Copenhagen in bicycling

I write about bicycling because it's an indicator of how cities plan mobility, how people use public space and get around, contributes positively to health, wellness, and fitness, and communicates about people's attitudes and practices concerning mobility and transportation mode.

An excerpt from an email discussion :

The thing is that Copenhagen lost its bicycling culture. They reconstructed it. That's the city to which DC should look to as a model for expanding the use of bicycles.

-- Livable Copenhagen: The Design of a Bicycle City (Sightline Institute report)
-- Copenhagen: Encouraging the use of bicycles
-- City of Copenhagen publishes a biannual Cycle Policy Report
-- Notes on Bicycling in Copenhagen (Streetsblog)
-- also look at how the Transport for London website treats bicycling, then look at the equivalent pages on the DDOT website
-- Copenhagen Cycle Chic website.

From the City of Copenhagen report:

In the 2006 report, for example, the goal of having 40% of Copenhageners riding their bike to work or education was revised to 50% by 2015. But why do we ride? According to the research and the polls, here's why:

• 54% ride because it is easy and fast.
• 19% ride because of the benefits of excercising.
• 7% ride because it is cheap. [there goes the expensive petrol theory...:-)]
• 6% ride because it is handy.
• 1% ride because of the environmental benefits.

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From Virgin Travel's 11 most bicycle friendly cities in the world:

(This entry includes a nice video showing the volumes of bicyclists.)

The city with the sixth-highest quality of life in the world is also home to the world's most successful community bicycle program. In Denmark practically everybody has a bike, and for many years Copenhagen has been known as 'the city of bikes'. The city of Copenhagen plans to double its spending on biking infrastructure over the next three years.

Currently 32% of workers bicycle to work and 50 percent say they cycle to work because it is fast and easy. The city's bicycle paths are extensive and well-used. Bicycle paths are often separated from the main traffic lanes and sometimes have their own signal systems. Already one city neighborhood, the notorious commune Christiania, is completely car-free.

The city provides public bicycles which can be found throughout the downtown area and used with a returnable deposit of 20 kroner, your money is refunded when you return the bike to one of many racks.

Highlights: Free public bicycles. Streets with dedicated lanes, paths and routes that are either clearly marked or separated from vehicular traffic by curbs. Bike paths and other bike-friendly facilities are a part of the planning of every new or rebuilt road. Large bicycle culture.