I BIKE CPH - The Song

Peter contacted us last year with this song that he had written and recorded called I Bike CPH. Inspired by Copenhagen's bicycle culture and the glorious bicycle traffic that he rides in every day. He has now put it on YouTube. Brilliant. It's in Danish but we've translated the lyrics (roughly, for context) below.
Thanks, Peter!

I cross The Lakes, I know I'm just a statistic
We bust the myth that there are only egos in the traffic
Don't have any rosy dreams of travelling away
I'm staying in Copenhagen - 'cause I Bike CPH

Push hard on the pedals, the energy is within me
Overtake pensioners, but there is room for them, too.
Chill out, from the moment the sun goes to work
Roll out into the nightlife, where everyone wobbles piss drunk

Down Nørrebrogade and everyone can see
a flock of iron horses parked outside Café Louise
Everyone is in the saddle, even the elected and the well-paid
Your snobby aunt and snotty kids
Some take up too much space on the asphalt
Others roll slyly along

Messengers roar past on fixies
On Østerbrogade new fathers ride
with kids on the back that think "the city is with me"
Under the sun are the city's new traffic hubs
Soon without noise, it's quite a wonder
We fill the streets so the miserable motorists
Can't see the city because of all the cyclists

Overcomplicating Winter Cycling - Why It's Bad

One of the main focuses of this blog has always been on how Copenhagen and other cities have succeeded in increasing cycling levels by approaching the subject using mainstream marketing techniques. Tried and tested marketing that has existed since homo sapiens first started selling or trading stuff to each other. Modern bicycle advocacy, by and large, is flawed. It is firmly inspired by environmentalism which, in turn, is the greatest marketing flop in the history of humankind. Four decades of sub-cultural finger-wagging, guilt trips and preaching have given few results among the general population. When sub-cultural groups start trying to indoctrinate and convert the public, it rarely ever succeeds. For the better part of a century, people all over the planet rode bicycles because they were quick, easy, convenient and enjoyable. In hilly cities. In hot cities. In snowy cities. After the bicycle largely disappeared from the urban landscape because urban planning s

A Walking Helmet is a Good Helmet

At long last logic prevails. A new campaign has hit the streets of Denmark, thanks to the visionaries at The Danish Road Safety Council [Sikker Trafik] and Trygfonden [an insurance company]. Intense promotion of walking helmets for pedestrians has begun. This logic has been sorely missed. These two organisations have happily promoted bike helmets but pedestrians suffer just as many head injuries, if not more. This Danish campaign poster reads: "A walking helmet is a good helmet" "Traffic safety isn't just for cyclists. The pedestrians of Denmark actually have a higher risk of head injury. The Danish Road Safety Council recommends walking helmets for pedestrians and other good folk in high risk groups." The slogan is catchy in Danish since it kind of rhymes. All in all it's a brilliant project. Let's save some lives. The new walking helmets will be available in the Danish Cyclists Union's [Dansk cyklist forbund] shop. Although, as the

Driving Kills - Health Warnings

I think it's safe to say that we have a pressing need for marketing cycling positively if we're to encourage people to ride bicycles and begin the transformation of our cities into more liveable places. Instead of scare campaigns about cycling [a life-extending, healthy, sustainable transport form], wouldn't it be more appropriate to begin campaigns about the dangers of automobiles? Many people in car-centric countries no longer regard cars as dangerous. Maybe they realise it, but the car is such an ingrained part of the culture that the perception of danger rarely rises to the surface of peoples consciousness. Sure, there are scare campaigns for cars out there, but what if we just cut to the chase? Much like smoking. Only a couple of decades ago, cigarettes were an integral part of life, whether you smoked or not. That has changed radically. We think that we could borrow freely from the health warnings now found on cigarette packs around the world. In order to be tho

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