I think that the very last word of the video was the most important. Dutch children are "empowered" by the cycle infrastructure. Living in the UK I can see how British children are restricted by their lack of access to independent transport. They are often dependent on their parents to get to see friends, to get to school, to get to activities, etc. This limiting for parents too, who are similarly tied down by commitments to transport their children. There is a reason why phrases such as 'Mum's Taxi' are a thing. On the other hand I have young relatives who grew up in The Netherlands. They were cycling to school on their own from ages that in the UK would be considered ridiculous (7 or 8), but that in Netherlands is just normal. When they wanted to go and see their friends in the other side of town they would just hop on their bike and go there. When they went to hockey practice after school it was by bike. They were much more independent that a child in the UK would be at the same age.
@@babyonabike Not only does this give kids independence, just by virtue of there being so MANY more people on the street, it also means they're a lot safer. A kid biking in the USA is all alone in a desolate car-driving wasteland, but in the Netherlands, there are hundreds of people out and about walking/biking anywhere, which gives them a protective crowd shield. If a kid diddler grabs a child in the Netherlands, there's probably going to be someone around who hears the child screaming for help, but if it happens in the USA, they'll more likely than not be alone. Plus, biking is good for reducing obesity. Makes me bitter over what I missed out on as a kid. Thanks a lot, boomers. You ruined the world for me.
@@Klokinator I would have loved biking everywhere as a kid. We really have to rethink thinks here in the US. I hear 1 in 3 kids are in danger of getting diabetes...
@@Klokinator "You ruined the world for me". Aside from the circumstances that those boomers had to go through, don't you think this is a bit exaggerated? To put things in perspective: a Ukrainian mother, who has just lost a child, holding her other child, while crying and her body shaking from shock. Compared to you, in your youth apparently unwilling to grab the bike yourself, or perhaps held back by your parents, but certainly not by society. And now blaming the boomers for something you realize you did not get handed over on a silver plate during your youth. I grew up in the 60's in the mid of the Netherlands, and really have used bikes a lot. Also, we went to school walking, without parents. And I recall exploring our home town, by bike, with a friend. Made possible by that same boomer-generation. A generation that also still had to recover partially from WW2, had to deal with increasing wealth and a lot of technical innovations, and the massive number of societal changes that come with both (a.o. distribute wealth, arrange infrastructure and all, check that trias politica keeps functioning, new media to influence the masses, etc. etc.). And also a Cold War (brings back memories). Sure, they must have made mistakes (certainly because you cannot please everyone) but they simply needed to learn to deal with all the changes and on top of that they also had to do a lot of manual labour in their households simply to run their own daily life (home automation, think washing machines and even refrigerators, were certainly not that common). But they've ruined your world. Really... really sad (shakes head in disappointment).
I live in the Netherlands and cannot drive a bicycle due to being cripple for the same reason i cannot drive a car either! That being said the government provides me a mobility scooter and i can use the bicycle paths with it and thus getting around to nearby family and do my shopping. For longer distances the government drives me around with an handicap vehicle which is also suitable to transport those in wheelchairs unfortunly those don't drive during the nights between 00.00-08.00am
@@lexroet1215 when you can use the power of your arms you won't want to use a mobilety scooter...And you get the transport facility that is right for you.. There is no such thing a a free choice!!! I am using a a mobility scooter my self and i cán walk, and can use my arms but just not for the power and duration what is needed for an arm-bike... I am depending on a scooter.
Another keyword would be independence. Dutch kids can actually function in society without their parents. Go to school, soccer practice, a friends house etc, without their parents having to drive them there.
It's not just that though. American parents have become more and more "helicopter" type parents, not just from any necessity either, just from being overprotective and over-monitoring for the mindset somehow. Some of that I think you can blame on the cell phone mentality which I think winds up being kind of a long leash for previously unneeded controlling and the connected neurosis. Not to mention that the addict parents force the addiction on the children in the practice of it. I do believe that there is more cycling for school kids commuting in some places (With the normal benefits of that assumed.) and less in some places. You don't always know unless you actually have your kids going to school near to where you live. Depends on the layout, the safety, and what kind of oddballs the parents are.
Had all the freedom I needed as a kid cycling in Holland, currently living in Australia, you can easily come to the conclusion Australia is about 50 years behind when it comes to cycling infrastructure.
Childhood here is made better because of the bicycle. I cycled a lot growing up in Sydney but it didn't give me the same freedom as it gives kids here. Australia is the perfect country for cycling to really take off but I can't see it happening with the strong car culture.
@@babyonabike also because if you think about the climate....Australia isn't exactly a cool country. So I can understand ppl prefer to use the mobile AC (car) instead of scorching away under the blistering sun.
@@CruelViper88 There is a place called "Snowy river" in Australia. Guess where the name is coming from. Australia is a huge continent. Not all of it is a dessert. That being said, I lived for a while in the Sinai dessert (Egypt). I loved my bicycle over there. That is, even a hot climate is easy to cycle in. Provided having a low humidity.
