What is Digg?179 Comments
- 0akley, on 10/10/2007, -2/+34nice pics, more people should ride bikes!
- cyberdork, on 10/10/2007, -0/+31That's not only in Amsterdam, but in all of the Netherlands and parts of Western Germany.
I live in the East of the Netherlands and I usually take my bike to work, just a 3 mile ride. My mom back in Germany also does most of her shopping by bike.
1. It's cheap
2. It's often faster than taking a car, since in European cities most places (shops, workplace, restaurants, bars) can be reached within a 3 mile radius from your home. And parking a car is often difficult or expensive.
3. It keeps you fit. - The_Wallbanger, on 10/10/2007, -1/+29This is why the Dutch don't have an obesity epidemic.
- altered, on 10/10/2007, -0/+23I visited Amsterdam a month ago and what I found especially hilarious is the multi-tiered bike parking lot near Centraal Station. It looked something like this at the time--but at twice the capacity.
http://www.traveljournals.net/pictures/l/7/70054-bike-parking-garage-amsterdam-netherlands.jpg - ChronicFiles, on 10/10/2007, -1/+24Mirrored at http://pileofphotos.com/view/322/Amsterdam-bike-life website crashed
- LungGravy, on 10/10/2007, -0/+22If he's being critical at all it's of his own local culture and customs in San Fransisco. The jab at our mandatory helmet laws for example. In my city, a beach community, not only do we have mandatory helmet laws, but one has to register your bike, they actually stop people regularly at the beach to check registration and issue tickets. Registering is a huge PITA that takes about a day off running, around waiting in line, filling out forms. It's lame. No freedom, no liberty, completely anal, and not at all the casual , laid back culture as depicted in Amsterdam. He's giving props, not condemnation.
- Jayaych, on 10/10/2007, -1/+22We have Formally Dressed Bicyclists here in the U.S. as well, they're called Mormons.
- 10goto10, on 10/10/2007, -0/+20"There was one particular type of bicycle I'm not sure I understood why it was so popular, but really stood out as a trend. These bicycles have smaller wheels than a typical bicycle, and a taller seat to compensate. "
That's not a trend, that's a foldable mini bciycle. You can fold it to suitcase-size when you take the train, and unfold it when you need to ride. - rediculous, on 10/10/2007, -0/+18Good question.
Because Amsterdam is flat, there is no need for gears. Just a beach cruiser style bicycle will do. - david76, on 10/10/2007, -1/+18"how it differs from a U.S. city like San Francisco"
I'm going to vote for no hills. - bjornkeizers, on 10/10/2007, -0/+12Bicycles are pretty much *the* form of transportation in The Netherlands. Quite a few people commute by bicycle (me included) and pretty much 90% of children go to school by bike. And with the great infrastructure we have combined with the relatively short trips... bicycles pretty much beat every other form of transportation. And to add some trivia: there are actually more bicycles in our country then people: there are 18 milion bicycles, 17 milion people, and there are 1,2 milion bicycles sold here every year.
- wild, on 10/10/2007, -0/+11Don't forget the free white bicycles provided to the public to help relieve traffic and curb bicycle theft. Pretty cool solution to a theft problem.
http://www.tve.org/ho/doc.cfm?aid=743 - bjornkeizers, on 10/10/2007, -1/+11Several reasons. They're a comfortable, proven design that's easy to manufacture. These 'old' designs allow you to carry a big load and they last for ages. Just the thing you'd need for a daily commute. Mountain bikes or the like don't offer the convenience & reliability of these designs.
Most trips are short. To Dutch people, a five mile bike trip is quite long. Americans would probably consider that going round the block. So our designs need to be practical rather then comfortable over longer distances. Real mountain bikes are mostly seen as sports equipment for men in too tight shorts with children's bicycle helmets. Lance Armstrong wannabes.
Lastly, true mountain bikes often don't conform to all road rules when it comes to the number of reflectors, lighting, bells, etc. Again, mostly sports equipment rather then practical transportation. - MikeonTV, on 10/10/2007, -0/+9Hows about it? http://blog.miragestudio7.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/07/bycycle_parking.jpg
- SonnyW, on 10/10/2007, -0/+9So bike lanes are for bikes?
Who knew! - bjornkeizers, on 10/10/2007, -1/+10Well.... I'd agree that wearing one would be smarter, but I can understand why people don't do it. For one, we've been riding bicycles since before the US was established. Children here pretty much ride bikes from the day they can walk. It's in our blood; second nature to us like walking or breathing.
