By Zachary Shahan
Topping yet another bicycle list, Amsterdam is #1 here because of the great bicycle photos to follow along with the fact that 40% of traffic is bicycle traffic in Amsterdam and the city is full of bicycle facilities, including a 10,000-bicycle parking garage at its train station.
Amsterdam may not have as high a percentage of bicycle commuters as its Dutch neighbor to the north, Groningen, or as much bike-crazy counter-culture as Portland (Oregon), or the largest bicycle sharing program in the world like in Paris, or naked bicycle rides like in Barcelona and Portland, but compared to these and other world cities I think it is pretty well established now that it and Copenhagen are in a tight competition for the top position. Amsterdam tops this list because of the great photos to follow.
The photos here show love and kisses on bikes, tons of bike parking, creative family bikes, flower bikes, and various cargo bikes, among other things.
Everyone rides a bike in the Netherlands, even Santa Clause (or Sinterklaas). Riding a bike doesn't take away from women's fashion at all either, but adds to it here. Biking is a part of normal life — perhaps that is why the Dutch are so calm.
As the capital and largest city in the Netherlands, a major global city, and a major transportation hub, Amsterdam is the most well-known bicycle city in the Netherlands. But it is really a representation of the country as a whole — the country is filled with wide, colored bike lanes (I think it is a requirement in every municipality and you even see them in the countryside), bike garages and bridges, bicycle short-cuts, and very high percentages of trips being made by bicycle in cities large and small. As the capital of the Netherlands, Amsterdam represents its country well.
"Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride." ~John F. Kennedy
"Cycle tracks will abound in Utopia." ~H.G. Wells
The pages to follow cover:
Page #2 Tons of Bike Parking in Amsterdam
Page #3 Bicycle? (known as a Penny-Farthing, High Wheeler or Ordinary Bicycle)
Page #4 Tons of Bike Minivans and Family Bikes
Page #5 Bikes, Rain, and Canals
Page #6 Bike Taxis
Page #7 Women's Fashion and Bikes
Page #8 Creative Bikes and Flowers
Page #9 Interesting Cargo Bikes
Page #10 Love & Kisses & Bikes
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