"Dutch parents are not very keen on transporting their own kids to school." That is not actually true. The reason why we don't is that elementary schools are always located in residential areas where the majority of children can walk between home and school. With literally hundreds of kids being on the street in a relatively small area around the school it is actively discouraged to bring your own children by car. Children from the age of 10 or even younger will travel to and from school unattended and if they live slightly further away they will do so by bike. There is no reason to change this when they go to secondary/high school even though this will often require them to travel beyond their own residential area. Don't be fooled by the separate bike lanes though. While the lanes themselves are safe, crossings are often not because civil servants who are responsible for infrastructure tend to forget about sight lines as they attempt to make the roads as convenient as possible for bikes. As a result there are various hotspots throughout the country where bikers are at high risk of being hit by trucks and in some cases also by cars. If you're in any of those hotspots, just remember that if you can't see the driver's face in any of the motor vehicle's mirrors, then he can't see you and it is better not to blindly rely on those shark teeth.
My sister-in-law always drove her kids to school by car even though the school was 800 metres from their house. She said "you can't let kids walk or bike to school, something could happen to them!" This was in a calm neighborhood in a mid-sized town in the Netherlands.
One thing that makes cycling in the Netherlands save (or more save), is the fact that all car drivers also are a cyclist. So everybody is keen on the possibility of a cyclist in the erea or sudden moves. I notice that difference when i cycle in other countries where the car drivers are not used to cyclists.
You hit the nail in the last sentence: "You can go where you want to go". I live in Denmark, also a cycle nation.When I became 6 years old, I was allowed to cycle on public road. It was a huge freedom, for a kid at my age age.
Yes - the shark teeth are so handy! I think I will make a video breaking this one down as it is such a cool system - especially for an Australian audience where roundabouts can be super deadly.
@@babyonabike if you get the Dutch roundabouts mixed up you are in danger as well 😄 I know the particular roundabout very well, it's in Voorschoten just passed the station.
this is not always the case. there are cities and villages that give priority to cars on roundabouts within the city limits aswell. Fun fact: these roundabouts are slightly safer.
As said, there are no strict rules, only recommendations, on roundabouts being car/bicycle priority inside/outside city limits. The choice made usually reflects the designation of the road in the wider network. So a regional road (N-weg) within city limits will often give cars priority on roundabouts if said regional road is considered a main throughfare for motorized vehicles. Similarly a roundabout outside city limits along a major highschool bicylcle route for high school students is likely to give bicycles a priority. It's actually something I have conflicting opinions on. On the one hand having clarity of rules is a big bonus, but for optimal 'ontvlechten' of different modes of transportation the flexibility is a big plus.
I used to ride 9 km to school on a combination of cycle paths and 'agricultural' roads which were little over a lane wide and the speed limit for cars on those roads at the time was still 80 kph. Got clipped by a car on my pedal once and took his mirror off with my elbow in the same process. Infrastructure has improved since then (early-mid 1980's).
@@babyonabike with the huge rise in car use, children became victims on the roads. Mothers went to the streets in protests and from that time on in the 70's we implemented restructuring and upgrading roads in such a way that safety became priority. Traffic fatalities have almost doubled since the rise of smart phones though. Not even super good infrastructure can be made idiot proof.
The 70s was really the turning point with the lack of oil from the Middle-East and the 'stop de kindermoord' protests. Even though since then the Netherlands made massive strides, it wasn't until 1995-ish (forgot the exact year) before there came a nation wide plan and that relied on normal maintenance. So some things were 10 years in the making after that point. It's an ongoing process where we've done 50 years worth of work for other nations to copy, but the most important lessons also seem the hardest to learn
@@miriam4235 Sure, some places maybe, but definitely not everywhere. Even in the past 20 years many places have had dramatic changes, so much you don't even recognize it back. Many places have been changed around five times since the seventies.
For financial reasons i'll have to get rid of my car. Luckely i'am living in the Netherlands so i'll be able to get where i want by bike and public transportation for the langer distances. Also don't having a car is seen as healthy and environmental friendly and not as poverty.
You don't have to ride a bicycle, however, it is a very sensible option, very often. Short drives typically don't make sense here. Bicycle is often the faster and easier option. Convenient, fast, safe and cheap. And don't think our focus on bicycle infrastructure and public transport come at the expense of driving your car. Because there are viable alternatives, typically only people that really need to drive somewhere clutter up roads. More bikes = less car traffic.
I was at one of our colleague's house in the netherlands a while ago. his daughter was sick, and needs to go to the pharmacy to pick up some medicine. he grabbed his car key, then thought, wait. then he grab his bike key. i said why and he said it's faster. i imagine yeah you gotta look for parking with a car and walk to the pharmacy, it's easier to go by bike.
@@mecharoo yep, parking closer by, always free, always space. Typically you can take a shorter route and the average speed, especially when travelling through urban areas isn't that much lower on a bicycle for it to be a real impact on the travelling time.