Also, bicyclists are a lot safer here then they are in the US. We have special bike paths and many road rules and laws that protect them. Accidents do happen, but fatal ones are quite rare. Besides, falling down & getting up is part of bicycling.
So all in all, most people just don't see the need for helmets. - angelces, on 10/10/2007, -0/+9ah yes, we were there this spring. bikes everywhere.
http://angelces.com/photos/places/2007-03_amsterdam/DSC00329-sm.jpg
the bike parking garage was my fave too
http://angelces.com/photos/places/2007-03_amsterdam/DSC00358-sm.jpg
but nothing beats this sign!
http://angelces.com/photos/places/2007-03_amsterdam/DSC00187-sm.jpg - tommyvercetti, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8Just curious, why do the bicycles look like the old style of bicycles? Here in the US, majority of bicycles seem to be either mountain bikes (or atleast made to look like them) and road bikes. These bicycles look like the kind people had in the 50's.
- apio, on 10/10/2007, -1/+9another reason is that bikes get stolen here. a lot.
if i have my 1980 25euro bike stolen, i would just by a new one from the local junkie. that doesn't work with mtb's. - sydseale, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8In case anyone is confused as to why food in the US is over corn-ified, it's because of farm subsidies that allow corn growers to sell corn at a price that makes it more attractive to food producers than alternatives (Coca-cola, for example, used to use cane sugar, but now uses corn sugar. If you want to know what Coke used to taste like, check for the Kosher version in grocery stores...BTW, not always available...ask a Jewish friend when you should expect to see it).
I suspect that the average American is now composed 80% of corn. - dvde, on 10/10/2007, -0/+8in the Netherlands, motorcyclists have to wear a helmet. in a lot of states in the US they don't. now that's stoopid.
- Jambi, on 10/10/2007, -3/+10Also, the food sold in the Netherlands isn't packed full of high fructose corn syrup.
- mercurysquad, on 10/10/2007, -1/+8excuses ..
- mercurysquad, on 10/10/2007, -0/+7Also in Belgium.
- Elektriq, on 10/10/2007, -1/+8I live in Amsterdam and I've been riding bikes all my life. All I can say is...
No. - killerpopiller, on 10/10/2007, -1/+8unfortunatly the photographer missed the really amazing garage houses near bigger trainstations. I´m from germany, and riding bike is normal but not this spreaded. but having this huge garages with several floors!!! filled with bikes and huge parking spaces before that as well really made me wondered how many bikes per head are the average in the netherlands
- rajulkabir, on 10/10/2007, -0/+7"To be fair, you could walk across Amsterdam in a few hours, it's not possible to bike like that in a larger city. Also, it's not fair to compare it to San Francisco since who would want to bike up and down those hills all day?"
You can walk across San Francisco (just 7 miles) in a few hours too.
Many people in the Netherlands have a daily bike commute well in excess of 7 miles. My grandfather rode almost that far every day until he died in his 80s. - zeejay, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6and superior coffee shops.
- 029JO, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6I truly love the bikes in Holland :) but they do get stolen ALLOT just cause they are that great, and such a convenience
- The_Wallbanger, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6They put *****-tons of mayo on their french fries too!
- mercurysquad, on 10/10/2007, -1/+7A note about those 'extra gigantic locks' : There are laws in place that mandate using such locks. If you don't use that type of lock, the police will tow your bike away thinking it's abandoned (had that happen with a friend). This goes also for bikes using feebly mounted slide locks.
- dvde, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6hmm... you mean 'stroopwafels'
- soma4theMasses, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6and fat people
- diggerphelps, on 10/10/2007, -1/+7Helmets are over-rated. The American fascination with passive "safety devices" over "safe practices" amazes me. (Yes, I am American) I don't have a problem with people wearing helmets, but what I usually see in Berkeley (there are a lot of bike riders here, despite the hilliness) is people wearing helmets, but not looking where they're going, blasting through stop signs, just generally riding in an unsafe manner.
- CatsAreGods, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6Tow your bike away?
Sorry, I'm not laughing at you, I just got a mental image of this gigantic tow truck backing up for a bicycle... - gharding, on 10/10/2007, -0/+6Those are cruisers and really the most comfortable bikes to ride. In the US, mountain bikes and road bikes are the norm (cruisers are kind of a biking counter-culture here). They look "old" to us because we pretty much phased out the style. But they're so much more comfortable compared to a road bike if you're not trying to haul ass. I'm pretty sure they think that Americans riding around casually in the drops look like idiots!
