Bike bonanza

My bike!

One of the best things about Denmark is its bike culture. Cycling is HUGE here. In Copenhagen, the 2010 figures show that 35 percent of residents cycle to work or school everyday. The municipal government's master plan aims to raise that share to 50 percent by 2015, which it seems well on its way to achieving. By many accounts, Copenhagen is the world's most bike-friendly city. From my perspective, it's certainly the most bike-friendly place I've ever visited.

The infrastructure is fantastic. Nearly every major street has dedicated bike lanes that are separate from the pedestrian sidewalks and the lanes for automobile traffic. Sharrows--the shared lanes that are so common in Seattle--aren't really used much here. By and large, cyclists have their own traffic lights, lanes, and right-of-way. It's startling to realize just how dedicated Copenhagen is to cyclists compared to what I'm used to in Seattle and Portland, which are considered the top bike-friendly cities in the U.S.

A busy, well-marked intersection in Copenhagen

Just as an example, for me to ride across the city, from one neighborhood and then through the city center to the adjacent neighborhood would take about 20 minutes at the most in Copenhagen. That's faster than a car or bus ride. Also working in this city's favor is its flatness. I can cycle from my apartment to my office here without needing to change gears.

And it's not just the inner city that's well-suited for cycling. I actually bought my bike in a suburb called Lyngby about 13 km from Copenhagen's center. After taking the train out there I decided to ride the bike back into the city, which was a breeze. A dedicated bike lane paralleled the highway (separated by fencing) the whole way. Although I stopped to grab some food, if I had gone in a straight shot, I could have probably arrived in not much more than 30 minutes.

Rather than continue blabbering, here are some images. If you really want to delve into the history of Copenhagen's bike culture and how it was shaped into its current state, see the Wikipedia entry.

Attention to detail: This staircase has a tire groove so cyclists can
push their bike instead of carry it. 

Danish locks: Theft is uncommon here. Most people don't actually lock their bike frame
to a bike rack or pole. Instead they simply put a lock on the back tire to prevent someone
from being able to ride it.

A bike parking lot by a train station in Aarhus

A typical road, with some car lanes, a narrow lane of bricks that acts as traffic
separation, the bike lane, and the sidewalk.

Special traffic lights for bikes