 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m). This great leap in heightheightheight is a huge change for Holland, where about 100 years ago, 25% of men who attempted to join the army were rejected as being too short, less than 62 inches (1.57 m) tall.

[Mike748]

Its not all roses... there is plenty of animosity between the autos, brommers and fietsers on the smaller roads that don't have a dedicated fietspad. The big difference is everyone, 99.9999% of the population, at one time or another is a bicycle rider. You might use the car for commuting or longer trips, but the bike to go to the store. Or vice versa. So there's a level of understanding of what bicycles are and can do among the general population thats severly lacking in the US.

What is the minority IMHO is bicycling purely for exercise, guys like us in spandex going fast.