The Life-Sized City Blog

The Mayor in charge of traffic and environment, Klaus Bondam , has a new idea. He has been trying, together with the Lord Mayor Ritt Bjerregaard , to implement road pricing in Copenhagen in order to limit the amount of motorised traffic. The problem is that the national government is of the right-wing variety and they are blocking the plans. Even though the studies from cities that have road pricing are overwhelmingly positive. So he has now proposed something City Hall calls ' Intelligent Traffic Control '. It involves setting up sensors that measure air pollution in Copenhagen and the levels of pollution they report will regulate the traffic heading into the city. If the pollution levels are too high on any particular day, all the traffic lights on the main roads into the city will turn red and stay red longer than normal. The time the traffic lights are green will be reduced by 10 percent. Motorists will be informed by the internet or text messages before they leave for work...

A Dutch study has proved, yet again, that the level of dangerous microparticles are higher inside cars than on bikes. I posted about how Traffic Kills More People Than Traffic Accidents before, but this recent survey reconfirms the science. Despite the air pollution it is healthier to cycle in traffic than sitting in a car. The levels of particles in the air are greater inside a vehicle than on the bike lanes. So even though a cyclist breathes in more air than a motorist, the concentration of microparticles is lower for the cyclist. The health benefits of cycling greatly overshadow the harm caused by breathing polluted air, the study adds. The study was carried out by Gerad Hoek from Utrecht University and presented in the magazine for the Dutch cyclist organisation, Fietzersbond. If a cyclist wishes to avoid unhealthy particles, it is recommended that he or she avoids areas with heavy traffic and rush hour periods. In particular, avoiding trucks and scooters exhaust is of...

Living Legend , originally uploaded by [Zakkaliciousness] . This chap is a Copenhagen legend. He rides his trike all over the city every day, visiting a long line of cafés and bars. He sells nature stamps - not postage, just decoration for your envelopes - to support a charity... can't remember which. Everyone I know has had the plastic folders with nature stamps in them thrust towards them while in town. Such a dedicated chap. He rides 30 or kilometres a day to a rotating list of cafés and bars. Remember that the next time you whine about a headwind... :-)

Japan has a bicycle culture that the UK and US, among others, drool over. I love seeing the bikes and the overwhelming bicycle culture whenever I'm in Tokyo. So very cool and inspiring. The backbone of the bike culture are the young mothers of the nation. They practice the tradition of 'sannin-nori' - or three-on-a-bike - whenever they have to transport their kids. Most kindergartens in Japan ban mothers from dropping off their kids by car, so these sturdy 'mama-chariots' are an integral part of daily life. One kid up front, another on the back and the mum in the middle. It's a sight you see often in Copenhagen, but in Japan these mothers form a formidable army of toddler transport. When the Government's new cycling laws - a giant leap backwards by all accounts - banned the sannin-nori culture, the mothers of Japan got cross. Their initial protests were heard and it was quickly suggested that they could continue riding with two kids if they rode trikes...

My American friends both here on these blogs and in real life all have theories about why bike usage in America dropped so dramatically since WW2. After viewing the above safety video from 1963, I am quite convinced that we have found the root of all evil. It is my theory, this theory of mine which is my theory that this film scared the pants off of an entire nation and effectively killed any and all desire to ride a bicycle. :-) I fear nightmares tonight. I'm staying up.

Years ago I read an article in a design magazine about new bike designs. I saw a prototype for a shopping bike with up to 20 litres of space in the built in basket. The bike was built, not just a drawing. I haven't seen it since and my friend Marie found this picture in an online pdf. Does anyone out there know of this design and do you have any photos? I'm fascinated by this design.

I've mentioned this before but I haven't seen it for a while. Until today. This is a unique way of advertising in Copenhagen. Printing rain covers for bike seats with [insert your product of message here] and then slap them onto hundreds of bikes. These ones were outside the university and advertised for a job and career convention where students can learn about different job opportunities. Other times it's a product or an event.

Five Wheels, Three Arms , originally uploaded by [Zakkaliciousness] . I waited behind them, snapped a shot. But then as i waited I was wondering why the chap would choose a tricyle. He looked all dapper and casual in his suit and scarf and even engaged the girl next to him in a charming exchange of words and smiles. I figured it was a style choice, that bike. Fair enough. It's a trendy European city. When the light changed, he cycled away, keeping his right hand in his pocket. Or so I thought. It was then i realised that he was missing his right arm. Of course. That's why he pedals around on a tricycle. And how wonderful and Copenhagenesque that he still chooses a bike over other transport forms. And looks sharp in doing so. There are so few reasons not to ride.

Here's one from the bike lanes of Copenhagen that we haven't seen before. Appropriate somehow that it's a cool cat riding this funky tandem bike.

Row of new bikes for sale outside a local bike shop in Copenhagen. As one might expect in a cycling nation, bike sales are healthy. According to the Danish bicycle industry, the good people of Denmark bought 500,000 new bikes in 2006. Not bad for a country of 5.3 million people. It appears to be new record. We here at Copenhagen Bike Culture Blog are guessing that the number will increase in 2007 since we seem to be seeing a lot of new bikes on the streets. The average price of a bike in Denmark in 2006 is 2900 kroner [€386 / $580], which is up from 2500 kroner in 2005. The increase in sales causes a boom for bike workshops, too. While Danes [along with the Dutch] cycle more than any other nation - 1000 km a year per capita - most people can't be bothered repairing their bikes themselves. Whether it is a flat tyre or a rusty chain, Danes prefer dropping them off at a local bike shop. The result is a shortage of bike mechanics in the Danish kingdom. It is estimated that 100 bike me...