Originally Posted by Momentum magazine

In a recent academic article entitled Making Cycling Irresistible: Lessons from the Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany, Pucher notes that both the European Union and the US have officially recognized the importance of cycling as a practical mode of urban transportation and both support the objectives of increasing cycling levels and improving safety.

The major difference is in the degree to which these objectives have been met: the Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany are at the forefront, with policies that make cycling safe, convenient, and attractive, while the UK and the US have fallen short.

According to Pucher, “differences between [the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, the US, and the UK] in cycling levels are enlightening because all five of them are democratic, capitalist, affluent societies with nearly universal car ownership. The success of cycling does not depend on poverty, dictatorial regimes, or the lack of motorized transport options to force people onto bikes.” The Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany have made cycling a popular way for mainstream society to get around cities.

The key policies and innovations used in Dutch, Danish, and German cities to promote safe and convenient cycling focus on:
Extensive networks of separated cycling facilities
Intersection modifications and priority traffic signals
Traffic calming
Traffic education and training
Bike parking
Co-ordination with public transport
Traffic laws


Together with these explicitly pro-bike initiatives, Pucher notes that land-use policies encourage compact cities that generate shorter, more bikeable trips, and where car use is made expensive, less convenient, and less necessary through taxes and restrictions on ownership, use, and parking.