It's All about the Bike

Bikes have replaced cars as the preferred mode of transportation in Amsterdam, according to a new study (reported in the Oregonian via Planetizen):

"The bicycle is the means of transport used most often in Amsterdam," reports Bike Europe. "Between 2005 and 2007 people in the city used their bikes on average 0.87 times a day, compared to 0.84 for their cars. This is the first time that bicycle use exceeds car use."

When I started cycling in the Boston area a decade or so, I recall there was a competition between bike, car, and train commuters on designated routes. The bike commuters cleaned up.

It's getting better in cities from New York to Portland, but American and Canadian cities have a long way to go to catch up - in car too many, commuting by bike remains fraught with risk.

Check out this video of Amsterdam bike commuters: