I have gotten better at figuring out Amsterdam’s bike transportation network since I’ve been here 6 days. At first it was pretty confusing as our hostel is in the central part of downtown.
But as we’ve ridden around more and more, it is clear that there are protected bike lanes almost everywhere. Others have been removed to give even more space for riding bikes by devoting an entire lane for them.
Nick Meltzer is co-teaching this year’s SCAN tour and University of Oregon’s class. He is a transportation manager at OCWCOG (Oregon Cascades West Council of Governments) and manages the Corvallis MPO.
His blog from 2019 has some really insightful reflections. And his explanation of Amsterdam’s bike network is helpful. I’ve been struggling to describe it. Because on the one hand, I have had some pretty sketchy situations thrown at me, which sucks. Well, actually only some parts are extremely uncomfortable, (Since I’m from Bend and we’ve adopted the Level of Traffic Stress methodology, I’d classify some parts LTS 4, highly stressful), but I must say, by and large, most parts are brilliant, LTS 1. The parts that are nice are the protected bike facilities, miles of connected bike paths, and quiet streets. The parts that are extremely uncomfortable are the 5′ wide painted bike lane (paved with granite cobbles) adjacent to an electric trolley track line (read that as quiet – it sneaks up on you). And the un-signalized, street crossings. They have very muted mid-block crosswalks (where the wonderful quiet street you’ve been riding comfortably meets up with the busy street you need to cross to continue your route). Luckily there are at least multiple safety islands set up so you can cross the sidewalk and busy bike path, then main road first side, the main road second side, and finally the next bike path and sidewalk. No one will yield to you – as the main roads move a lot of people – the bike facilities are jammed. The car lanes have only a few cars you need to find a gap between.
But there are a near-infinite number of riders using the Amsterdam biking network, so more importantly, the Amsterdammers seem to think it works. People get around Amsterdam on bikes. And on trolleys, and on buses and on foot. And in cars. But mostly bikes.
Here is Nick’s blog from 2019 that explains Amsterdam in his Crepes, Canals, and Chaos Blog Post. https://campo2copenhagen.weebly.com/
This is the the two-way path that leads everyone directly to the rail station. The island separates the two directions. It even has a left turn space for bike rides who are turning into the bike parking area.
Two way bike path and wide sidewalk leads under the train tracks and leads to the back of the train station. Where there are ferries.
This tunnel is well lit, and carries people on bikes or walking directly to the ferries. Everything in the Netherlands is connected for people walking and bicycling. They get you right to the front door of where you are going. They don’t just abandon you at the driveway. They actually connect paths and routes all the way.
The wall of the tunnel celebrates Amsterdam’s seagoing heritage with a mural in ceramic tiles.
The people just ride their bikes right onto the ferry. There are ferries every couple of minutes, so it is convenient. The ferries are free. You bike right off the ferry when it docks on the other side.
And once you reach the other side of your ferry ride – there is a two way bike path and sidewalk that connects you directly to your subdivision. It connects you all the way.
Remember that left turn marked on the bike path leading into the ferries? This is what it leads to – a triple decker bike parking lot. With ample space for your commute. The Netherlands is so small, people don’t always work in the city they live. But trains get them there quickly. And the bike-train-bike connections are facilitated. 25% of all bike trips in the Netherlands have been identified as heading to or from a train station.
This was a fun sighting today – the famous Copenhagen left which Netherlands also uses – creates a two-stage left turn lane. Amsterdammers are much less rule followers than their Copenhagen cousins, so it was interesting to see this one marked out so clearly.
And this is its partner receive location – where you are supposed to wait for the bike traffic signal to complete your two-stage left turn lane.
This tree-lined version of the Amsterdam Bike Path is not unique. There are miles and miles of these. They work to extend them and connect them. They focus on creating those paths that link wonderful parks and through new housing.
These protected bike lanes are on most busy streets in Amsterdam. They are wide and it allows you to ride next to your friend. Or family member. You can chat while you commute. It is quite lovely.
Photo of a basic bike lane, narrow, sandwiched between parked cars, and a trolley track (the dashed white line denotes the envelope the trolley width reaches). It was super uncomfortable.
This is what the transitioning nature of cycle tracks (protected bike lanes) in Amsterdam. The narrow ones downtown or on busy bike routes, are too narrow. They are in the process of removing them and putting in these really wide bike facilities in their place. They are interesting, because they needed to carve space out of the road to create them. So these spaces end up being shared – they serve the on-street parking (more efficient than having parking maneuvers come off the main line traffic lane). They are used for right turns into the occasional driveway or local street (which are traffic calmed entries). And scooters, mopeds, and motorcycles use them. So it can become uncomfortable for us uninitiated folks. The locals are using them to the max. They are jammed with bikes during the peaks.
This is a little bit further down that shared space lane. It has a symbol that shows cars yielding to bikes. The posted speed in these lanes is 20 mph. There is a car door buffer to the parking areas.
Extended to meet up with new developments, bike paths are great connections across Amsterdam.
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