The Life-Sized City Blog

When it rains, it pours. A little while ago I blogged about how there appears to be a growing resistance against bike helmet laws around the world. Then I got word from my network of a couple more developments. Mexico City repealed their bike helmet law back in February 2010. Let's face it, it wasn't much of a law since there was little enforcement and it was, essentially, unenforceable. Back in 2008 there was a bicycle count including over 26,000 cyclists and 93% of them didn't feel the need to wear a helmet. The main reason for the push to repeal the helmet law was the upcoming implementation of the city's bike share system, Ecobici . The Institute for Transportation and Development Policy [ITDP] were instrumental in getting the law repealed but there was also support from within the city government. Back in December I blogged about how the helmet law in Israel was up for repeal , as well. From what I've heard the lobbying was successful and adults are no longer...

Moscow Cyclist - from the Moscow Cycle Chic photo set . The Russian president Medvedev has just wrapped up a state visit to Denmark. During the back slapping/see-we're-best-of-friends press conference about all matter of stuff, a Russian journalist asked a question that caused both the Danish PM and the Russian president to smile. The woman asked PM Lars Løkke Rasmussen about the many cyclists in Copenhagen, " How hard was it, from an investment perspective, to make Copenhagen a bicycle-friendly city? " She then asked Medvedev what his opinion was about the bicycle as transport, as she was puzzled by seeing so few cyclists on the streets of St. Petersborg . The PM gave all the credit to the City of Copenhagen for the high level of cycling in the city and underlined that it was an effort that has taken several years. " But basically, it is the public's demand for bicycle infrastructure that makes it happen. Danes want to cycle and that puts pressure on cities to m...

I hadn't really thought about the concept of greenwashing... bicycles... before. Wifealiciousness showed me a Danish bicycle in a fashion magazine - Eurowoman . One I had never heard of before. The text - short and sweet like most captions in fashion magazines [to be read inbetween sips of café lattes] - read, " A bicycle doesn't pollute and while you pedal you get fit. Danish Eco2bikes bicycles are made of aluminium, which is easy to recycle and the bicycles feature an environmentally-friendly lacquer. " Hmm, thought I. Since when did aluminium become a USP for bicycles?! And is an 'environmentally-friendly' lacquer really that vital in the race to save polar bears? So I googled this brand and found the Eco2bikes website , looking forward to a warm and fuzzy 'Yeah! We're saving the fucking planet!' sensation of idealism. Um... well... looking through the website I couldn't find any Golden Ratio for their design concept. I couldn't see gla...

I've seen all manner of retro stuff - retrocity, to coin a word (rhymes with velocity/atrocity)- in this booming bicycle age but how wonderful to see a new Draisine! No, no... they're not pedals, they're footrests. Carl von would be so proud. As seen in Barcelona. And thank Odin for the spotting, 'cause I've been wondering for ages how I'd work this next bit into a blogpost. Photo from the IVCA website. From June 2-6, 2010 Denmark will be hosting the 30th IVCA rally on the island of Møn! ( International Veteran Cycle Association ... duh) From the website: The Danish Vintage Bicycle Club will present an engaging programme , in which you will be able to partake of Danish cuisine. [EDITOR'S NOTE - Nobody has ever come to Denmark for the cuisine.] You will also get a taste of the island’s past in its famous cliffs, whose interesting geological formations are mingled with the remains of prehistoric wildlife. [EDITOR'S NOTE: You'll be wanting to taste t...

Saw this photo on a Danish website reporting about which airports are open or closed. Can't see which airport it is, but it's a cool shot. And whenever I'm in the dull, dreary hell that is Frankfurt Airport, at least I always see bicycles parked or being ridden around by the staff.

Here we have a couple of Copenhageners who are partipating in a "strenuous activity beyond the capability of some people and that may cause minor, severe and/or permanent injuries or death to people who are not in sufficient physical fitness, training and/or experience." And here we have two individuals who have "Acknowledged that some Bicycling is a test of their physical and mental limits and carries with it, regardless of physical fitness or experience, the potential for death, serious injury and property loss. They have assumed the risks of participating in Bicycling. They certify that their level of fitness is appropriate to participate in Bicycling which they are voluntarily undertaking." What am I on about? One of our readers, Dottie , is a lawyer in Chicago and she loves urban cycling. The Dutch Embassy and Consulates in the US and Canada have a bike ride roadshow called Go Green, Go Dutch, Go Bike! wherein they promote cycling and the wonderful Dutch bicyc...

So the Brits are ditching their bicycle postmen. Royal Mail is calling it "modernisation" and citing "safety" as the reason . Over a century of not only tradition but also role models for urban and rural mobility will soon be lost. It's just mad. Does anyone know which company will be providing the vans to replace the bicycles? Was there lobby work at play? Wouldn't surprise me. With a sigh of disgust I just figured I'd chuck a whole bunch of photos of postmen and women in Copenhagen doing what they've done for over a century. And here's a spot of Cycle Chic on the left and a stamp celebrating Danish postal workers.

I experienced a strange little behavourial shift in myself recently. I use my two bicycles rather equally - the Velorbis and the Bullitt cargo bike. When not transporting kids, the Bullitt cargo bay is a respository for my bag. I just chuck it in, instead of having it slung around my shoulder. I discovered that I missed this ease-of-use when riding the upright Velorbis. I stuck the bag, Copenhagen-style, on the back rack under the rat trap. Which is what I've always done and, indeed, what most people without baskets do. Then I got a front rack put onto the Velorbis. These front racks have been a main feature for over a century, especially on Short Johns or delivery bikes/chimney sweep bikes or whatever you want to call them. Interestingly, they're experiencing a bit of a revival these day in Copenhagen. As soon as mine was on, I noticed that I was just slapping my bag onto the front rack and securing it with a bungee cord. Super quick and easy. Then I realised that the damned t...

A while ago... I'm guessing over a year and a half... I recall a reader emailing me with a request for a post about a bicycle culture tiny detail in Copenhagen. The little hook thingy found on most back racks. It's a practical solution to a question that arose about a century ago. How to transport your briefcase on your bicycle? While I'm quite sure this isn't a uniquely Danish thing, it does however seem to live on more in Denmark than elsewhere. The Dutch evolved a culture for using pannier bags while the Danes preferred the basket. Not many men used a basket and for the better part of a century, briefcases were what men carted around. In the style of the one in the above photo. Soft leather. Widespread use of these briefcases - I'm making a qualified guess here - faded away in the late 1960's. When the grassroots movement to reinstate the bicycle on the urban landscape started in the mid-70's it was borne, by and large, by the flower power culture of the ...

Photo: Bax Lindhardt for BT This is Helle Kühl. In May 2009 she was knocked off her bike by a car near Copenhagen's Central Station. The car was a rental driven by an American woman who was insured by American Express . According to the Danish newspaper BT , the police have said that the American woman wasn't used to watching for cyclists and, after the accident, couldn't understand that it was her fault. Helle Kühl was heading straight on through an intersection. A right-turning bus had stopped for her but the American woman, who was turning left across the intersection, didn't. American Express, through a collection agency, has been hassling Helle Kühl for $3106.41 - about 16,000 Danish kroner - for the damages to the car. Helle Kühl said to BT newspaper: " This is completely insane. I'm an innocent victim and now they want me to pay 16,000 kroner because I got run over. This is an Americanization of the situation ". There were many witnesses to the acci...