The Life-Sized City Blog

As the graphic above indicates, the potential for switching to bicycles and cargo bikes in European cities is impressive, according to a Cyclelogistics.eu baseline study. 51% of all motorised trips related to goods transport could realistically be done on bikes and cargo bikes. This is a good thing. Copenhagenize Design Company have been involved with the brilliant Cyclelogistics.eu project for two and a half years now. The project is aimed at promoting the use of cargo bikes in European cities. We've recently posted about our Shop by Bike campaign here in Copenhagen and for the past two and half years there have been great initiatives in all of our partner cities. Our partner in Graz, Austria - FGM Amor - have spearheaded a Cyclelogistics baseline study about how much of the the goods transport in a city could realistically be switched to cargo bikes and bicycles . In the above graphic you can see what the transport equation looks like in European cities. T...

An American-style shopping centre on the outskirts of Copenhagen - Fields - has now created specific bicycle parking for cargo bikes. With 40,000 cargo bikes in Copenhagen, it really is a no brainer. Architect Lasse Schelde, head of the Bicycle Innovation Lab and environmental NGO Miljøpunkt Amager was responsible for this little pocket of visionaryness. I know that's not a word. Well, maybe it is now. Great to see cargo bikes prioritised, not least because so many people use them. And a sensible solution, too, with railings to lock your bike to. Copenhagenize Consulting is working on similar projects with our Cyclelogistics EU project .

It's been a while since we've written about cycling to IKEA in Copenhagen . I headed out there with the kids yesterday to pick up a few things. Lulu on the Bullitt and Felix on his bike. Lulu clearly drew the long straw, especially considering the rolling terrain you meet once you leave the city. She sang the whole way. Above and below are some photos from the journey. One of the most popular articles on this blog was a few years ago. IKEA did a transport study of their customers and found out, to their surprise, that about 25% of their customers rode bicycles or took public transport. They promptly started a bike borrowing scheme to accommodate their customers who wanted to get their stuff home by bike and trailer. They were surprised, but shouldn't have been. Only 29.1% of Copenhageners own a car so other transport options are a given. You may also recall an earlier trip to IKEA that I documented a few years ago . This is a different route than the one we took...

Open publication - Free publishing - More bicycle Our friend and colleague Thomas Krag presented this paper early in the millenium and we've long since thought it appropriate to translate it into English. At long last we're happy to present it here. We used some of the findings in an earlier article here on the blog - Save a Street - With Bicycles ! There is often a conflict of interest between shoppers’ wishes regarding parking and the actual plans to calm traffic in the city, i.e. the efforts to promote bicycle traffic. In addition many retailers are of the opinion, that cyclists are not good customers. There are a good number of studies available regarding shopping and traffic behaviour, and attitudes towards the two, that can help bring some perspective into this discussion. This paper will deal with: - general trends in shop and retail development - current knowledge of relation between transport and shopping patterns - views and facts regarding types of cust...

Photo from the Facebook group Red H.C. Ørstedsvej ! (Save H.C. Ørsteds Street!) Just when you think you've seen it all, you inevitably see something weird. I was sent a link to a Facebook group called Save H.C. Ørsteds Street! A street in Frederiksberg - the neighbourhood in which I live - is under attack, one would assume. The small businesses in the street started a group to raise awareness about it and they all blacked out their windows in protest, as you can see in the photo above. Now this being Frederiksberg, in the heart of Copenhagen, it wouldn't be surprising that you'd assume that some evil plan was underway. Something that would jeopardise the quality of life here in Denmark's most densely-populated neighbourhood. What, pray tell, could this Imminent Threat be? Dare we ask? Um... it's bicycle infrastructure and traffic calming. Believe or not, once in a while we do still experience minor protests regarding changes to the traffic situation. There...

Here's a quirky thing in our bicycle culture here in Denmark. It's no surprise that January and February are the slowest months for the business of selling bicycles. What many - and I mean many - bike shops do is transform themselves into fireworks shops. In Denmark you're only allowed to sell fireworks between December 1 - 31 each year, in the run up to New Year's Eve. Bike shops are major sellers of the gear, like this one in the photo. Not only are January and Feburary slow months, there is also tough competition. A couple of years ago I counted 27 bike shops in my neighbourhood - with a 7 minute bike ride from my flat. That number is now 40+, as I've discovered more and more . Most bike shops are small and earn their wage repairing bicycles, more than selling them. In January and February, even though 80% of Copenhageners cycle all winter, there are fewer people needing repairs. An innovative, unique way to muscle up the sales figures before the Janu...