Amsterdam: Too many bikes!
#1
Sophomoric Member
Thread Starter
Amsterdam: Too many bikes!
It sounds like what Bill Clinton called a "high class problem." But the ever increasing abundance of bikes really is a problem in the world Capitol of Everyday Cycling.
https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/21/wo...nt&tntemail0=y
https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/21/wo...nt&tntemail0=y
__________________
"Think Outside the Cage"
#3
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: New Jersey
Posts: 7,143
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 261 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 11 Times
in
10 Posts
It sounds like what Bill Clinton called a "high class problem." But the ever increasing abundance of bikes really is a problem in the world Capitol of Everyday Cycling.
https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/21/wo...nt&tntemail0=y
https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/21/wo...nt&tntemail0=y
Simple.
Last edited by Dahon.Steve; 06-22-13 at 08:31 AM.
#4
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: New Jersey
Posts: 7,143
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 261 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 11 Times
in
10 Posts
Someone listed numbers on another thread but as many people are on the trams, buses and trains as there are on bicycles. They should make a story on them.
#5
Banned
Sometimes, too much of a good thing can have it's consequences. I'll guess that I should be somewhat thankful for our city's low bike commuting numbers, since I'm able to find a place to park my bike without too much effort.
#6
Been Around Awhile
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Burlington Iowa
Posts: 29,959
Bikes: Vaterland and Ragazzi
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 12 Post(s)
Liked 1,528 Times
in
1,041 Posts
I thought one might be a Dutch version of the WSJ's Dorothy Rabinowitz when he complained, “When you look at the large squares, on a Friday night the place is completely covered with bikes,” he went on. “There is also a question of aesthetic values.” Maybe he thought those large squares were "begrimed" by all those bikes.
Last edited by I-Like-To-Bike; 06-21-13 at 11:10 PM. Reason: typo
#7
Banned
The people in the article may not have said it, but the article itself did.
More parking, more bikes will quickly take up the spaces.
#8
Sophomoric Member
Thread Starter
You rarely see "too many" bikes in my city. There were hundreds at an Obama campaign rally at MSU in the late summer of 2008. It took about 20 minutes for everybody to get them all unlocked and untangled. There's also a hipster area on the east side of Lansing where there often wasn't enough parking even when people locked to every tree, pole and railing. Then they put in some racks, and now you can usually find a spot.
__________________
"Think Outside the Cage"
#9
Been Around Awhile
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Burlington Iowa
Posts: 29,959
Bikes: Vaterland and Ragazzi
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 12 Post(s)
Liked 1,528 Times
in
1,041 Posts
Since when is more bikes "a problem" except for NYT and WSJ writers?
#10
Sophomoric Member
Thread Starter
And what is this WSJ article you keep mentioning? Seems like it really shook you up!
__________________
"Think Outside the Cage"
#11
Member
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: Estonia
Posts: 37
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
Just imagine the parking problem if every one of these bikes was replaced by a car, even a compact one!
As for Amsterdam having more bikes than people, well, it seems normal to me - horses for courses. I wouldn't take my road bike to a grocery shopping in the winter or go to a weekend tour on my singlespeed city bike. Having a spare bike for a visiting friend is also a great idea. And a trailer. And a towing vehicle for that trailer. N+1
#12
Banned
Just an added note: Recently, an 8ft by 12ft parking space in San Francisco just sold for 82,000 dollars or roughly 854 dollars a sq. ft.
Last edited by dynodonn; 06-22-13 at 08:33 AM.
#13
Member
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: Estonia
Posts: 37
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
Just an added note: Recently, an 8ft by 12ft parking space in San Francisco just sold for 82,000 dollars.
#14
Banned
That's actually exactly what I meant with "parking problem" Every time some guy on the Net laments about cyclists hogging the road I would like to tell him that he's lucky I don't take his parking space at the shopping mall, I don't cause any traffic jams, I don't create smog and I probably don't need insulin shots or heart transplant from the healthcare in the future.
#15
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: New Jersey
Posts: 7,143
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 261 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 11 Times
in
10 Posts
I don't understand why they don't use kick scooters like the Xootr instead of bringing a full size bike? What about a folding bike?
#16
Been Around Awhile
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Burlington Iowa
Posts: 29,959
Bikes: Vaterland and Ragazzi
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 12 Post(s)
Liked 1,528 Times
in
1,041 Posts
Because bikes are far more useful. The typical Dutch cyclist is not complaining about too many bikes, just a few people specially selected by a NYT reporter looking for filler for her story.
#17
Been Around Awhile
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Burlington Iowa
Posts: 29,959
Bikes: Vaterland and Ragazzi
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 12 Post(s)
Liked 1,528 Times
in
1,041 Posts
That's actually exactly what I meant with "parking problem" Every time some guy on the Net laments about cyclists hogging the road I would like to tell him that he's lucky I don't take his parking space at the shopping mall, I don't cause any traffic jams, I don't create smog and I probably don't need insulin shots or heart transplant from the healthcare in the future.
#18
Been Around Awhile
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Burlington Iowa
Posts: 29,959
Bikes: Vaterland and Ragazzi
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 12 Post(s)
Liked 1,528 Times
in
1,041 Posts
https://live.wsj.com/video/opinion-de...1-4CA50BDD8D4D
#19
Sophomoric Member
Thread Starter
I thought I already posted it, just for you, but it is easier to post it again:
https://live.wsj.com/video/opinion-de...1-4CA50BDD8D4D
https://live.wsj.com/video/opinion-de...1-4CA50BDD8D4D
__________________
"Think Outside the Cage"
#20
Member
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: Estonia
Posts: 37
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
But I agree I might have worded it better - like "I have less probability to need insulin shots or heart transplant from the healthcare in the future".
#21
Banned
#22
VICTORY IS MINE!
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Ogden, UT
Posts: 239
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
#23
Been Around Awhile
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Burlington Iowa
Posts: 29,959
Bikes: Vaterland and Ragazzi
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 12 Post(s)
Liked 1,528 Times
in
1,041 Posts
#24
Been Around Awhile
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Burlington Iowa
Posts: 29,959
Bikes: Vaterland and Ragazzi
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 12 Post(s)
Liked 1,528 Times
in
1,041 Posts
Don't have to wait for the future. Ms Rabinowitz has already made herself a laughing stock over this video. It is a shame because she previously earned a Pulitzer Prize for her reporting of over zealous prosecution of people who were wrongly accused of child abuse.
#25
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Seville, Spain
Posts: 4,403
Bikes: Brompton M6R, mountain bikes, Circe Omnis+ tandem
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 146 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 6 Times
in
5 Posts
No, he does not sound foolish at all. He said he "probably" won't need insulin shots or a heart transplant. There was no mention of a "sure cure".