In Amsterdam the bikes rule.
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And we the bikers are the kings and queens of the road.
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We have our own bike lanes.
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We have our own traffic signal.
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We have exclusive bridges .
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Pedestrians are only second to us.
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Cars are third priority.
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Where there is no traffic light…
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we have the right of way… always.
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Parking is never a problem.
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We can park anywhere…
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and everywhere…
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and where ever…
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and whenever.
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as long as you can secure it..
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with the “chain and padlock” contraption…
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there should be no worries.
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You can tie it to a tree.
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Tie it to a post office mailbox.
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Tie it to the sidewalk railing.
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Tie it to the street sign post.
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Tie it to a lamp post.
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Tie it to any post.
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But the best parking place is here.
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It’s just outside the Central Train Station.
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A little on the right side.
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You’ll say, “wow! a 3-level bike park”… as you see its front.
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But wait til you see the back view.
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That’s right, it has 4-levels and there is nothing like it anywhere else.
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This is the ground level…
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across the first level.
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The second level overlooking the canal
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The third level overlooking the 1st and 2nd level.
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Fourth level overlooking the the 3rd level.
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The highest end of the 4th level
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Only in Amsterdam.
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Home to more than 600,000 bikes..
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just a little less than its estimated population of 747,000 people.
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{ 61 comments… read them below or add one }
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Wow..Just by looking at those bikes make me wanna go out and go outside. Never saw pictures like this before…amazing!
Thank you!
Wow.. I was so amazed.. Amsterdam is really the home for a thousands of bikes.. You can avoid accidents.. Hope our town it like this.. Bu I don’t think that is applicable it in here, it is very hot in here to ride a bike at the sun…
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I thought that in general there are more bicycles is the Netherlands then people, about 2 or 3 pro person. I myself have 3 at the moment and use them all!
Wow, that is an amazing setup, I wish the government in the states could be half that open minded towards bikes and their riders, not to mention vehicle owners. Great post!
Thanks Luke! Your comment is greatly appreciated
mizdi recently posted..How to Survive Biking in Amsterdam
@Yesenia: It doesn’t suck. Because bikers do follow the rules up to a certain point but next to that, one has to be creative not to get killed in our busy traffic. And I also do not understand exactly what country you come from where no one has to follow rules. And no worries, the Amsterdammers won’t force you to come to Amsterdam. It’s friggin’ busy here with tourists already anyways.:-)
ppffft. amsterdam has road rules to follow when you’re riding a BIKE?! that sucks for them!! this does not make me want to go there. haha.
I assure you the rules are for the safety of bikers, pedestrians and drivers themselves. And if you don’t know how to follow rules, you aren’t welcome here anyway. Who has heard of a country who doesn’t have road rules for the benefit of everyone? You seem to come from a disorganized society.
Hehe, you just do. And if you can’t find it, it’s probably stolen.
How in the world do you find your bicycle among all of those other bicycles? It looks like a maze!
Hi Sarah,
I’ve been asked that question a thousand times. But there is no definite answer. We just use our common sense (“I think this is my bike. Let me see if my key unlocks it.”) or instict or gut feeling (“Aha! I’m sure this is the one. This is where I parked it!”).
That is purely awesomeness. I wish my country would even think about something like this.
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Oh and @Bob: I would like to see you drive my city in a car.
Not even asking you to step on a bike haha!
@Bob: I sure wish we were too poor to have a car. Would clean up the city. Unfortunately we all have cars. Even though a 2 hour drive would make us pass the border. No matter the direction.
Having bikes is practical. Take the car downtown: drive for an hour. Take the bike downtown: ride for 10 minutes. Fact.
I couldn’t have said it better Wendy. Thank you!
No offense meant @Bob but that is very true.
So is everyone too poor to afford a car, or do they all suck at driving?
Both.
You really made me smile on that . But no, its only because it is more practical. You may want to read this related post for additional info http://mizdemeanor.net/2011/05/27/how-to-survive-biking-in-amsterdam/. Thanks for stopping by.
Thanks for illustrating my home town so beautifully. Gotta love our bikes.
The pleasure is mine, Wendy. Thanks for acknowledging, cheers!
I have trouble finding my car when I park at Wal Mart….
In the midst of all these bikes… I don’t think I would ever find it again….
