I am astounded. It is possible to rid a downtown core of bicycles! The proof can be found in (where else?) Holland – the Netherlands. Groningen is a small city in Holland. They have sucessfully made the bicycle the primary means of urban transportation.

How did they do it?

In Groningen, the Netherlands’ sixth largest city, the main form of transport is the bicycle. Sixteen years ago, ruinous traffic congestion led city planners to dig up city-centre motorways. Last year they set about creating a car-free city centre. Now Groningen, with a population of 170,000, has the highest level of bicycle usage in the West. 57% of its inhabitants travel by bicycle – compared with four per cent in the UK.

(Photo: http://www.metaefficient.com)

Learn more about this amazing city here

If the Dutch can do it so can we!

Along the same lines.....

• July 30, 2008 -- Cycling – New York City Critical Mass Ride
• July 30, 2008 -- Cycling – Montreal bike paths – doing it right
• July 26, 2008 -- Cycling to China – Brit Pete Jones shows us the way
• February 6, 2009 -- Cycling in Amsterdam – The Utopian World
• August 14, 2008 -- Mapping cycling fatalities in Toronto
• August 9, 2008 -- Cycling and your Carbon Footprint
• August 6, 2008 -- Ottawa Cycling – The City of Ottawa must be kidding!
• July 31, 2008 -- Cycling – Preventing bike theft
• July 31, 2008 -- Cycling – New York City Critical Mass Ride – update
• July 27, 2008 -- Cycling – Saturday Ride with the KNBC