Groningen in the North of the Netherlands, just 30 km north from
where we live, has the highest rate of cycling in the world.
Nearly 60% of all journeys are made by bicycle in the city.
These three slides from a presentation given on the 2008 study
tours and previously at the 2006 European conference on Mobility
Management by Mr Cor van der Klaauw. In 1964 the city was small.
There were no restrictions on cars being driven through the
centre of the city and there were few main cycle routes. The
motorist was king at this time. In some locations in the
Netherlands in the 1950s and 1960s, cycle paths were removed in
order to make more space for cars. In Groningen, just as in
other cities across the world, the 1960s brought planning and
building of motorways right into the city itself (west to east
and to the south in the next map). However, in 1972 a new local
government changed the emphasis of planning in Groningen. The
centre of the city was to be considered as the "living room" and
town planning was integrate