Cycling in The Netherlands - The Netherlands and Cycling

The Netherlands and Cycling

No single reason accounts for why cycling is so popular in the Netherlands; rather the combination of many 'bicycle friendly' factors reinforce each other:

• There is a continuous network of cycle paths, clearly signposted, well maintained and well lit, with road/cycle path junctions that often give priority to cyclists. This makes cycling itself convenient, pleasant, and safe.
• The Netherlands is a relatively densely populated and very flat country, which means that journeys tend to be well within the capabilities of the average cyclist. Cycling is very cheap and has low overheads.
• The needs of cyclists are taken into account in all stages of urban planning. Urban areas are frequently organised as woonerfs (living streets), which prioritise cyclists and pedestrians over motorised traffic.

Most children between the age of 10 and 16 cycle to school, and they develop an early appreciation of the freedom that cycling gives.

Secondary school children quite commonly cycle over 15 km (9.3 mi) in each direction to school. This is perhaps why Dutch utility cyclists are fast, and has helped the Dutch have a presence in competitive cycle racing which is surprisingly large given the small population of the country.

Utility bicycles which are low in maintenance and suited to load carrying are very popular. However, all other types of cycles are accommodated on the cycle paths, from racing bikes with tri-bars through streamlined velomobiles. The cycle path network supports use at such speeds. There is also a good network of bicycle shops throughout the country.

The Netherlands employs a standards-based approach to road design, where conflicts between different modes of transport are eliminated wherever possible and reduced in severity as much as possible where elimination is not possible. The result of this is that cycling is made both objectively and subjectively safe. Towns have been designed with limited access by cars and limited (decreasing over time) car parking. The resulting heavy traffic and very limited car parking makes car use unattractive in towns.

"Strict liability", supported in law in the Netherlands, leads to driver's insurance being deemed to be responsible in a collision between a car and a cyclist. Dutch drivers are trained for the interaction with cyclists, for example by checking and re-checking their right-hand side before making a turn to the right.

Bicycle helmets are hardly ever worn in the Netherlands - the same can be said for Denmark, and for other places with much traffic by bicycle. Cyclists of all ages, and the government, consider the bicycle helmet unnecessary and there is no 'helmet law'.

These factors together far outweigh the negative factors of wet and windy weather, strong headwinds due to the flat terrain, and frequent bicycle thefts. Nearly a third of all journeys made in the Netherlands are made by bicycle. Even the over 65 age group make nearly a quarter of their journeys by bicycle. Within some cities, over half of all journeys are made by bicycle.

By 2012 cycling had grown tremendously in popularity. In Amsterdam alone, 490,000 freewheeling fietsers take to the road to cycle 2 million kilometres every day according to statistics of the city council. Despite 35,000 kilometres of bicycle paths, the 18 million bicycles (1.3 per citizen old enough to ride) are clogging the busiest areas. A quarter of all deadly accidents in the Netherlands involve cyclists, the Cycling Association said.