{"id":3088,"date":"2021-05-19T03:00:11","date_gmt":"2021-05-18T16:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/2dpoint.net\/?p=3088"},"modified":"2021-05-19T13:39:58","modified_gmt":"2021-05-19T03:09:58","slug":"why-is-the-netherlands-called-the-kingdom-of-cyclists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/2dpoint.net\/why-is-the-netherlands-called-the-kingdom-of-cyclists\/","title":{"rendered":"Why is the Netherlands called the kingdom of cyclists?"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading Time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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  1. The total population of the Netherlands is 1.7 million, and the total number of bicycles is {tooltip}2.2 million.{end-text}As per a 2019 report.{end-tooltip}<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. This makes it 1.3 bikes per person\u2014nowhere else in the world is bike density as high, and, therefore, the Netherlands is called the kingdom of cyclists.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Bicycles were popular in the Netherlands before WWII, but with the post-war economic boom, car ownership increased, and the number of cyclists began decreasing (by 6% every year).<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. This changed again and people started preferring bicycles, in part because of the people\u2019s sensitivity towards road accidents.<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. So, when in 1971, 3300 people (including 400+ children) were killed by motor vehicles, a social movement demanding safer cycling conditions for children was formed.<\/span><\/li>\n
  6. The social movement was called Stop de Kindermoord (meaning Stop the Child Murder), and it brought the advantages of cycling (over cars) to everyone\u2019s notice.<\/span><\/li>\n
  7. The movement was in its early stages when the\u00a0<\/span>Middle East oil crisis<\/span><\/a>\u00a0hit the Netherlands in 1973.<\/span><\/li>\n
  8. During this crisis, oil-exporting Arab countries stopped exporting oil to countries that were perceived to support Israel during the\u00a0<\/span>Israel-Arab countries war<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/li>\n
  9. The social movement and oil crisis pushed the Dutch government to invest in improved cycling infrastructure, and introduce car-free Sundays.<\/span><\/li>\n
  10. The Dutch urban planners also changed their focus from the car-centric road-building policies that the rest of the western world was focused on to bicycle-centred policies.<\/span><\/li>\n
  11. Over the years, the Netherlands developed a vast network of {tooltip}safe{end-text}Even toddlers, elderly and pregnant women use bicycles as the easiest mode of transport.{end-tooltip} cycling paths (smooth, and wide enough to allow side-by-side cycling and overtaking).<\/span><\/li>\n
  12. At several locations, the cyclists don\u2019t have to share paths with motorised traffic, and wherever they have to, there are signs with messages such as \u201cBike Street: Cars are guests\u201d.<\/span><\/li>\n
  13. Cars give way to cycles at most locations, and in accidents with cyclists, the car driver is considered to be at fault as a matter of principle.<\/span><\/li>\n
  14. Today, the Netherlands has more than 35000 kms of cycle paths, and in cities like Amsterdam and The Hague, up to 70% of all journeys are made by bike (on average, the Dutch cycle 1000 km in a year).<\/span><\/li>\n
  15. There are designated posts of bicycle civil servants tasked to maintain and improve the cycle network.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Also Read:<\/strong>
    \n    Why half of the working population in the Netherlands work part-time?<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

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