OMG! I've done it! I've found a 'cycling in the Netherlands' video on TH-cam where Jason from Not Just Bikes hasn't commented yet! I thought this was impossible :O
Do you know that feeling when you are on holiday and you come back home and the first time biking again. That moment is always very special for me. Kind of feeling of freedom and the smell outside and how green everything looks.
@@lienbijs1205 can you imagine how that felt after living in Mexico city for six months? I really missed my bike there despite the good public transport system.
I did and it’s great, but some people find that weird as well. Live 45 min from work on bike. Last week a colleague kept on asking, “how do you get to work” answering “ by bike”, after three time I just looked at her🤪
In my town in the netherlands the public transport system have busses specifically for students, however if you're not a student and your destination is at the same location or in route you can still go by that bus. students can get a free pass for public transport during the week and 40% discount in the weekend or a free pass for the weekend and 40% off during the week. but a bicycle is still the cheapest form of transportation. you can also lease a bike for cheap and you never have to worry about it getting stolen or broken.
I live in the Netherlands and I cycle everywhere and every day. At work we have a bicycle plan, meaning that you can buy a new bicycle (up to euro 750,-.) every 3 years tax free. I don't own a car anymore. It saves me a lot of money and it's good for my health :)
If you get yourself an electric bike you can also travel a lot further. One hour with a headwind on a normal bike and you are completely exhausted but on an electric bike it is no problem. And the best part is you can park your electric bike anywhere. Especially in larger cities it is impossible and expensive to find a decent parking space for your car. With an electric bike you can go anywhere in a large city and probably faster than a car due to amazing bike infrastructure.
I think the answer is wrong-headed. It implicitly gives off this feeling that the Netherlands doesn't have a very good car-infrastructure and you will feel forced to ride a bike and that all the focus is on biking infrastructure and that cars are left to struggle. The real answer is this: If you absolutely do not want you or your kids to bike then the Netherlands has an ultra-high quality car and public transport infrastructure. You have the option to pick any mode of transport you prefer and all destinations are usually closely reachable by all the modes within comparable travel times. Furthermore because so many people will prefer other modes over car-use you will be on a road without much traffic. Only those few who have to drive or those who really like to drive will usually be driving in the Netherlands so that means we do more with less asphalt. It's a win-win-win-win situation simply by giving people the freedom to choose more things and accommodating all of those options seriously in the infrastructure. That being said.. if you move here you will naturally start choosing the bike or walking for many short distance trips and you might not even give your car a second thought most of the time. Even with long distance trips you will probably notice that a train is much more comfortable than driving somewhere and the last-mile-problem is usually solved at every destination you can think of. Either with borrow-bikes or an excellent bus/tram system.
If you go to a Dutch school you'll have to, as it is part of the Dutch school curriculum, you'll have to get your "fiets diploma". But other than that, no. But it's nice to be able to go anywhere, anytime.
"Dutch parents are not very keen on transporting their own kids to school." Or anywhere, really. My parents, who have always had a car, have only picked me up by car ONCE in my life. That was when the trains didn't run and I had no other way to get home. And I have always been perfectly happy with that. From a young age I could go many places unaccompanied by bike, walking or with public transport. And having such independence from a young age has always felt really good. Not just for me, but for my parents as well. My sister lives in New Zealand in a typical American-style suburb and her kids really can't go anywhere on their own. Their school is far away across several dangerous, busy roads. Ditto for their friends, most stores or the city center. So until they have their driver's license they have to rely on their parents to go anywhere. My sister is slowly turning into a 'soccer mom', ferrying her kids to school, friends, sports etc. I myself haven't driven a car in over 2 years. My job is easy to reach with public transport and most other things I can easily do by bike. The only time I ever felt the need to own a car was when I was living abroad.
My parents picked me up once or twice but only when there was a good reason for it, like a broken bike (mostly you had to walk home because we didn't have mobile phones back then) or when there was a (thunder) storm, but that's about it. We went through rain and snow and my first highschool was in the next town and took me 45 minutes cycling.
@@Linda-hs1lk I remember the walking home bit when your bike broke down. Got a ride home once by the police cause they thought the weather was way to bad to have me walk home the last 5 km with my bike. They almost gave my mum a heart attack when she saw me getting out of the police van.
Having lived in The Netherlands myself i did not realize myself, until i moved to Belgium still within walking distance of the border and already there's a HUGE difference in biking infrastructure, ur if u even have a biking lane here. Makes me mis The Netherlands more and more..
Wrong there are school buses and taxis in the Netherlands depending on the distance the child has to cover to get to school and the capacity and age of the child. It is certainly discouraged that parents drive their children to school however by selective parking restrictions etc - plus communication from the school
There are no school busses like in the US in the Netherlands. I mean I've never heard of any. Only for disabled people there is a taxi. If you were talking about public transport then yes, a lot of students go by public transport.
