Tam On Transit

We met with the board chair of the European Cyclists' Federation, Henk Swarttouw, to learn more about how bicycling advancements work at the EU level. While the Dutch approach to cycling as a normal part of transportation, rather than viewing it as an "alternative" transportation, exists in their own forms and histories in other countries of the EU (such as parts of Denmark and Germany), expanding infrastructure to increase the utility and ease of cycling varies widely across the union. When a country or region within a country wants advice on network design, they sometimes turn to the European Cyclists' Federation for guidance.  The European Cyclists' Federation also works as advocates at various levels. At the EU level, the ECF works to improve cycling across all of the union. For example, they try for policy to ensure that biking and rail connect networks and work together. They also work on tax policy that would categorize bikes as basic needs. Whe...

It's a bit startling how easily people can get around here in the Netherlands. Short distances or long distances, we can move about without a ton of planning.  We met up with Bradley Tollison, a former participant of this learning abroad program, at the Driebergen-Zeist train station to learn more about how cycling complements transit more than it competes. When a region makes an ongoing effort to make a less-car life a real possibility, it pays attention to human behavior. In the Netherlands, the city planners noticed that a large portion of bike trips went to or from trains.  (Photo from Cuijk Station near Nijmegen) Turns out, people living in Denmark can participate in a program where they use the same card as the train trips for a bike share bike. So, they can bike to the train (possibly on their own bike), park it, take the train, then borrow an OV fiets (bike) to complete the journey on the other end. I'd noticed these bikes at the stations near Nijmegen (lik...