Rush Hour in Utrecht

Been there years ago but it's nice to know they know how to live green, healthy, and have fun while they commute. I do miss the Netherlands... very nice people.

Yes we are, thank you very much ;)

That's a lot of bikes! Did anyone else notice that at about 0:30 there was a guy with TWO bikes? He's really dedicated!

for a more chaotic vieuw:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roIeRZA5w54

And some guy who made observations about the different bikes:

http://www.ski-epic.com/amsterdam_bicycles/

Yes we like to bike :)

What - no Bakfietsen?

no helmets!?

Looked like even a couple of motorcycles with no helmets.

Very strange to see this, here in New Zealand approved helments are comulsory for bicycles and motorcycles alike.

I wonder what the accident rate is in the Netherlands where helmets would have been beneficial. Or perhaps the better bicycle infrastructure (looks like special roads) resolves that suitably.

My elderly aunt was visiting from Holland(84), Thought we Canadians were preposterous individuals for wearing helmets. I think she's right.

It's really not a big deal, in spite of our conditioned response to helmetless riders.

Bike helmets have very debated efficacy. They aren't designed to stand up to anything more than a straight fall at 10mph or less.

You're more likely to sustain a head injury in your kitchen, or falling from a step-stool.

Most countries with mandatory helmet laws end up with the unintended consequence of reduced ridership, and with fewer cyclists come increased fatalities (decreased driver awareness of cyclists vs safety in numbers).

And in the end it's all rather silly. Cycling is safer than driving, even when you're not factoring in the health benefits. When you include the benefits, getting on your bike almost always increases your lifespan (provided you aren't riding recklessly, drunk, etc)

"Cycling is safer than driving, even when you're not factoring in the health benefits."

Hmmm. I wouldn't put money on that. Cyclists get bowled over by cars all the time here in NZ.

I suspect that it comes down to, as I said, infrastructure.

That was what I found with USA statistics. You're right, in New Zealand, cyclists don't do as well.

Looks like low numbers of cyclists, and driver at-fault accidents on 70km/hr+ roads are your biggest issues.

Unfortunately, helmets are practically useless for those kind of accidents, which explains why there's been no appreciable drop in fatalities since the '94 helmet law.

http://www.transport.govt.nz/research/Documents/Cyclist%20Crash%20Statistics%2009.pdf

One interesting point the statistics show, is that at slower speed car/bike accidents (like you would expect in an urban center like utrecht) have a 95% cyclist survival rate. But 70kph+ accidents have a near 0 survival rate.

@zeytourn:

Debate all you like, but when my head collided with the roof of a Honda Fit last September, I was glad for my helmet; and I know a helmet saved my dad's life in July of 2007 when a car backed in to him as he did 45 down a hill.

g.park I'm glad your and your dad's injuries weren't worse. However, from a scientific point of view, it's impossible to know whether the helmet had a significant effect in the outcome. You "believe", not "know".

Is there any defensive cycling lesson you can take away from either of those accidents, that would help you prevent something similar from happening in the futur?

That is awesome! I'm jealous of the infrastructure... would make my bike commute so much smoother (that and its so level!

Nice, and not a single collision or uplifted middle finger to be seen. There was, however, one guy that had to jump the curb to gain a whole 5 feet on the cluster of bikes. In 1955 I experienced rush hour in Amsterdam. Never seen so many bikes in all my life.
It was truly amazing! 55 years later and I still recall it. Every bicycle on the planet was there, and the huge mass of riders moved as smoothly as a choreographed Astaire/Rogers number.

@ andiscandis - At first I thought it was
like a sidecar on a motorcycle. Had to replay to
see it was another bike. He did a great job with it.
Being the romantic sort I am I'll believe he was going
to see his girlfriend.

(wasn't really every bike, but heck, I was 10 then)

Never has a video clip more needed the Benny Hill sound track then this one.

Did any one else notice that every single one of those bikes is a sweet cruiser style bike? Every single one!