Gosh I hate it when teenagers cycle three abreast! It's actually against traffic regulations and there used to be PSA signs everywhere saying '3 is teveel!' (3 is too many!), but I don't see them anymore, unfortunately
😂 true, and then I remember I was a teenager once, cycling 3 abreast. Or actually, remember I do it now as well: with 4 its easier, you'll cycle 2 on 2, with 3 it feels like you're ditching someone.
Sounds wrong to say dutch parents are not very keen to drive their kids to school. Dutch parents know the Netherlands have an infrastructure that enables their kids to get to school in a safe way themself. In other countries you find a lot of "smart" parents who drive their kids to school by car to protect them from the high traffic volume at schools which is caused by exactly those parents.
I think it is because of the reasons you mention that Dutch parents are not very keen to drive their kids to school. Typically, if a Dutch kid would ask their mother to drive them to school, the mother would say "jaa, doeeei".
Hey, that's my neck of the woods! @1:27 is the bike overpass near Zoetermeer train station, and @1:39 is Voorschoten train station. I used to cycle there on my way to work every day before Corona.
2:37 also notice these in between bits, where you can stand with your bike. These are very handy as you dont have to wait for cars from Both sides to be gone. (He talks about that the cars should stop for him, and yes they should in principle, but in reality they stop way less cause it's very nasty otherwise for cars to stop all the time)
Earned my driver's license a year and a half ago. It coincided with the aftermath of a neck hernia which i partially got due to cycling so much. 3000km each year were quite common for me. Since you'll always be a bit forward leaning and you'll always be bouncing a bit, my neck no longer likes cycling. I do like it, but now that i don't have to, i hardly ever cycle anymore. It saddens me to a degree...
The old fashioned Dutch bikes have you sit up straight though, I never bike bended forward (and if I do in my husband's mountain bike e.g. my arms and wrists start to hurt)
As a Dutchie, I have car (electric, lucky me), I have a bicycle (sorry, also electric) and I have to admit that it is the best way to commute, travel or get we're you want to be. And our infrastructure is good. No it's not good! It's great! Living in The Hague and working in Amsterdam for me commuting into the innercity from both cities with a bike is the cheapest, easiest, fastest and healthiest way to get there!
I remember in high school I wasn't allowed to ride my bike to school due to a medical issue and I felt so left out. Everyone biked to school, I knew one kid who didn't because it would take him over an hour to get there and would have to travel alone on top of that, he went by train.
To whom it may concerned. Roundabout is in Voorschouten: burgemeester van eijklaan and wijngardenlaan intersection. And 1:25 looks like central railway station in Zoetermeer.
In the states you’ll see a school bus stop a half mile before the school and pick up a load of kids. In all fairness, a good amount of high school kids within a mile choose to walk to school in my area, on the side of a busy road, nothing separating them except a painted white line, from moms and dads rushing to drop their kids off so they can hurry up and sit in traffic. It’s rather interesting.
As a native I've walked to school, cycled to school, and taken public transport to school. It really is a matter of distance and personal preference (Cost too I guess for the last option, though I imagine public transport is less costly than being driven to and from school by your parents).
Totally agree! I do see some people catching the public bus but the big difference for me is not seeing lines of buses out the front of the school at the end of the day.
You don't have to, but I remember one girl that lived near her schools and always walked. She, albeit Dutch, didn't like to cycle. As such it gets socially complicated when you want to go out in a group. But if you're an individual, sure. You can walk, take a bus, metro, tram or train. If you really need, you can even take a car. But why whould you? In short: you don't have to, but it's definately expected.
Lovely to see! Great to see you find your way in our country. Be welcome! There is 1 other you don't mention beside infrastructure and that is the law. The cyclist is protected by law, which means that as a driver of a car, motorcycle, truck, bus or whatever, you are accountable when there is an accident. For example in your video: When 3 or 3 cyclist are cycling beside each other and I pass them with my car (even when they are coming head on) as a car driver I am responsible if an accident should occur. So drivers are more carefull when they spot a cyclist.
Yes, you have to cycle in the Netherlands, it’s mandatory. You also have to live in a wind mill, smoke weed every day and wear wooden shoes all the time.
When you say "there are no school buses" it almost suggests that children aren't able to go to school via public transport. There are regular buses that they can take, just not dedicated buses for school kids only.
Yes true - good point. For an Australian high school it is the common experience to have a long line of buses out the front of the school at the end of a day with a couple of teachers (sometimes with megaphones) directing students onto the correct bus. I suppose I was trying to emphasise that contrast to the Australian students.
By "school bus" we mean a bright yellow bus that only takes kids to and from a specific school, in the morning and afternoon. People who aren't students at that school are not allowed on them. A public transport bus is just a bus (even if a kid takes one to school). So I guess they don't have school buses in the NL. Lucky Dutch people!
"super empowering" Exactly. That is why kids use bikes. They can make their own decisions, go to their mates, go to the city center to hang out, go on a cycle-about through the fields or woods. I think I must have been only 8 or 9 when I would cylce to school all by my self (and my little brother). And occasionally, when the weather was particularly horrid, my dad would give me a ride.
