If it takes appealing to the snooty or fashionistas to start the next bike boom, fine. That's not to say I'm onboard with 50 lb. bikes with not enough gears for any kind of hill. We know better.

Maybe it's the next bike craze to take hold after eBikes?

I wondenoglider thinks of this. (I think you're a NYT subscriber, right Tom?)

You want to know what I think about which part of the article? You should come visit. The variety of bikes, the variety of clothing styles of people on bikes, and the variety of the kinds of people riding bikes might impress you. For example we have Wall Streeters riding Citi Bike bikes, including the women with the hair/makeup/jewelry types.

A few years ago, I met a Danish grad student visiting NYC to write a story about bike culture. Where she's from, the term "bike culture" doesn't make any sense because there, riding a bike doesn't set you apart from the rest of the culture. I wonder where she visited. There are lots of bike-rich neighborhoods in NYC, each very different. But it's nothing like (I imagine) Denmark, the Netherlands, and all those places.

Obviously, there are multiple ways to get around. However, I have to think: why do I want some heavy upright bike to do this?
Dutch bikes are terrible with any long distance riding and the bikes we have here cover the needs in a better manner than a Dutch bike.
By the time they are imported, they cost as much as the lower end bikes found in a bike shop. I have a few bikes from road to hybrid.
I find that they are much more efficient than this style of bike. Just my thoughts.

My daughter is currently in Norway and spent a few days in Copenhagen last week. Even SHE was impressed with the bike culture there. She tells me these days that she's not into biking, even on an eBike. She's just too cool for it. But she said in Copenhagen, they have separate bike paths, pedestrian sidewalks and streets, and they never mix. That's impressive enough, but she also said bike theft is not a thing there. (as it is in the Netherlands)

It makes me SO mad. The amount of money we invest in continually re-paving roads here and accommodating yet more and more cars, almost completely neglecting public transit and the relatively cheap bike infrastructure. There are exceptions, like NYC and a couple cities in Coloardo, but then norm is that bikes aren't welcome.

NYC is on my list of places to visit, but I admit I'm a bit intimidated. Chicago is a huge pain in the butt to visit, so NYC must be next level pain for an outsider.

According to Google AI it is:
In 2023, there were over 48,000 reported bicycle thefts in Denmark, with Copenhagen accounting for over 17,000 of those cases.

I can't remember if it's Copenhagen or Amsterdam where they like to throw them into the canals.

In many ways, NYC is convenienter than other places. Just don't bring a car. That is extreme masochism. We have trains, buses, ferries, bikes, and shoes. Who needs a car?

I saw your daughter on the freezing lake and envy her.