CYCLINGEMBASSY OF DENMARKANNUAL REPORT 2018

LET US PROMOTE CYCLING IN CITIES AROUND THE WORLD TOGETHER

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LET’S PROMOTE CYCLING IN CITIES AROUND THE WORLDThe Cycling Embassy of Denmark (CED) is a network of private companies, public authorities (local, regional, and national), NGO’s, and others that work professionally with cycling. Our compe-tencies include planning bicycle-friend-ly and liveable cities, creating synergy between cycling and public transport, building safe infrastructure for cyclists like cycle tracks and bicycle bridges, developing successful campaigns and municipal policies that motivate people of all age groups to cycle, designing urban furniture like bicycle pumps, bike counters, and bicycle parking facilities, and much more.

We want to share Danish best practice to help you boost cycling in your city. The CED offers lectures, guided bike tours, workshops, masterclasses, and more giving stakeholders knowledge and concrete tools to put cycling on the political agenda and get people cycling in their home country or city.

WHAT CAN YOU LEARN FROM THE DANISH CYCLE CITIES? A steady flow of politicians, urban plan-ners, engineers and NGO’s from all over the world come to Denmark to study the Danish bicycle culture. In addition to re-ceiving a long list of visiting delegations, the CED also hosted its fourth Bikeable City Masterclass this year. Melinda Han-

son from the organization NACTO-GDCI (National Association of City Transpor-tation Officials - Global Designing Cities Initiative) was one of the participants. After an intense 5-day program cover-ing Copenhagen and Odense, Melin-da Hanson and her three NACTO team mates were ready to start adapting and applying some of their new tools at home. Asked how her learning from the masterclass had helped qualify the bicycle initiatives she is working on at home, Melinda Hanson put is quite plainly:

“We’re working with the city of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to plan for a compre-hensive bicycle network. It’s much easi-er to make the case for cycling as a real transportation option for all ages, abili-ties, and socioeconomic groups after seeing it work in Copenhagen.”

The CED is looking forward to host yet another masterclass May 20-24, 2019.

KEY RESULTS 2018“In Denmark, we have 100 years of experience plan-ning cycle-friendly cities, developing cycling infra-structure and cycling campaigns. Cities all over the world are facing challenges related to the effects of decades of car-oriented city planning: congestion, air pollution, noise, physical inactivity, CO2 emis-sions and crowded and unattractive public spaces. (Re)-introducing the bicycle, especially in combina-tion with public transport, can help us meet these challenges. The Cycling Embassy of Denmark’s mis-sion is to help facilitate this change in cities at home and across the globe.

- Marianne Weinreich, Chairman, Cycling Embassy of Denmark

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Marianne Weinreich, Chairman, Cycling Embassy of Denmark

48,400 cyclists cross the Queen Louise Bridge making it the busiest cycle track in Copenhagen. Source: City of Copenhagen’s Bicycle Account 2016. Photo: Danish Cyclists’ Federation/Christina Nørdam Andersen

Bicycle parking at Nørreport Station, the busiest transit hub in Copenhagen. Photo: Gottlieb Paludan Architects.

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RECOMMENDATIONS BY CYCLING EMBASSY OF DENMARK

As a result of the many delegations that seek insight into the Danish take on bicycle promotion, this year, the CED launched nine recommendations as to how and why cycling should be an inte-gral part of urban mobility:

The bicycle is a valuable means of transport in its own right and should be treated as suchThe bicycle holds an enormous poten-tial as a space-efficient, sustainable and liveable transport solution for everyday mass mobility. The bicycle is not limited to being a toy, nor is it just for leisure and sport. Cities must recognize cycling as a mode of transport in its own right and start planning for cycling on a par with cars, public transport and walking.

Cycling can provide mobility for allBeing economically accessible and simple to handle, the bicycle allows for widespread mobility regardless of age, income level, physical condition, gen-der and cultural background. Therefore, cycling can increase equitable health and social inclusion in both developed and developing countries.

A strong bicycle culture requires long-term political commitment and priority Cycling will only become attractive to the broad population if it is prioritized politically. So, decision-makers at lo-cal, regional, and national level need to work strategically and continuously on improving conditions for cyclists by prioritizing space, funding, investments

and legislative measures that benefit cycling.