Great video. You are saying the reason why Dutch people bike around so much is because of the infrastructure. I would disagree. I would say it is the other way around. The reason why there is a lot of infrastructure is because the Dutch bike so much. The biking culture was there before the infrastructure was there. I would say the reason why they bike so much is because of the country being very dense, so most trips are relatively short, and the fact that the Netherlands is very flat, as we all know.
One reinforces the other. Once the infrastructure is there, more people will cycle. But why would politicians create the infrastructure, if no one is interested?
On the school busing, there would have to be some of that in the country since wouldn't there always be some parents having their kids going to a private school 10-20 miles off, farther than an ordinary commute ride, and also wouldn't there sometimes be a public school assigned or selected which would also be that far for numbers of the students going there but also living generally in the same area? Obviously, this is all good stuff. What tends to happen where I've lived is that you'd wind up riding bikes to your schools up to 8th grade because they were in the same small city, but then you'd get bused to your high school since it was five miles off two cities over where the traffic would of been a safety problem.
There are schools in The Netherlands that pick kids up with taxi vans, those schools are called "VSO Schools" schools for special needs kids. (Hope my english makes sense)
I'm Dutch and I haven't owned a bike for over 30 years. Today I had an appointment and my car battery was flat, it was probably the 2end or 3rd time in those 30 years I wanted a bike.
Then you simply don't miss a bike because you dont know how good it is. I'm german, and until 3 years ago I also didnt own a bike for 30 years. Then I had to buy a new one for my daugther and bought one for myself too. Since then I almost didnt use my car anymore. In the city it's so much easier and relaxter to go by bike. You also can park it wherever you want and at distances below 5km that often makes the bike also faster than going by car..
In America, if you placed a roundabout with a bike path, the volvo in the video would definitely hit the cyclist and argue it was not the drivers' fault. Hell, even in a car, I've had people in a roundabout pull right in front of me while I'm about to pass them. Even in a country where cyclists are prioritized over cars, my exposure to traumatic accidents for pedestrians and cyclists in the US makes me very hesitant to trust heavy, metal machines will stop for me...
Ah, then there is Dutch jurisdiction: pedestrians and cyclists are never guilty in confrontation with motorists, even when they act irresponsible (children and freaks); drivers of motor vehicles are always guilty. So the insurance won't pay if you are guilty. I imagine that that would a huge incentive in the U.S. for car drivers to drive very carefully...
le auto si fermano un bel po' di tempo prima dell'arrivo della bici, incredibile. io invece devo sempre urlare, sbracciarmi, ecc. per farmi vedere e dirgli di fermarsi.
That's funny! The part where you filmed those kids waiting for eachother at the gas station is where I live. Did not expect that. Edit: you later even biked in my street!
No, you don't have to cycle if you live in the Netherlands. But purposely not doing so is only going to make things less convenient for you for no real reason. Biking in the Netherlands is just so easy and safe that there is no reason not to bike. If you are really set on not wanting to bike, then public transport is also quite great, you might have to wait longer in between rides if you live in more isolated places, but you generally still have public transport.
bikes are great if you live in a flat highly developed high population low acreage country with relatively mild winters. try riding to school on a ice mountain road when it is well below zero and the school is 10 miles in to town.
De biking infrastructure in The Netherlands might be one of the best things about it. It has so many benefits to society. In regards to kids I noticed from anecdotal personal experience that independent of movement has a positive effect on independence of thought and is a flywheel on personal development. I know of no studies actually done on the subject, but every time I met kids my age in The Netherlands I was struck by the difference in a general sense.
Having a car in the Netherlands is very expensive and driving even more expensive petrol € 2.01 per L parking € 7.50 per hour (Amsterdam center) Parking garage € 40. - -> 80.- per 24 hours + road tax and then the car €10000 to ??????? Why did you want a car in the Netherlands?
America: "our country is so free we can go anywhere we like with CARS!" NL: "we have more freedom, our kids can go to and from School safely and they keep up that desire all their lives... if they stray from it and into their cars, they will go through insufferable torment in the cities"
Eh, sorry but not every roundabout has bicycle priority. It is likely in side the city boundary but is unlikely to have bicycle priority away from cities... So, no, bicycle do not have automatic priority when entering a roundabout!
Yes you are right. I have been meaning to do a video just dedicated to roundabouts. They are a pretty amazing piece of bike infrastructure here in the Netherlands. Can’t imagine drivers in Australian cities accepting it.
The Netherlands is so bike-dependent, you can't get anywhere any other way! Imagine those that can't afford to bike or are allergic to exercise of any form! /s
Great video, but: "If you don't, you'll probebly one of the only ones" - False. There are a lot of people that don't use bikes in the Netherlands. In most cities there is a very good public transportation system and plenty of people 'in the country' only use cars. "you also find it's very tricky to go to school" - False. Lots of schools are within walking distance and plenty of parents take there kids to school with a car. Not so much in big cities, but plenty in other places. Also older kids do take public transport as most middle schools have busstops and some are even close to metro or train stations. "bikes have right of way around roundabouts" - Not all roundabouts have this (most do). Pay attations to signs and roudmarks.
