There are good reasons for encouraging bicycle use. High bicycle usage contributes to the accessibility of cities and towns, to many citizens’ scope for sustainable development and - not least - to public health. Cities and regions in the Netherlands are often regarded as examples of best practices on cycling and supporting policies. We owe our thanks to facilitating governments, the work of active NGO’s and many companies that earn their living with cycling related business. In this way, there is a whole chain of cycling infrastructure that makes cycling an attractive option for our daily mobility. Based on the frequent requests for information from policy-makers, politicians and NGO’s from all over the world, the Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, Directorate-General for Passenger Transport decided to produce a comprehensive brochure about cycling in the Netherlands, giving an actual overview on the results and findings of relevant studies and experiences. With this publication, they would also like to support the work of the UN ECE/WHO PEP programme to facilitate the exchange and dissemination of existing good practices in the different countries in the European region to promote safe conditions for people to walk and cycle in urban areas. A direct link is visible in the Netherlands between bicycle policy and bicycle use. In the first place, good bicycle facilities are simply a necessity to facilitate the many cyclists. These good bicycle facilities keep bicycle use high and continue to grow. High cycle usage also means that many citizens could enjoy a good cycling climate. One of the main achievements of our cycling policy is to make it part of the general mobilty policy in a way that it is part of the solution for mobility. Therefore, in the mobility policies of almost all the Dutch municipalities, they pay particular attention to the bicycle. The Netherlands has a strong cycling culture that is self-maintaining and self-strengthening: a cycling culture which all players in the field of mobility encourage. (Author/publisher)
Abstract