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Tag: modal share

why can’t people just ride bicycles and make politicians’ promises happen?

why can’t people just ride bicycles and make politicians’ promises happen?

The cycling mode-share in Stockholm decreased in 2014 (compared to both 2012 and 2013). The 7-8% we’re at today seem quite far from the 15% target set for 2030 and if the Capital of Scandinavia was only counting on natural growth to become a world-class cycling city, well, not only will we fail to achieve 15% but we already have.

Getting your hands on a bike

I was recently on a two day business trip in Copenhagen and planned to use some “alone time” to ride around the city and roll over the Bicycle Snake (Cykelslangen). I obviously needed to get my hands on a bike first and, since I could only pick one up after 18:00 on the first day and had to return it early in the morning on the second day, I decided to skip bike rentals and went for a city bike instead.

The City Bikes are available 24/7, 365 days a year. Each city bike has a touchscreen tablet used for navigation, payment and guiding to points of interest in Copenhagen and Frederiksberg. ((http://www.visitcopenhagen.com/copenhagen/copenhagen-city-bike-gdk495345))

Bycyklen: touchscreen & GPS navigation
Touchscreen for account registration, payment & GPS navigation

Wha?! Could it be that simple? Because it sure isn’t in Stockholm where one has to first get a card from one of the retailers ((http://www.citybikes.se/p/retailers)) to be able to get a bike between 6:00 and 22:00, from April 1st to October 31st only ((http://www.citybikes.se/p/site/user-information)).

Sure getting your hands on a card (3 days minimum for 165 SEK) isn’t that hard but it’s an extra inconvenient step in the process and being able to register an account directly from the bicycle’s screen and ride for 32 SEK an hour or 88 SEK + 8 SEK an hour with a monthly subscription is just very, very much easier and cheaper for short stays.

If one wants people to get around on bicycles one has to make sure those bicycles are easily accessible at all time for those who don’t own one for whatever reason. Some might not like Copenhagen’s bike share system and criticise but I, as a tourist, really enjoyed the experience.

Cyclists as first-class road users

If you build bike paths, cyclists will come. If you build great bike paths, even more will come. And so what do I see less than five minutes into the ride? Something I haven’t seen so far in Stockholm: a roundabout where cyclists are given a lane within the junction and not around it.

Roundabout with bicycle lane, Copenhagen

In Copenhagen, cyclists are clearly not second-class road users. They enter, flow around the central island and exit the same way cars do. Cyclists never have to cross one of the roads leading to or leaving the intersection and stop -like they often have to when the lane is outside the island- because a driver could not enter and stopped right on the cyclists and pedestrians paths.

It does not seem much but it makes a huge difference. It also sends a strong message: cyclists are part of the normal traffic flow and share the road.

Stealing a bike is no big deal

Now, I don’t know how bicycle thefts are dealt with in Denmark but when it comes to sending the right (or the wrong for that matter) signals for a better cycling mode-share Sweden has a lot to improve.

According to the Swedish government valuable police time being is wasted by officers forced to deal with unnecessary reports and complaints and the interior minister, Anders Ygeman, suggested that police either drop the complaints without processing them or simply stop taking such calls altogether.

Ygeman believes that “it would benefit everyone if insurance companies did not require a police report when it comes to minor offences, such as a stolen bike or a camera.”

Yes, to Sweden’s interior minister, stealing a bike is a minor offence. It doesn’t matter if it was the bike you used every day to commute to work and/or drop off your children at kindergarten. It was just a bike. Now, if you just had a car instead…

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Posted on July 31, 2015July 31, 2015Author Laurent PignonCategories StoriesTags commuting, Copenhagen, infrastructure, modal share, rental, the bicycle snakeLeave a comment on why can’t people just ride bicycles and make politicians’ promises happen?
cycling facts & figures

cycling facts & figures

My wife works as a guide for French speaking tourists here in Stockholm and keeps newspaper articles she considers valuable to her knowledge whether they depict interesting stories and anecdotes or contains statistics she could mention during a tour. As she was spring cleaning through the piles of paper on her desk she set aside a couple of clippings about cycling in Sweden and Stockholm so I would read them and stop asking her the same questions over and over.

I don’t know about you but I have a hard time remembering figures and statistics which pop up in the news every other day so I decided to put those numbers up on the blog.

Modal share

From Dagens Nyheter published on September 14th, 2012.

Stockholm modal share, September 2012

In 2012 the modal share for the Municipality of Stockholm (837,031 inhabitants as of June) was as follow:

      47% – use public transportation
      23% – drive
      22% – walk
      8% – ride a bicycle

It is important to point out that the number of Stockholm-dwellers using public transit and bicycling is increasing.

Bicyclists behavior

From Dagens Nyheter published in September 2012 (missing the day).

Here are the questions asked to 1,000 people (in Sweden, not only Stockholm) over the phone and their answers.

How much do you cycle today compared to 5 years ago?

      2% – don’t know
      38% – cycle more
      17% – cycle less
      43% – cycle as much as before

What makes you ride your bicycle?

      53% – health benefits
      43% – pure exercising
      41% – faster to get to work
      40% – environmental reasons
      34% – fun and enjoyable
      30% – expensive gas prices
      16% – avoid traffic jam

Bicycle facilities

From the “Cykelplan” report published by the City of Stockholm in October, 2012.

There is no exact figure but Stockholm’s bike lane network is believed to be around 750 kilometers long. There are 12 bike pumps along the cycling routes. The first one was installed in 2005 on the busy Slussen interchange and is used 3,000 times each month.

As of 2012 80% of Stockholm’s inhabitants live less than 15 kilometers away from the main train station (Centralstationen) and could ride to their workplace under 30 minutes. In general cycling is the fastest transportation alternative during rush hours.

With the increasing number of cyclists there is a shortage of parking facilities and the City of Stockholm plans on making room for 500 additional bicycles each year.

Bicycle safety

From the “Cykelplan” report published by the City of Stockholm in October, 2012.

During the last 5 years 12 bicyclists died in traffic accidents with 7 of those casualties (60%) involving a motor vehicle.

Bicycle thefts

From Dagens Nyheter published in September 2012 (missing the day).

In 2012 65,700 bike thefts were reported to the police in Sweden, half of those in Stockholm. One percent of stolen bikes are recovered and given back to their rightful owners.

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Posted on March 20, 2013July 16, 2015Author Laurent PignonCategories The Stockholm TimesTags figures, modal share, statisticsLeave a comment on cycling facts & figures
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