Good points Marvin. I will try to be more nuanced in future videos. I am trying to keep it fairly straight forward for the Australian class I am doing the video for. I teach at a Dutch High School and you are correct that many students do take public transport. I also notice kids getting dropped off but this is not as common and when I have asked the students it is apparently not "cool". It is certainly quite different to Australian schools.
![8 to 80, people of all ages cycling in the Netherlands [153]](/img/n.gif)
I think that the very last word of the video was the most important. Dutch children are "empowered" by the cycle infrastructure.
Living in the UK I can see how British children are restricted by their lack of access to independent transport. They are often dependent on their parents to get to see friends, to get to school, to get to activities, etc.
This limiting for parents too, who are similarly tied down by commitments to transport their children. There is a reason why phrases such as 'Mum's Taxi' are a thing.
On the other hand I have young relatives who grew up in The Netherlands. They were cycling to school on their own from ages that in the UK would be considered ridiculous (7 or 8), but that in Netherlands is just normal. When they wanted to go and see their friends in the other side of town they would just hop on their bike and go there. When they went to hockey practice after school it was by bike. They were much more independent that a child in the UK would be at the same age.
You have totally nailed it! This is exactly the reason we moved to the Netherlands!
The Dutch kids are probably way healthier and have less childhood obesity.
@@babyonabike Not only does this give kids independence, just by virtue of there being so MANY more people on the street, it also means they're a lot safer. A kid biking in the USA is all alone in a desolate car-driving wasteland, but in the Netherlands, there are hundreds of people out and about walking/biking anywhere, which gives them a protective crowd shield. If a kid diddler grabs a child in the Netherlands, there's probably going to be someone around who hears the child screaming for help, but if it happens in the USA, they'll more likely than not be alone.
Plus, biking is good for reducing obesity. Makes me bitter over what I missed out on as a kid. Thanks a lot, boomers. You ruined the world for me.
@@Klokinator I would have loved biking everywhere as a kid. We really have to rethink thinks here in the US. I hear 1 in 3 kids are in danger of getting diabetes...
@@Klokinator "You ruined the world for me".
Aside from the circumstances that those boomers had to go through, don't you think this is a bit exaggerated?
To put things in perspective: a Ukrainian mother, who has just lost a child, holding her other child, while crying and her body shaking from shock. Compared to you, in your youth apparently unwilling to grab the bike yourself, or perhaps held back by your parents, but certainly not by society. And now blaming the boomers for something you realize you did not get handed over on a silver plate during your youth.
I grew up in the 60's in the mid of the Netherlands, and really have used bikes a lot. Also, we went to school walking, without parents. And I recall exploring our home town, by bike, with a friend. Made possible by that same boomer-generation. A generation that also still had to recover partially from WW2, had to deal with increasing wealth and a lot of technical innovations, and the massive number of societal changes that come with both (a.o. distribute wealth, arrange infrastructure and all, check that trias politica keeps functioning, new media to influence the masses, etc. etc.). And also a Cold War (brings back memories). Sure, they must have made mistakes (certainly because you cannot please everyone) but they simply needed to learn to deal with all the changes and on top of that they also had to do a lot of manual labour in their households simply to run their own daily life (home automation, think washing machines and even refrigerators, were certainly not that common).
But they've ruined your world.
Really... really sad (shakes head in disappointment).
I live in the Netherlands and cannot drive a bicycle due to being cripple for the same reason i cannot drive a car either! That being said the government provides me a mobility scooter and i can use the bicycle paths with it and thus getting around to nearby family and do my shopping. For longer distances the government drives me around with an handicap vehicle which is also suitable to transport those in wheelchairs unfortunly those don't drive during the nights between 00.00-08.00am
That is amazing! The Dutch government is so forward thinking and bike paths are so enabling for so many different people!
What about using a bike that's powered by your arms instead of legs is that an option?
@@lexroet1215 when you can use the power of your arms you won't want to use a mobilety scooter...And you get the transport facility that is right for you.. There is no such thing a a free choice!!! I am using a a mobility scooter my self and i cán walk, and can use my arms but just not for the power and duration what is needed for an arm-bike... I am depending on a scooter.
Het lijkt erop dat u de belasting betaler een hoop geld kost. Bezoekt u ook nog vaak het ziekenhuis?
@@Mental_Illboy Jij wel gok ik als je dit soort domme vragen vaker stelt....
Another keyword would be independence. Dutch kids can actually function in society without their parents. Go to school, soccer practice, a friends house etc, without their parents having to drive them there.
Totally agree. I am going to make a follow up video explains this to the class. It is really different to an Australian experience.
