Biking allows you to stay active and healthy while letting you reduce your carbon footprint at the same time. With the return of the bicycle as a modern form of transport, more and more cities are implementing their own rules and laws when it comes to biking in public places.
That said, a few cities really did a great job that they deserve to be called as the best biking cities on the planet due to a good number of reasons. Without further ado, here are 7 of the best biking cities you could ever ride a bike on:
1. Copenhagen, Denmark
With around 62% of the city’s residents riding a bike to go to work and school, it’s easy to see why Copenhagen is considered one of the best biking cities around the world. As a matter of fact, the city is often hailed as the most bike-friendly city throughout the world.
Due to the bike-friendly measures that were taken by the city, cyclists are able to enjoy up to 390 kilometers of designated bike lanes. Moreover, the Greater Copenhagen area has the so-called “Cycle Super Highway” connecting the city to Albertslund with lots of amenities such as safer intersections and air pumps, to name a few.
Despite the city’s long history of bike-friendliness, a lot of new infrastructures are still being constructed such as regional cycle highways and bike bridges.
2. Amsterdam, Netherlands
Amsterdam has been considered the benchmark for bike-friendly cities around the world. Around 60% of the city’s entire population uses a bike to travel every day, and roughly 73% of the population owns a bike. It’s speculated that by 2025, the city will replace over 11,000 parking spaces from the city centre with sidewalks, bike parking, and trees.
In spite of that, there have been some major challenges that urban planning has to contend with. For example, the number of motorized scooters traveling on bike paths has significantly increased, thereby posing a safety risk.
3. Tokyo, Japan
Tokyo might be a crammed capital city with more than 13 million people occupying 800+ square miles of land. However, you’ll be surprised to find out that it actually made its way to one of the best biking cities around the world. In fact, 14% of all the total trips in Tokyo are done by bike. Apart from its impressive number of designated bike lanes, the city also features sidewalks for pedestrians and bikers.
However, cycling in Tokyo is slightly different. Only a few people ride their bikes to work as distances from their houses to their offices are long, and there’s already the mass transit system to take care of that. Instead, bike rides are often held around the many neighbourhoods that make up the city. Aside from that, it’s also legal to ride a bike on sidewalks and footpaths.
4. Malmö, Sweden
Malmö has really been pushing the use of urban cycling in everyday life. One good example is the newly finished bicycle ferry to Copenhagen which is just one of the city’s means of making connections to the city. Apart from that, there’s also a residential building known as Cykelhuset where bikes are regarded as the main mode of transportation and where people can travel to work and school without the use of a car.
5. Portland, Oregon
Portland might not be able to surpass Europe when it comes to bike-friendliness, but it’s certainly doing its best. There have been some improvements made by the Portland Bureau of Transportation in order to help its residents and tourists get around the city using a bike.
One good example of that is giving free printed city maps and safety information to provide assistance to bikers, allowing them to navigate the city with ease. The city also has a public bike rental system that is hailed as among the greenest around the world by using pre-existing bike corrals instead of constructing new bike kiosks.
Due to the number of cyclists cramming the city, a total of nine urban routes were developed. One of them is the “Short, Steep, & Sweet” route which is a 15-mile hilly climb that offers a scenic view of the Tualatin Valley and passes through the West Hills neighbourhood to the Washington Park.
6. Antwerp, Belgium
Antwerp is no doubt the most attractive city in Belgium for cyclists. In fact, roughly 1/3 of all the trips in this city are made by bike, with more than 50% of the riders female. The city features impressive bike parking at its main train station alongside a wide network of cycle paths connecting the suburbs outside the ring road.
There were several large-scale projects constructed such as three new bridges designed for pedestrians and cyclists, cycle paths along the harbour, and more. Also, the city is planning to expand its regional bike highways and lower speed limits on almost all streets, among others.
7. Berlin, Germany
Berlin was able to make it to the list of the best biking cities around the world due to the massive campaigning done by the city’s cycling community. Apart from that, most of the bikers make the most of Berlin’s wide streets, flat terrain, and various bikeways. The city has a total of 900 kilometres of cycling paths which makes it a lot easier for bikers to get around the city.
Q: How are the cities ranked?
A: Cities are ranked based on different criteria that include safety, crime, rental availability, infrastructure, and bike-related events.
Q: What are the worst cities to ride a bike on?
A: According to statistics, Boston is the worst city when it comes to road safety due to the number of accidents that involve cyclists. Specifically, Boston has 3,459 accidents for every 100,000 cyclists which is a pretty alarming rate. To avoid the risk you must check out the best mountain bikes. This website has reviewed some of the good bikes you may take a look at this site.