- nikkesen, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5I was in Amsterdam for 10 days and people on bikes can be just ***** on the same level as drivers. I don't know what's scarier, a driver on a cellphone or a cyclist on a cellphone...
Of course, it would be good for the environment if more people rode bikes... - JMous, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5Tourists are really annoying in Amsterdam. They don't know the traffic rules for cyclists... Constantly walking on the red bikeroads without looking... Luckily it is easier here in the northern part of the country biking. And tourists with those helmets... Look like idiots, nobody ever had an incident I know with falling on heads. It is my daily form of transportation.
- TheKricket, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5ooh look! a woman in a skirt on a bicycle... and whats this? another woman in a skirt on a bicycle... look over there! a woman in a skirt on a bicycle... guess whats behind you?! a woman in a skirt on a bicycle!
this guy should just get it over with an start an upskirt website... - Syntaxis, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5Blood and guts all over the place eh? Bikes are like locomotives, when hit by one you instantly ignite in 5000-degree flames and blow up, splattering your blood and guts all over the crowd that's watching the gorefest. Yeah, "crazy" indeed.
Wait, it's just a bump, people saying "hey I'm walking here!" and the other going: "ah damn, I scratched my new jeans slightly, sorry about that by the way..", making sure the other person is alright and going on their own separate ways. - feckineejit, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5I ride a bike with a motor and goes about 27mph cruising speed. As with any other bicycle if there is no bike lane or shoulder to ride on a bike is entitled to the entire lane until such time that there is a shoulder. DRIVERS DON'T GET THIS. I have been almost run off the road so many times it's ridiculous and the next time some punk kid tries it, he's getting a nice big loogie on his windshield.
- supersam, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5@tommyvercetti , well the types of bikes they are riding are really easy and fun to ride, they are cruisers. just because its an old design doesn't mean its not a good one.
- CarzorStelatis, on 10/10/2007, -1/+6If only we Brits could have proper cycle track provision like that. Instead we get half a lane of roadspace painted red. No separation from traffic at all (not even the mini-kerbs as with Amsterdam's cycle lanes) which means you want at least a helmet, if not a full set of military battle armour.
- frsrblch, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5Some drivers here in Canada don't even understand that bicycles have a right to be on the road....
I /wish/ I had half a lane to myself. I can either ride on the sidewalk (which, technically, is illegal), or take my chances on the road. I ride of the edge on the right, and many people seem to be incapable of giving me more than two feet clearance as they drive by in some over sized vehicle.
Realistically, bikes are useless once the snow starts falling, but during the summer they are great for getting around. People piss and moan about gas prices, and insurance, but you sure as hell don't see them actually doing anything about it. - PBatemanNL, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5To answer your question tommyvercetti, I think it has to do with the fact that we (the Dutch) don't need mountainbikes becouse there isn't a single mountain to climb in the Netherlands. Those people who have a mountainbike use it for sportscycling at eh...maybe rough terrain such as woods and the few 'hills' we got. Besides, the classic bikes turns out to be less fragile, they are better for your back because you sit straight. And most important, they are a lot cheaper than mb's and since your bike gets easily stolen (especially in Amsterdam) it's better not to stall you 1000 dollar bike anywhere but your own garage (if you have one).
- Syntaxis, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5It's a cultural thing, most roads in towns have separate lanes just for bikers. Also, people driving cars around are taught to watch out for bikers - they spend, on average, 40 lessons (1 hour at an average cost of € 50,- per lesson) to just get their drivers license. And then they need to study their theory, too. Biking is as normal as walking and breathing here, wearing helmets actually looks silly and unnecessary. The few rare accidents are usually caused by bikers being stupid and falling over, causing a few rips in their clothes.
- tororosso, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5Brussels is hardly bike friendly ... you probably mean cities in Flanders (Antwerp, Ghent, Brugge)
- webmaniac, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4I don't know where "around here" is, but I live here in Amsterdam. My bike is my main way of transportation. If you get annoyed by one person ignoring a stop sign, don't bring your car here (or any big city in the netherlands). Most bike riders ignore red traffic lights, stop signs and never use the appropriate crossings (myself included).
I don't have a drivers license yet, but will get some driving lessons here in Amsterdam soon. Already afraid of all cyclists I will encounter :) But then again, if you learn to drive in Amsterdam, you won't come across a place with more "obstacles" - skellener, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4That's great!
- crapbox, on 10/10/2007, -0/+4Looking through the pictures, I noticed how slim and good looking they all are.
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