It's not just that though. American parents have become more and more "helicopter" type parents, not just from any necessity either, just from being overprotective and over-monitoring for the mindset somehow. Some of that I think you can blame on the cell phone mentality which I think winds up being kind of a long leash for previously unneeded controlling and the connected neurosis. Not to mention that the addict parents force the addiction on the children in the practice of it. I do believe that there is more cycling for school kids commuting in some places (With the normal benefits of that assumed.) and less in some places. You don't always know unless you actually have your kids going to school near to where you live. Depends on the layout, the safety, and what kind of oddballs the parents are.
Had all the freedom I needed as a kid cycling in Holland, currently living in Australia, you can easily come to the conclusion Australia is about 50 years behind when it comes to cycling infrastructure.
The Netherlands😉
Childhood here is made better because of the bicycle. I cycled a lot growing up in Sydney but it didn't give me the same freedom as it gives kids here. Australia is the perfect country for cycling to really take off but I can't see it happening with the strong car culture.
@@babyonabike also because if you think about the climate....Australia isn't exactly a cool country.
So I can understand ppl prefer to use the mobile AC (car) instead of scorching away under the blistering sun.
@@CruelViper88
There is a place called "Snowy river" in Australia. Guess where the name is coming from. Australia is a huge continent. Not all of it is a dessert.
That being said, I lived for a while in the Sinai dessert (Egypt). I loved my bicycle over there. That is, even a hot climate is easy to cycle in. Provided having a low humidity.
@@CruelViper88 Weirdly, here in Adelaide at least, far more people ride in summer than winter.
"Dutch parents are not very keen on transporting their own kids to school."
That is not actually true. The reason why we don't is that elementary schools are always located in residential areas where the majority of children can walk between home and school. With literally hundreds of kids being on the street in a relatively small area around the school it is actively discouraged to bring your own children by car. Children from the age of 10 or even younger will travel to and from school unattended and if they live slightly further away they will do so by bike. There is no reason to change this when they go to secondary/high school even though this will often require them to travel beyond their own residential area.
Don't be fooled by the separate bike lanes though. While the lanes themselves are safe, crossings are often not because civil servants who are responsible for infrastructure tend to forget about sight lines as they attempt to make the roads as convenient as possible for bikes. As a result there are various hotspots throughout the country where bikers are at high risk of being hit by trucks and in some cases also by cars. If you're in any of those hotspots, just remember that if you can't see the driver's face in any of the motor vehicle's mirrors, then he can't see you and it is better not to blindly rely on those shark teeth.
There are still and always area's to improve and do better. Yet, our infrastructure is realy realy safe.
My sister-in-law always drove her kids to school by car even though the school was 800 metres from their house. She said "you can't let kids walk or bike to school, something could happen to them!" This was in a calm neighborhood in a mid-sized town in the Netherlands.
@@Ozymandias1 The biggest risk here is that the kids get bullied at school because they aren't allowed to go to school on their own.
She must have been one of the only ones with this mentality!
One thing that makes cycling in the Netherlands save (or more save), is the fact that all car drivers also are a cyclist. So everybody is keen on the possibility of a cyclist in the erea or sudden moves.
I notice that difference when i cycle in other countries where the car drivers are not used to cyclists.
the bike lane is safe and we save money by using the bike (I make this mistake all the time myself too)
You hit the nail in the last sentence: "You can go where you want to go". I live in Denmark, also a cycle nation.When I became 6 years old, I was allowed to cycle on public road. It was a huge freedom, for a kid at my age age.
You had right of way on the roundabout because you are inside a town(bebouwde kom), outside town cars will have right of way on a similar roundabout.
Yes - the shark teeth are so handy! I think I will make a video breaking this one down as it is such a cool system - especially for an Australian audience where roundabouts can be super deadly.
@@babyonabike if you get the Dutch roundabouts mixed up you are in danger as well 😄 I know the particular roundabout very well, it's in Voorschoten just passed the station.
this is not always the case. there are cities and villages that give priority to cars on roundabouts within the city limits aswell. Fun fact: these roundabouts are slightly safer.
Outside a town the design handbooks for the Netherlands advises a crossing of the bikepath under or above the road, when it is a busy one
As said, there are no strict rules, only recommendations, on roundabouts being car/bicycle priority inside/outside city limits. The choice made usually reflects the designation of the road in the wider network. So a regional road (N-weg) within city limits will often give cars priority on roundabouts if said regional road is considered a main throughfare for motorized vehicles. Similarly a roundabout outside city limits along a major highschool bicylcle route for high school students is likely to give bicycles a priority.
It's actually something I have conflicting opinions on. On the one hand having clarity of rules is a big bonus, but for optimal 'ontvlechten' of different modes of transportation the flexibility is a big plus.
I used to ride 9 km to school on a combination of cycle paths and 'agricultural' roads which were little over a lane wide and the speed limit for cars on those roads at the time was still 80 kph. Got clipped by a car on my pedal once and took his mirror off with my elbow in the same process.
