How did The Netherlands become such a prolific cycling country?

Found this story  in my emails this morning and thought that maybe Adelaide could take a lesson from the Dutch.

http://www.bikebiz.com//news/read/how-did-the-dutch-get-good-bike-p...

Views: 415

▶ Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Edward @bikeadelaide on October 23, 2011 at 8:45

I think he's right about distance. Michael, you refer to "cycle touring" which is a tiny part of cycle use in the Netherlands. In the main, it is people doing on bikes what they would do here in a car - children going to school, people running errands, shopping, visiting other people, etc. In Australia, they are very often short distances. Go to your local IGA on Sunday morning. All of those people arriving by car have come distances that they could easily do on a bike.

England supposedly has similar short distances to the Netherlands but its levels of bicycle use are as low as they are here. It is because it feels equally unsafe there. It has nothing to do with supposed long distances.

Permalink Reply by Stig of The Dump on October 22, 2011 at 22:59

i was talking to someone from there a while ago, she stated that you didn't need to drive to live there - you dont need a car to work and gaining a licence and driving is apparently quite difficult there too.

Permalink Reply by MARK FERGUSON (SPARTACUS) on October 23, 2011 at 0:27

The main reason Adelaide is so car centric is a legacy of the old Playford Government who ripped up tram and rail lines and reduced much of the public system. This was done to attract car manufactures like GMH and Chrysler to Adelaide. That government wanted people to drive cars and created the policies and infrastructure to make it happen.

It is my great hope that this will be reversed. With bikes out selling cars for the last 10 years plus hosting the TDU now is the time to build the cycling infrastructure. Not just token painted bike lanes here and there but real cycle paths and lanes. I want to see some city streets be totally for bikes and closed off to cars completely.

It can be done we just need a government to decide to do it. May be we should follow the Dutch by having protests blocking off streets and demanding it!

 

Permalink Reply by Michael Murray on October 23, 2011 at 14:00

The main reason Adelaide is so car centric is a legacy of the old Playford Government who ripped up tram and rail lines and reduced much of the public system. This was done to attract car manufactures like GMH and Chrysler to Adelaide. That government wanted people to drive cars and created the policies and infrastructure to make it happen.

 

Sorry to go off-topic but do you know what the logic was behind this?  Was the idea that the car industry could live off Adelaide sales ?  Or was it just a question of looking like being car supporters ?  

 

It can be done we just need a government to decide to do it. May be we should follow the Dutch by having protests blocking off streets and demanding it!

 

Something like this on Brittania roundabout ?

 

Permalink Reply by MARK FERGUSON (SPARTACUS) on October 23, 2011 at 0:28

By the way Copenhagen did the same thing as the Dutch.

Permalink Reply by Edward @bikeadelaide on October 23, 2011 at 8:45

Quite right. And that's one of the most spread out cities in Europe.

Permalink Reply by Don (Who's lost?) Nairn on October 23, 2011 at 13:17

 

But how does it compare to Adelaide 80 to 90 Km from one side to the other and 1,500,000 people?

Permalink Reply by MARK FERGUSON (SPARTACUS) on October 23, 2011 at 13:43

Adelaide's population is 1.2 million, as is Copenhagen, Amsterdam's population is 2.1 million.

With the inclusion of the suburbs all these cities are similar in area.

Permalink Reply by Greg Graham on October 23, 2011 at 14:42

If you believe Wikipedia, Adelaide population density is about 650 per sq km and Amsterdam is about 3500 per sq km. NL has a population of about 16m in an area the size of Tasmania.

I lived in rural Holland and the flatness helps but the infrastructure for cycling is great, combined with huge taxes on fuel and motor vehicles and good public transport infrastructure. I could ride 100km and not go on the road other than to cross it - if you want hills you are in trouble but you can substitute by riding into the wind.

Permalink Reply by Clive Palfrey on October 23, 2011 at 14:45

Must be a hill somewhere I've seen them rolling the edam cheese down it.

Permalink Reply by Greg Graham on October 23, 2011 at 18:23

There is a few in Limburg in the SE but from memory 360m about pulls it up

Permalink Reply by Michael Murray on October 23, 2011 at 16:22

... if you want hills you are in trouble but you can substitute by riding into the wind.

 

Give me a hill any day.  You feel like you are achieving something with a hill and you get to go down again.  Into the wind you just get stuffed.

 

 

RSS

Support our Sponsors

© 2013   Created by Gus K.

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service