Zeytoun and Jimmeee- Here in the Netherlands the general view on helmet-use for bikes seems to be that anyone who rides a normal city-bike in normal city traffic to go to work or to go for groceries or whatever, will not use a helmet. But most people who ride faster bikes for fun or for commuting like racing bikes, fast recubents or mountainbikes on outdoor-trips will voluntarily and out of their own common sence wear a helmet.

Jimmeee the motorbike-rider you notice riding without a helmet, did that because it is a small moped with an engine block of max 49,9 cc's that legally is restricted to a speed of 25k.p/h.. They do not have to wear a helmet. For the faster category moped that legally can go upto 45 k.p/h. you are required to wear a helmet. The legally classified moped can ride the bicycle-lanes under certain circumstances. You can get a special drivers-license for a moped when you're 16 years old. Any faster motorcycle is not allowed to ride on bicycle-lanes, a certified helmet is compulsory and you need a motorcycle-license. You can get such a license from 18 years on just like a car-drivers license.

Not quite Hannah 1:13 (guy with blue backpack) is actually a folding bike, people take these along with them on the train.

I myself commute in Rotterdam by bike, 20 km. per day (every day), takes me with my 'sweet cruiser style' bike about 30 minutes (10 km.)

You should look for pictures of parkinglots for bikes near large trainstations like Utrecht, Amsterdam, Rotterdam or smaller city's with universities like Delft or Leiden, unbelievable.

Regarding helmets: some studies show that driving with a helmet causes cars to pas closer :) (tried to find a link, could not find one.)

Also: helmets are mandatory on scooters, but there is a slower type (max 25 km/h) that does not require one.

Also: while ive never been to America, i think driver awareness is WAY higer here. EVRYONE has biked a lot at one point. And as a car driver your always wrong (by law). And of course there are a lot of bike lanes.

Also a helmet would mess up your hair, hard to carry around when shopping and just looks silly.

If in The Netherlands you see a family (mom, dad, couple of young kids) riding through town on standard bikes and all with helmets on, 9 out of 10 they will be English-speaking foreigners. All the rest of cycling traffic passes them at higher speeds left and right :-D

:lol: Ah yes I recognise you! You're one of the passengers in that 2nd bus! :-P

Yay, I live here too! But by that time I was definitely still in bed.

what happens when it rains, or is bitterly cold outside, or snowy, or if you have a carpool, or if you live 24 miles away from work? it reminds me of riding my bike to school when i was a kid, but i grew out of that fantasy world.

@scooterbiker: Nothing, you just go. You pro.b get wet, cold or get a car.

Interesting to note is that the blue/yellow bikes are rental bikes that are rented out by OVfiets (public transport bicycles). You can see them quite often, especially in Utrecht.
Also this crossing isn't even that crowded compared to for example Amsterdam, you should see the situation at the Central Station where there is a special bicycle parking boat behind the station and a multi storied parking garage just for bicycles in the front:
http://littlepicturesmusic.tumblr.com/post/234782350/dutch-word-of-the-month-club

Just about everybody in the Netherlands rides a bicycle. I am from there and most of my family still live there. Some of them don't even have cars. They ride to the public train station to get around if it's far. They also have car clubs. If you are a member you can drive one of the club cars when you need one. It's like a group of people buying a boat. You are a part owner in a pool of available cars when you need one. It's really a pretty good idea for urban areas.

Must be nice to have a lot of flat land.

Hills make things more difficult.

@K!P "... i think driver awareness is WAY higer here. EVRYONE has biked a lot at one point."

I spent 4 years in Bermuda which has a huge amount of tourists. They can rent 50cc mopeds which are a lot of fun. The thing is they drive on the left side of the road. Needless to say that can easily present all sorts of problems for American/Canadian tourists. The Bermudians were terrific at watching out for them and helping them out. It was great to see the car drivers taking care of the unknowing tourists. The fact that tourism accounts for almost all of the islands income may have had something to do with it. But I think it was more the friendly way of the Bermudians. As shown by the people of the Netherlands and Bermuda cars and bikes/mopeds can easily coexist.

Hey SparkS---I am chasing you around the comments sections on a couple posts. I am a Clime relative that you mentioned in the A.G. Bell post.

Please email me at dcogswe1(at)jhu.edu or post here how to find you.