Category Archives: The Netherlands

A kerb nerd protests

Posted on February 21, 2014 by aseasyasriding

The epithet ‘kerb nerds’ seems to have been coined to describe those people who think that, on roads that carry a certain volume of motor traffic, travelling at a certain speed, cycling as a mode of transport should not share … Continue reading →

Posted in Cycling Embassy Of Great Britain, Cycling policy, Infrastructure, Subjective safety, The Netherlands | 25 Comments

Gridlock

Posted on February 7, 2014 by aseasyasriding

Along with concerns about surrendering the road to motor vehicles, one of the main reasons for opposition to the physical separation of cycling from motor traffic is a fear of being ‘held up’. This is the worry, from people who … Continue reading →

Posted in Infrastructure, London, Space for Cycling, The Netherlands, Uncategorized | 23 Comments

The steps

Posted on February 5, 2014 by aseasyasriding

There is a small entrance to the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, from St Giles’. It brings you into the grand central courtyard from the east, through a corridor in the building, rather than via the direct and obvious entrance from the … Continue reading →

Posted in Car dependence, Guardrail, Gyratories, Horsham, Infrastructure, Subjective safety, The Netherlands, Walking | 26 Comments

Visibility in context

Posted on January 28, 2014 by aseasyasriding

The winter is of course the period of the year when people riding bikes get urged to ‘lighten up’ and to make themselves visible. It is easy to lose count of the number of articles and police campaigns on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Cyclists' Touring Club, Lights, Road safety, The Netherlands | 43 Comments

If driving in Britain was like cycling in Britain

Posted on January 24, 2014 by aseasyasriding

You need to make a short trip with your children, by car. The first thing to do is to dress them (and yourself) appropriately. That means ensuring you are wearing dayglo reflective tabards, and crash helmets. Driving a car is … Continue reading →

Posted in Absurd transport solutions, The Netherlands | 34 Comments

The natural impulse to protect, and what it means for the school run

Posted on January 8, 2014 by aseasyasriding

A couple of days ago I was sent this email circular from PTRC, a company that runs training courses for transport and planning. It’s by David Jilks, the PR manager for CILT (the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport). Running … Continue reading →

Posted in Car dependence, Cycling policy, Infrastructure, Safety, Space for Cycling, Subjective safety, The Netherlands | 54 Comments

One activity can have different forms

Posted on January 3, 2014 by aseasyasriding

We use words to describe things. They are useful. A small problem, however, is that there aren’t enough of them. Human beings can only remember a finite number of words, and that means, inevitably, that there aren’t enough words to … Continue reading →

Posted in Helmets, Infrastructure, James Cracknell, The Netherlands, Uncategorized | 31 Comments

Not dangerous

Posted on December 31, 2013 by aseasyasriding

In 2013, we’ve heard a lot about the dangers of cycling. So, as the year comes to end, it’s time for a brief reminder of some things that aren’t dangerous. Riding a bike without a helmet is not dangerous. Riding … Continue reading →

Posted in Subjective safety, The Netherlands | 103 Comments

Not culture, not history – physical change

Posted on December 13, 2013 by aseasyasriding

I was struck by two details from yesterday’s blogpost by Mark Wagenbuur, about early protests for child-friendly streets in Amsterdam in the 1970s – details that highlight the importance of the quality of the physical environment for enabling cycling, over … Continue reading →

Posted in Car dependence, Infrastructure, Permeability, Subjective safety, The Netherlands | 52 Comments

The difference between walking and cycling safety

Posted on December 5, 2013 by aseasyasriding

At the end of my last post about ‘dangerising’, I mused about why, despite the presence of many pedestrians – and speeches from pedestrian campaigners – at the Die In last Friday, nobody appeared to voice any concern that people … Continue reading →

Posted in Infrastructure, London, Subjective safety, The Netherlands, Walking | 29 Comments