Protected cycle tracks contribute to safe and secure conditions for cyclists in cit-iesA coherent network of protected cycling infrastructure is essential to making cy-cling accessible for the broad popula-tion and to ensuring safe and attractive cycling. Danish best practice cycling infrastructure provides cyclists with their own safe space. The one-way bicycle tracks are clearly segregated from the road by a kerb, while car parking facili-ties, if required, appear to the left of the cycle track.

A strong bicycle culture requires an inte-grated approachA holistic understanding of all elements of cycling is paramount to making cy-cling competitive with other transport modes. Dedicated cycling infrastructure should be combined with focused ur-ban planning, mobility management, education and behavioural cam-paigns, dedicated maintenance, bicy-cle parking, multimodal services and a strong public transport system.

Cycling reduces CO2 emissions, pollu-tion, congestion and lifestyle diseasesWhile the cost of cycling infrastructure is often much lower than that of other modes of transportation, the benefits of cycling are substantial for both the in-dividual and society as a whole. Con-solidating the bicycle as a cornerstone of the urban transportation system can help pave the way for reaching a num-ber of the United Nations Sustainable

Development Goals, including No. 13, Climate Action, No. 11, Sustainable Cit-ies and Communities, and No. 3, Good Health and Well-Being.

Cycling is part of future mobility and the smart cityThe bicycle plays a crucial role in the smart city, and new, intelligent solu-tions should allow for and accelerate increased cycling as part of an inte-grated transport system. New technol-ogy should be developed and imple-mented, not as a goal in itself, but as a means to increase quality of life, sustain-ability and resilience for both societies and individuals.

International cooperation can acceler-ate increased cyclingCountries, cities, organizations, research institutions, civil society and public and private partners from all over the world need to share knowledge and ideas on how to promote cycling. Among us, we have the know-how to increase the pace of the development toward more sustainable urban mobility with cycling at the core. The Cycling Embassy of Denmark is ready both to inspire and to be inspired.

Cycling contributes to more sustainable and liveable citiesCycling contributes to humanizing and democratizing our cities and securing a good quality of life for future gener-ations. Designing cycling-friendly cities means designing people-friendly cities characterized by vibrant urban life and social interaction.

New Cycle Superhighway towards Odense University. Photo: City of Odense

PRESENTAROUND THE WORLD

CED

ITS World Congress 2018 in Copenhagen: Dutch, Danish and other experts discussed how tech can help make cycling more attractive and easy for people and help cities reach their goals for a more safe, sustainable, liveable, climate friendly, green, effective, and healthy city.

SEEKING NEW KNOWLEDGE AND PARTNERSHIPSThe CED’s members meet three times a year to network, share new knowledge and listen to inspiring presenters from home and abroad. This year, we have had the pleasure of learning from the Belgian organization ProVelo and their approach to behavior change cam-paigns. Rupprect Consult shared their insights from the EU project, FLOW, on how more walking and cycling can help alleviate congestion in our cities.

We have discussed how we can inte-grate cycling better in traffic models and make stronger socio-economic analyses - tools that can be extremely valuable to our cause. For instance, a socio-economic analysis of the Cycle Superhighways in the Capital Region of Denmark showed that the interest rate for the Cycling Superhighway network in Greater Copenhagen is 11% compared to 4% for the proposed harbour tunnel in Copenhagen. Over a period of 50 years, the 746 km Cycle Superhighways will annually result in 6 million extra bike tours, 1 million car trips and 40,000 sick days less. In the end, the socio-econom-ic surplus of the Cycle Super Highways amounts to approx. 760,000,000 €.

VELO-CITY True to tradition, the CED was represent-ed at the Velo-city conference which took place in Rio de Janeiro this year. In addition to sharing Danish best prac-tice at a number of presentations, the CED also handed out its annual Lead-ership Award for Cycling Promotion. The award went to Carlos Felipe Pardo of the organisation Despacio.

