Bicycles
The Danes are well known for their love of cycling and cities all around the world are now looking at ways to copy this phenomenon. The Danes ride bikes because it is practical, easy, and makes their everyday lives work. No parking problems, no long traffic lines, no waiting for the bus. But for the vast majority of Danes, the benefits to health, environment, congestion, climate, and so forth, are certainly welcome side effects.
One in four trips shorter than five kilometers is done by bike. But that covers great variation between the big cities and the countryside. In cities like Copenhagen and Odense, the bicycle is the most common means of transport for people going to work or educational institutions.
Copenhagen is world famous for its biking culture and now officially the first Bike City in the World. In 2021, it was also voted the ‘Best city for cyclists’ and the ‘World’s most liveable city’. It really is biking heaven for the cyclist in Copenhagen with over 390 kilometres of designated bike lanes.
For more information on Danish biking culture visit:
Cycling Embassy of Denmark
The Cycling Embassy of Denmark is a comprehensive network of private companies, local authorities and non-governmental organizations working together to promote cycling and communicate cycling solutions and know-how. The Cycling Embassy of Denmark unites knowledge of cycling from the private, public and voluntary sectors in an effort to become a primary source of cycling knowledge. Thus, the Cycling Embassy of Denmark holds the best knowledge of all areas related to bicycling ranging from bicycles and bicycle equipment to bicycle tourism, parking facilities, bicycle infrastructure, city planning, and much more.
Bicycles make out a huge portion of Copenhagen's visual appearance. When coming to Copenhagen, you will not only see bicycles parked at every station and in every street. The most impressing fact is the vast amount of Copenhageners on bikes that are an integrated part of traffic and the urban infrastructure. Bicycles play a vital role in Copenhagener's everyday lives. The bicycle is used for all means: for getting to work or school, going out for a night on the town, transporting construction materials or appliances, bringing children to kindergarten, going for a recreational ride, or just for gazing at other Copenhageners on their bikes. No matter what the purpose will be, the bike is the answer.
Danish Cyclists' Federation
Danish Cyclists' Federation is a membership-based organisation that fights for Denmark's 4.5 million cyclists. In addition to the 18,000 members, the federation consists of a secretariat, a number of related departments and a lot of active people, all working to create better conditions for cyclists. Danish Cyclists' Federation has a wide range of branches and representatives all over the country. They work, among other things, with local traffic policy, doing promotions and organise cycling tours with a starting point in the local area.