On the Road to a New Cycle-Consciousness

Following the death of six cyclists in London over the course of two weeks, hundreds of police officers have been deployed in the past weeks to enforce traffic safety during peak hours. It is clear that as more people all over the world are recognizing the many positive qualities of cycling in urban spaces, cities will have to take bigger steps to adjust their traffic system, to incorporate cycling in a safe way alongside other vehicles.

With safety as a priority, many in the UK have called for the adoption of a Dutch-style cycling system. This video, produced by the DutchCycling Embassy, shows the type of urban infrastructure that is necessary for cycling to become a part of every-day life, as it is in Holland. This infrastructure, applied over the course of several decades, transformed the Netherlands into the most bike-friendly country in the world. Yet, by looking at the beginning of Dutch cycle-integration, we can see that Holland was facing many of the same questions that London authorities are asking now.

When car ownership started growing in Holland, Henry Ford (of Ford Motors) argued that if the city of Amsterdam wanted to promote economic growth and prosperity, they would have to fill in their canals in order to make roads and create a more car-friendly transport system. Many city residents did not like the idea of losing their architectural heritage and fought for limited car-use in the inner-city, at the same time promoting the use of alternative transportation, such as cycling. Possibly my favorite suggestion of alternative transportation was the idea to build a conveyor belt going around the city-center at 15 km/h (!!). Sadly, it was not to be. In the end, although several canals were indeed filled in to create roads, the ones that remained were later named as part of UNESCO’s world heritage.

London’s transport officials in recent weeks have proposed traffic adjustments that are similar to the ideas that were thrown-around by Dutch city planners back in the 1950's and 1960's: lowering inner-city speed limits, introducing different traffic rules during rush hour and placing a limitation on lorries in the inner city. Same as with Dutch planners in the 50’s/60's, some in London now argue that these changes will negatively affect the economy of the city. For instance, instead of losing businesses money by calling for fewer lorries during peak traffic hours, London Mayor Boris Johnson has suggested to ban cyclists from wearing headphones (!!).

Adapting towards a more cycle-friendly society is something that only happens gradually, since it is not only the infrastructure of cities, but also the social perception of cycling which needs adjusting. It is clear that cycling has made its way onto the map (figuratively), evidenced by the 94 million pound budget that the UK has set aside to promote cycling – which means that it is only a matter of time before cycle routes become a permanent fixture in the topography of modern urban spaces.