The Netherlands: Almere and four other cities selected for nomination as the bicycle city of Holland

Biking is fun, scenic and safe in the Netherlands

Almere, Europe's newest and most modern city has been selected together with the cities of Eindhoven, Enschede, Velsen and Zwolle,  to be nominated in the spring of 2014 as the bicycle city of the Netherlands by the Dutch Bicycle Federation.

These five cites were among nineteen cities that had initially registered to participate in this selection.

There are more bicycles than residents in The Netherlands and in cities like Amsterdam and The Hague up to 70% of all journeys are made by bike. 

To make cycling safer and more inviting the Dutch have built a vast network of cycle paths.

These are clearly marked, have smooth surfaces, separate signs and lights for those on two wheels, and wide enough to allow side-by-side cycling and overtaking.

Even before they can walk, Dutch children are immersed in a world of cycling. As babies and toddlers they travel in special seats on "bakfiets", or cargo bikes. These seats are often equipped with canopies to protect the children from the elements.

Biking in the Netherlands is an integral part of everyday life rather than a specialist's accessory or a symbol of a minority lifestyle. Dutch people in general are not concerned about having the very latest model of bike or hi-tech gadgets. 

Getting on a bike is fun and safe in the Netherlands

Almere-Digest

FOCUS-ON : A new EU-Digest monthly feature

Starting July 26 EU-Digest will  focus monthly on one specific subject selected from a wide range of relevant issues. The "sky being the limit" as to the issues that will be discussed. At times we will write the report ourselves and on other occasions invite special guests to do so. 

The first "FOCUS ON"  will be featuring:  "Netherlands the best place in the world to take a biking vacation"
 
EU-Digest will also review any of our readers voluntary contributions for possible inclusion in the "FOCUS-ON" series, but reserves the right to reject them without further explanation. To get your proposals to us just write them into the comments link of any EU-Digest report.

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EU-Digest

Copenhagen's Green Sheen: It's Not Just About The Bikes - by Justin Gerdes

Whenever I mention to Americans that I have worked in Copenhagen, I’m invariably asked (after an alarmingly large number confuse the Danes with the Dutch) about the bikes. For good reason.

Yes, the Danes just like the Dutch love their bikes, as I came to love mine – even when peddling to work on dark, frigid, wet January mornings. Statistics only hint at the scale of the phenomenon (in 2010, 35% of all trips to work or school in Copenhagen were made by bike; for Copenhagen residents, the figure is 50%).

Researchers found that for every kilometer traveled by bike instead of by car taxpayers saved euro 6.0 cents ($ 7.8 cents) in avoided air pollution, accidents, congestion, noise and wear and tear on infrastructure. Cyclists in Copenhagen cover an estimated 1.2 million kilometers each day – saving the city a little over Euro 26. 16 million ($34 million) each year.

With so many residents commuting by bike, Copenhagen reaps additional benefits. The report authors cite one study which found that cycling for a half-hour daily increases mean life expectancy by 1-2 years. Not only can motorists who switch to a bicycle expect to live longer, they’ll be saving themselves (and other taxpayers) mone

For more: Copenhagen's Green Sheen: It's Not Just About The Bikes - Forbes

Biking: Touring Europe on a bicycle can be a unique and rewarding experience - by Tim Hintze

I've taken a bike to Europe four times, spending 11 months wandering the roads by day, camping by night. When camping wasn't an option, I've stayed at hostels, B&Bs (bed and breakfast) and a couple of hotels. I've ridden in Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, England, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Spain, Switzerland, Austria and Liechtenstein -- a country entirely within the Alps, about 15 miles long, home to 30,000-to-35,000 people and according to the British tabloid the Daily Mail, available for rent at £40,000 a night.

The bike has allowed me to travel to places off the beaten path. I seldom see the backpacker crowd who travel with their Eurorail passes or the tourists who travel by bus and can afford to stay in hotels. I'm rarely where they are. Last year, riding in Denmark and Sweden, I did not speak to a single American during my four weeks on the road. The Danes and the Swedes always approached me speaking their native language. I was told "we rarely see an American here" (Denmark), "we've never had an American here" (Sweden). I had similar experiences in France in 2008.

I have spent the night at numerous campgrounds in Europe, slept on the beach, in forests, rock-strewn pastures, abandoned farm houses and barns, and huddled up in ditches alongside the road.

