clairedavieswriter

I know I keep going on about how good the cycling infrastructure is – and today once again there was plenty to be impressed by, from the clear signage:

And the generosity of the cycle carriageways (in red on the right)

To the ubiquity of them, whether in town or not:

And the fact that, no matter how insignificant, rural or lightly used, they are always paved:

And the brilliant roundabouts – on which drivers unfailingly wait if you’re going left and they’re going right

But what today really showed me was the effect of all this investment. If a visitor only spent a Sunday in the Netherlands, they might think all the cycling was just a weekend thing, but leaving Nijmegen in Monday morning rush hour, as I did today, would be enough to convince anyone otherwise. Pouring towards me, safely separated from the (still considerable, but imagine how much worse it would be) traffic were hundreds of cyclists: commuters, teenagers, children, and mums and dads with little kids in cargo bikes. And cycling isn’t the preserve of the young and fit. I’ve also seen plenty of people on mobility scooters using bike lanes to get around. And this afternoon I was quite mind blown to realise that every single one of the 20 or so other customers in the café where I’d stopped for a drink – all in their 60s and 70s, of all shapes and sizes – had arrived by bike. As I pedalled along, even on quite long out of town stretches, I was rarely alone, unlike in France and Belgium: the commonest sight was a retired couple riding at a smart pace, side by side, chatting away.
Entire books have been written on the benefits of cycling to physical and mental health, so I won’t try to list them now. All I’ll say is that, seen from here, they’re blindingly obvious.

When I wasn’t ruminating on transport policy, the highlights of my day were crossing the Rhine at Arnhem:

And a glorious spell riding beside the Apeldoorn Canal, whose trees provided much-needed shade on another 30 degree day

What sight could be more Dutch than a cycle path map and a bike, beside a canal?

Though oddly enough while out on the road today I was as much struck by scents as sights. This may sound weird, but when everyone is on their bikes rather than in cars, you (or I anyway) are much more aware of how they smell. And from a highly scientific survey, based on four days of cycling in the Netherlands, I can confirm that the Dutch invariably smell of soap, perfume and aftershave – or, in the case of teenage boys, clouds of Axe. I’m not sure they would be as positive about me after a day on the road, but at least this afternoon I had some good cover