The Dutch Experience

It’s a myth: the Dutch are not avid cyclists because their country is flat and their weather is much better than ours. They cycle a lot because of the choices their governments and local authorities have made over the past 50+ years.

In the UK we have one word for those who use a bike – “cyclists”. These are then sub-divided into three (often derided) groups: the first is “Old Gits in Lycra” (I can assure you “I speak whereof I know” to misquote philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein). The second is “Yobs who ride on Pavements” and the third “Oddballs who cycle to work/school/the shops when any sane person would use their car”.

The Dutch have just two words for “cyclist”: the first is “Wielrenner” (literally “Wheel Runners”) - a tiny proportion of the total number on two wheels (presumably Dutch Old Gits in Lycra), and “Fietser”. Fietser make up the vast majority of cyclists - they ride around in their street clothes (no hi-vis jackets or safety gear) at a steady pace on bikes with an upright frame. They include small children (I suspect Dutch infants are trained to use a potty and to ride a bike at about the same age), the young and the old, the athletic and the less fit.

Why do so many people cycle? Because it’s safe, and because it is culturally and socially the norm – cyclists aren’t some strange alien species, but ordinary people going about their daily business.

This situation did not occur overnight. In the 1970s the Dutch decided that giving their towns over to the motor vehicle was not the way to go. They began designing their streets and urban centres to give priority to the bicycle – in The Netherlands over 75% of urban streets have a speed limit of 30 km/hr (about 19 mph) and they spend about 15 times per head more on cycling infrastructure than does the UK government.

And because so many journeys are made by bike the roads are much less crowded which leads to less driver frustration (perhaps far fewer potholes??), healthier children and adults, less pollution, greater affordability. A Dutch university has calculated that the Dutch willingness to cycle saves some 6500 premature deaths each year and benefits the economy to the tune of about £16 billion per annum.

That all sounds like a good deal to me. Are we brave enough to try it?