It also cuts down on traffic and the need for big parking structures since there are fewer cars on the road.
The cities are built up around this biking culture. There are specific lanes on the street for bicyclists. There are special stoplights for the bikers. There are bike racks throughout the city and huge storage areas near the major train stations. The infrastructure for biking keeps people safe and makes biking around even more appealing.
Instead of car horns, the Dutch have bells on their bicycles. They ring their bells to alert pedestrians and to tell other cyclists to move over. Disagreements on a bike are a lot simpler and friendlier than in cars!
The Dutch grow up on bicycles. Infants are stashed in seats strapped to the handlebars of their parent’s bikes. Toddlers immediately start learning to bike around. By the time the kids are your age, they are pros on their bikes—they can do tricks and bike without using the handlebars. To adults, biking is second nature.
Biking can even be a family affair: the other day, I saw a dad on a bike holding his dog’s leash, balancing his infant on the handlebars and riding his wife over his back tire. The entire family fit on one bike!
Here in the Netherlands, biking is how people get around.
Within my first few days of arriving in Rotterdam, I realized I needed to get a bike in order to get around the city. Since bikes can sometimes get stolen, I was told to “buy a cheap bike and an expensive lock.” I found a bicycle store for students and picked out a bike for myself.
The bike is a little too tall for me, so I have to stretch up on my tippy toes to balance when I’m standing still.