Well that’s true Heather, funny how sometimes I forget where i parked my bike so it takes me a few minutes to find it. The trick is to put some kind of marker on the bike. That is why some bikes are decorated with plastic flowers or leaves, others repaint them with bright colors or place a marker on the seat such as a plastic bag cover.
Really amazing – how peaceful this would look riding a bicycle
Thanks Halal for visiting, Amsterdam is amazing anytime of the year, cheers!
Amsterdam is a great city of bikes where they value much for their transportation. Thanks for sharing these nice images. Great job!
thanks Hectrix… nice to know this post is still appreciated even though it is more than a year old
Gotta love Amsterdam for the biking tradition. Happy to be a Amsterdammer. Nice blog.
thank u very much Wendy, nice of you to drop by
Amazing, just amazing
, so many bikes, I think the people in Amsterdam must be having better health as well because of the cycling they do 
Its really a worth having these pics seen 
Thanks Mizdi !!
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your welcome! nice to see u took time to visit my awesome blog…lol. thank u, really appreciate that
Loved the pictures. Big reminder of where I am from. Biking was for me the only way to get around. Thanks for the memory Mizdi
thank you for stopping by.
That is beautiful! Why can’t the United States LEARN from these things!?
In New York City, our so-called bicycle lanes have no borders, and are narrow, with parked cars’ doors opening into the lane from one side, and moving car traffic next to them on the other side — when you are lucky enough to find a bicycle “lane”.
Mizdi, enjoyed this post very much. The photos are awesome and your comments share much insight and info. Thanks for a wonderful post!! Take pleasure in knowing you’ve inspired me for a bike ride this afternoon!
“hit the road jack” … enjoy!
Very nice comments. I enjoyed reading all of them…
I LOVE AMSTERDAM!
Nice pictures… Looks like a nice city.
I’ve had my fill of the cycles, lol! What a life! That there is a clear answer to pollution!
Can i take a one small pic from your blog?
Thank you
@rufor no problem.. all u have to do is ask..
e-mail me which and why …use d contact form
i cycle everyday to and from work about 14 kilometers each way…. distance is really relative…. the first time i tried i thought i couldn’t do that everyday…its too far. But not anymore. When you had built the resistance and stamina its becomes second nature to you. The distance gets shorter, well… depends on the direction of the winds. Sometimes it favors you….sometimes it could really be sarcastic. But its very enjoyable especially when the weather is good. Most people in the Netherlands would rather bike than use their cars whenever possible. Its healthy, economical and u don’t get into traffic jams plus parking is quick and free.
Nice pics
@lynx distance doesn’t have to be a problem for cycling. I used to cycle 25km to school. I know that’s not common even in the Netherlands, but I got there faster than when I had to take the bus.
Also I love the fact that we have special bike squads for the police. Who, as I saw yesterday, don’t stop for red lights either, just like most bikers here.
OMG so many good memories , i am from portugal , was in amsterdam a few months ago … the bikes rule indeed
I rented one and , its amazing so easy it is to use it in amsterdam
I stay on hotel rookies near leidseplein , amazing location, amazing city , great people , loved it and hope to be back soon
Having spent a week in Amsterdam 10 years ago I found the bi- cycle thing very aggressive and was shouted at and told to ‘get out the way’ so many times I became paranoid and retired to the red light district, only for research purposes you understand ?
There is only one reason you are getting shouted at… you are standing on the bicycle lane.. it is understandable for first time visitors to be unaware of that.. to confuse the bicycle lane as a part of the sidewalk, because they are side by side. You being shouted at is only to warn u that an accident might happen to you. It is easier for a pedestrian to stop on his tracks or jump out of the way, than a cyclist to break his momentum suddenly, and it is a no-no to stop abruptly as there are no break lights behind a bike. When there are other bikers behind him and he stops without warning… they will end up in one heap on top of you.
Where ever you go for a first time visit, asking around for the common rules to be observed would do you no harm. Its lack of knowledge that would get you into trouble.
@Carol I don’t think he was blaming us for the bad weather. And what he was saying was not “bashing” the US (I live in Oregon). He was simply describing the economic impact that the US had on oil prices. But Amsterdam is a beautiful place, and I’d love to see more places in the US like it. In Portland, we’re pretty “progressive” about biking — we have bike lanes everywhere, especially in our downtown. We have a lot of bikers, but nothing like this!
