Copenhagen takes the highway

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Yesterday on Going Going Bike, we waxed lyrical about how Seville grew its cycle infrastructure almost overnight. Today, news from Copenhagen, one of the so-called “bicycle capitals” of Europe and its plans to encourage even more people to cycle.

The city is pushing to turn some of its network of its existing bicycle paths into bicycle superhighways. Under the plans, segregated bike tracks will be widened up to four metres on either side of the road to allow riders to overtake if need be and reduce congestion. Traffic lights will also be prioritised in favour of bikes over cars to allow for a quick and easy commute.

Three highways are being proposed under the current plans. These bicycle paths will be stretched from current routes in the centre of the city to different suburbs of Copenhagen. The first two city-to-suburb bicycle highways are expected to open at the end of 2011, while a third, going as far as 20 kilometres from the capital’s centre, will be added in 2012.

Copenhagen’s overall goal is to push the number of suburban commuters cycling to and from the city to 50% by 2015 from 37% today. There are roughly 100,000 people who currently commute into or out of Copenhagen (travelling between 4-15 km) of which 15,000 use bicycles.

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