“Over the last 15 years, Carlos Felipe Par-do has shown extraordinary leadership. As founder of the organization Despa-cio, he has set a new innovative course for cycling advocacy in Bogotá in par-ticular but also in the rest of Colombia. He has motivated numerous other ac-tivists through his courses, publications and projects. He is truly an inspiration to the bicycle movement in the Lat-in-American region at large” said Marie Kåstrup, Vice-chairman of the CED as she handed over the award.

DUTCH-DANISH PARTNERSHIP TO CONNECT CYCLING AND ITSThe CED believes that international co-operation can accelerate increased cycling. So, we have spent part of 2018 looking outside our own borders to so-lidify our relations to other organisations

like the Dutch Cycling Embassy and the UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale).

Even though cycling is the fastest growing mode (14%), a majority of the transport sector’s innovation focuses on motorized transportation. This is a shame for the potential for accelerating sustainable transport such as cycling through ITS and other intelligent solu-tions is huge. Thus, the CED is engaged in the international debate about au-tonomous vehicles’ impact on cycling, the potential for cycling as part of MaaS solutions, space optimization through advanced cycle planning tools, data management for bicycle traffic etc.

We are excited about the huge poten-tials technological development holds. At the same time, we urge that the de-velopment of new solutions will focus on how tech can help make cycling more attractive and easy for people and help cities reach their goals for a more safe, sustainable, liveable, climate friendly, green, effective, and healthy city.

So, when the ITS World Congress hit Copenhagen in September, the CED joined forces with our friends at the Dutch Cycling Embassy to host a joint panel debate entitled: “Connected, Co-operative and Sustainable – How Cities Can Accelerate Cycling Through Intelli-gent Mobility Solutions.”

The session brought together a wide variety of experts to discuss how cities and the private sector can work togeth-er to make sure the innovations and new technologies of the future corre-spond with both public authorities’ and citizens’ needs for mobility, better use of public space, better quality of life, bet-ter public health, a more vibrant urban life, and reduced noise, emissions, and pollution.

Photo: Danish Cyclists’ Federa-tion/Marie Hald Photo: City of Aarhus Photo: Cycle Superhighways

Photo: City of Copenhagen/Troels Heien

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HRH Crown Princess Mary of Denmark tried out the CED’s Virtual Reality Copenhagen Bike Tour at a visit at the Urban Solutions seminar in Fin-land in September 2018. Photo: Rambøll

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EXPERIENCE DANISH CYCLING CUL-TURE IN VIRTUAL REALITYNot everyone is able to make the jour-ney to Denmark to experience our bicy-cle culture first hand. Therefore, the CED produced a virtual reality film featuring a bike ride through Copenhagen. The CED and its members as well as Danish embassies across the globe have used the film at a number of conferences and events that focus on sustainable urban development.

Our VR-film takes you around the city, showing examples of the worlds’ best bicycle infrastructure and giving you a sense of what it is like to live in a bike-able city. Everyone who wants to moti-vate decision makers to put cycling on

the political agenda and citizens to cycle more is welcome to use the film which can be ordered from the CED secretariat.

LOOKING TOWARDS OUR FIRST “ROUND” BIRTHDAY 2018 has been an exciting year, but much more is in store for the coming year. Because 2019 will mark the CED’s 10th anniversary which we look forward to celebrating with you at our stand at the Velo-city conference in Dublin where you will also get the chance to try our VR bike tour of Copenhagen.

2019 will also see a revised and digitized version of our publication “Collection of Cycle Concepts 2012”. The updated ver-

sion will cover important themes such as cycle planning, infrastructure, safety standards, bicycle parking solutions, cy-cling campaigns, cost-benefit analyses, tourism etc. In short, it will feature Danish best practice and loads of inspiration and concrete tools to do cycle promo-tion the Danish way.

For now, we would like to extend a warm thank you to all of our cooperators abroad, the many people who visited us here in Denmark, and all of our fol-lowers on social media. We look forward to continue sharing our work with all of you in the coming year!

Executive Committee, Cycling Embassy of DenmarkMarianne Weinreich, RambøllMarie Kåstrup, City of CopenhagenNiels Hoé, HOE360 consultingLone Andersen, City of FrederiksbergLasse Schelde, Moving Spaces

Photo: City of Aarhus

Photo: Danish Cyclists’ Federation/Søren Hytting