As an American, I didn’t appreciate the nasty remarks made by “Uncle B.” Sounds like he’s blaming us for Canada’s bad weather! We can only buy what Canada is willing to sell. It’s a shame that he used this opportunity to slam another country instead of appreciating the wonderful photography and the beauty of Amsterdam.
I can lose my car in an empty parking lot. How on earth do you keep track of yours when there are 50,000 others crammed into the same lot? I suppose that would make me a rather pedestrian, er… pedestrian. At least my shoes are tied to my feet where I find it a bit more difficult to lose them. I would have an entirely different set of problems in Japan, I suppose.
lol… its a matter of instincts….(and remembering at least which side or part u left ur bike) you’ll know it is yours when you see it.. besides, your key should be able to unlock it..
I live in Chicago here in the States, and I can tell you biking is definitely on the rise in the cities, though nowhere near the level of these great shots of Amsterdam. The city is making pushes to get biking to be even more popular and installing the infrastructure needed to do it safely. Many of our major streets have dedicated bike lanes along the outside, and bike racks are popping up everywhere. We even have public biking events to try and promote it, like the recent “Bike the Drive” where they shut down the major road Lake Shore Drive for a morning so bikers can take in the beautiful lake views and not have to worry about getting run over. Winter poses a bit of problem here, but I know a good number of people who bike in all but white-out blizzard conditions.
that’s a good start… sooner or later it will catch up with everyone… as soon as people realize its possibilities and doubts had been set aside. good luck and thank you for stopping by to comment. cheers!
Bike porn!
I think Damian’s point is that european urban areas have an advantage over american urban areas because they were built up before the invention of the car so things are close to each other and it’s easy to bike back and forth whereas in the US most of our big cities didn’t get big until the last century so they’re planned on the assumption that everyone will drive and are much less dense. that’s starting to change with the movement towards urban infill and densification, but it will take time to get us to the point where bikes can compete effectively with cars.
love the pics, very inspiring!
@lynx I see the point now… considering Amsterdam is such a small city compared to big cities in the US. But actually the main reason why bikes are more popular is because car traffic here is really getting too congested along with the car parking getting to an exasperating point..unless the company you work for provides or pay for your parking space but that too is not so common.
Nothings local in the US as in work/school/etc is often hours away, making biking impractical in many situations. However, I do bike to school. But for the working population work is almost always too far away to do that.
@ ferrettsyl hmmm that’s something to ponder…. i’ve never been to the US and i don’t know the situation there…but that gives a light on what Damien was referring to.. thank you!
Canada has terrible cold winters, even in its warmest locations. Summer-times are short here, but usually warm enough for bikes. We are at a decided disadvantage especially in winter and must waste heating fuel and fuel for transportation, as well as import most our green foods. Thankfully we have a lot of oil of our own, unfortunately the Americans hog it all, and drive prices up, even though they have the better climate and can easily organize their system for more bikes and rail transportation. As their sad and wasteful empire draws slowly to its end, we Canadians are still stuck in the snow at least 6 months of the year, and have to pay through the nose for even short trips!
You mentioned system.. yes that is the key for a “biking society” to succeed. The government should be able to adopt bikes in their transport system. Bike lanes, bike parking stands, bike depositories, and general safety because bikers, car drivers and pedestrians alike know exactly who has the right of way, where ever, when ever. There are actually rules for all sides… its not that its biased for bikers. The rules were formulated for the benefit and safety of all. Dutch biking society flourished because the system was not only acceptable to the people but also beneficial to the economy and the government.
We need more bike usage in the States. Trouble is, nothing is local!
i didn’t quite get that… u mean your bikes are imported? must be from China then..
Good thing here, there are really big bike factories and anything u need for bikes such as accessories or spare parts are readily available at bike shops.
its true… you cannot be too careful … because the bike thieves have the equipment as well to cut off or saw the chains that lock the bicycle.. as a matter of extra precaution, most bikes in Amsterdam are also equipped with a tire lock installed at the rear wheel.
yes, that’s right..secure the bikes with HUGE chains… Y? i lost a bike within 20 minutes of locking it sumwer near the station… Y? because i used a small lock which has been ‘sawed’ by a thief within 10 mins and probably already sold it to someone for 10 EUR by the time i was looking for it
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