v e l o... c i t y

Based on this list of the top cycling-friendly cities in the world (link from All About Cities), I'll be updating my list of desired travel destinations, and maybe my residential wish list as well.

Some highlights:

• 40% of ALL traffic in Amsterdam is by bike and plans include construction of a 10,000-bike parking garage
• Portland, OR has 260 miles of bike network
• Boulder, CO has spent 15% of its transportation budget on bike infrastructure, and 95% of arterials have bike lanes
• Davis, CA residents voted to get rid of public school busses and own more bikes than cars
• Trondheim, Norway uses the world's first bike lift, modeled after ski lifts
• 40,000 San Francisco commuters regularly use their bikes
• There is a bike path that completely surrounds the metropolitan area of Barcelona

In addition to daily getting around, I believe the absolute best way to see a city is by bike. After riding all over the place in twenty years, I've always found that my memories are clearer, I've seen places and things I wouldn't otherwise, and it's been more enjoyable than it would have been behind the wheel of a car in a strange place. It's slow enough to be able to look around a little, but fast enough to be able to really cover some ground.

Photo from Treehugger.