For more: HeraldNet.com - Sports: Touring Europe on a bicycle can be a unique and rewarding experience

Holland to become the center of the world for cycling racing sport fans in 2010

Biking in the Netherlands, a practical and healthy tradition

EU-Digest

Holland to become the center of the world for cycling racing sport fans in 2010

All three of cycling’s super three-week “grand tours” will begin in the Netherlands next summer. The first bike-racing frenzy begins on May 8, with the 93rd Giro d'Italia departing from Amsterdam. Two months later on July 3, the Tour de France starts from Rotterdam, and on Saturday, Aug. 29, from Assen the Vuelta a España .

Holland is a country famous for windmills, tulips, and wooden shoes. But whoever has the opportunity to visit Holland, quickly discovers that this is also a country of bicycles. With nearly as many bikes as people (14 million bikes, 16 million Dutchmen), pancake-flat Holland was made for pedaling. Everyone, from grandparents to "too-cool" teens, takes to the roads by bike. Women master the art of discreetly pedaling in skirts and stilettos, and it’s not unusual to see a man in a €2,000 suit cycling home from the office. Even the Queen and Dutch PM bike. The Dutch use the bike for just about everything — to do the groceries, go to work, recreation, or just to go visit with friends in the city. Cycling is also pretty safe in Holland. American cyclists are three times more likely to be killed as would Dutch cyclists. Some people argue that part of the blame of accidents falls on bad drivers. Others say it is because the US has very few bike paths and cyclist take life in their hands when biking on public roads Maybe so, but it is also much harder to get a drivers license in the EU than in America. No drivers license is issued before you reach the age of 18.

The total value of bikes made in Europe last year reached €1.9 billion, with Holland providing 30 per cent of that total (€577,000). They top the list of bike producers in the EU with Germany and France coming in second and third.

If you want to go native and use your own green energy when visiting Holland, rent a bike. Bikes are available for rent - by the day, week or month - at most major train stations in Holland, from Maastricht in the south, to the northern city of Groningen. In the most visited tourist spots, such as Amsterdam, Gouda and Leiden, private companies offer rentals as well as bicycle sightseeing tours through cities and into the windmill-dotted, canal-crossed outlying areas. Expect to pay a minimum of 8 euros a day for a simple pedal-brake bike and up to 20 euros a day for the luxury of a hybrid bike with gears and manual brakes.

Spiegel OnLine: Making Everyman a Superman: Electric Bikes Gain Speed and Popularity - by Christian Wüst

For the complete report from SPIEGEL ONLINE click on this link

Making Everyman a Superman: Electric Bikes Gain Speed and Popularity - by Christian Wüst

The electric bike is increasingly popular with the mass market. But because it is capable of traveling at higher speeds than a moped, it is also rushing headlong into a gray zone where there is no speed limit nor any helmet laws.

It feels a little eerie, this bike. The electric motor -- barely audible -- hums along, providing a little boost to each pedal stroke and simulating the feeling of riding downhill even when the rider is traveling uphill. Riding the Kalkhoff Pro Connect S model, a cyclist in average shape can reach speeds of about 40 kilometers per hour (25 miles per hour) on flat ground -- that's roughly the average speed of cyclists in the Tour de France -- without over exerting themselves at all. The manufacturer refers to this effect as an "integrated tailwind.

VeloNews: Tour de France - Armstrong: ‘No guarantees’ to win Tour again - by Andrew Hood

For the complete report from VeloNews click on this link

Tour de France - Armstrong: ‘No guarantees’ to win Tour again - by Andrew Hood

The seven-time Tour champion is confident he will attain a high level come July, but admitted he cannot take for granted he will be the same rider who won barnstormed to seven consecutive titles from 1999-2005. “It’s hard to say. In the past, I was always riding to win. We’re not there yet. Frankly, I don’t know if I will get back there,” he said Friday in a press conference. “This experiment, if you want to call it that, has never been attempted before. Would I like to be? Yes, I’d like to be competitive.”

At 37, and after more than three years away from competitive cycling, Armstrong cannot count on winning as dominantly as he did during his previous reign.

Paris Joins 2-Wheel Trend in Europe - - by JENNIFER CONLIN

For the complete report from the NYT click on this link

Paris Joins 2-Wheel Trend in Europe - by JENNIFER CONLIN

Biking is fast becoming the transportation of choice in environmentally aware European cities. Take Paris, for instance. As of next week, the French capital will have more than 10,000 bikes for rent at 750 stations (right) around the city, providing both tourists and residents with an opportunity to feel environmentally chaste, not to mention giving them a fun, fast way to explore. Called Vélib’, the program allows riders to pick up and drop off the three-speed bikes at any one of the various stations spread throughout the city. The first 30 minutes are free; after that the cost is 1 euro, or about $1.35, for the first half-hour, 2 euros for the second half-hour and 4 euros for each half hour after that.