Infrastructure has improved since then (early-mid 1980's).
maximum speed of 'agricultural' roads is lowered to 60Km/h
@@MultiArrie yes, but people still drive 90 there
I was born in the seventies and I can tell you it sure wasn't like this when I was a kid! love how this infrastructure developed and it still is!
Yes I have watched some of those videos of what it was like back then. It is amazing how the urban landscape has been transformed.
@@babyonabike with the huge rise in car use, children became victims on the roads. Mothers went to the streets in protests and from that time on in the 70's we implemented restructuring and upgrading roads in such a way that safety became priority. Traffic fatalities have almost doubled since the rise of smart phones though. Not even super good infrastructure can be made idiot proof.
The 70s was really the turning point with the lack of oil from the Middle-East and the 'stop de kindermoord' protests.
Even though since then the Netherlands made massive strides, it wasn't until 1995-ish (forgot the exact year) before there came a nation wide plan and that relied on normal maintenance. So some things were 10 years in the making after that point.
It's an ongoing process where we've done 50 years worth of work for other nations to copy, but the most important lessons also seem the hardest to learn
Euhm, I was born in the 70's and it was definitely like this for me as a kid.
@@miriam4235 Sure, some places maybe, but definitely not everywhere. Even in the past 20 years many places have had dramatic changes, so much you don't even recognize it back. Many places have been changed around five times since the seventies.
For financial reasons i'll have to get rid of my car. Luckely i'am living in the Netherlands so i'll be able to get where i want by bike and public transportation for the langer distances. Also don't having a car is seen as healthy and environmental friendly and not as poverty.
You don't have to ride a bicycle, however, it is a very sensible option, very often.
Short drives typically don't make sense here. Bicycle is often the faster and easier option. Convenient, fast, safe and cheap.
And don't think our focus on bicycle infrastructure and public transport come at the expense of driving your car. Because there are viable alternatives, typically only people that really need to drive somewhere clutter up roads. More bikes = less car traffic.
I was at one of our colleague's house in the netherlands a while ago. his daughter was sick, and needs to go to the pharmacy to pick up some medicine. he grabbed his car key, then thought, wait. then he grab his bike key. i said why and he said it's faster. i imagine yeah you gotta look for parking with a car and walk to the pharmacy, it's easier to go by bike.
@@mecharoo yep, parking closer by, always free, always space. Typically you can take a shorter route and the average speed, especially when travelling through urban areas isn't that much lower on a bicycle for it to be a real impact on the travelling time.
OMG! I've done it! I've found a 'cycling in the Netherlands' video on TH-cam where Jason from Not Just Bikes hasn't commented yet! I thought this was impossible :O
Just wait.
Lolik ga m ff tippen ;p
If I had to choose between my bicycle and my car, I would definitely get rid of the car.
Do you know that feeling when you are on holiday and you come back home and the first time biking again. That moment is always very special for me. Kind of feeling of freedom and the smell outside and how green everything looks.
@@lienbijs1205 I always thought it was just me being that childish sentimental.
@@lienbijs1205 :-) I take my bike with me on holiday. Great fun too. th-cam.com/video/x7EXkjGgUEc/w-d-xo.html
@@lienbijs1205 can you imagine how that felt after living in Mexico city for six months? I really missed my bike there despite the good public transport system.
I did and it’s great, but some people find that weird as well. Live 45 min from work on bike. Last week a colleague kept on asking, “how do you get to work” answering “ by bike”, after three time I just looked at her🤪
In my town in the netherlands the public transport system have busses specifically for students, however if you're not a student and your destination is at the same location or in route you can still go by that bus. students can get a free pass for public transport during the week and 40% discount in the weekend or a free pass for the weekend and 40% off during the week. but a bicycle is still the cheapest form of transportation. you can also lease a bike for cheap and you never have to worry about it getting stolen or broken.
I live in the Netherlands and I cycle everywhere and every day. At work we have a bicycle plan, meaning that you can buy a new bicycle (up to euro 750,-.) every 3 years tax free. I don't own a car anymore. It saves me a lot of money and it's good for my health :)
and good for the environment!
There are no school buses, but you can take the regular city/regional buses if you want.
If you get yourself an electric bike you can also travel a lot further. One hour with a headwind on a normal bike and you are completely exhausted but on an electric bike it is no problem. And the best part is you can park your electric bike anywhere. Especially in larger cities it is impossible and expensive to find a decent parking space for your car. With an electric bike you can go anywhere in a large city and probably faster than a car due to amazing bike infrastructure.
Totally agree. While I don’t own an electric bike they are so awesome for travelling longer distances and pushing through nasty head winds.
one of the most real videos on dutch cycling. love how u showed off real everyday infrastructure which dutch people came to call "normal"
I think the answer is wrong-headed. It implicitly gives off this feeling that the Netherlands doesn't have a very good car-infrastructure and you will feel forced to ride a bike and that all the focus is on biking infrastructure and that cars are left to struggle.
The real answer is this: If you absolutely do not want you or your kids to bike then the Netherlands has an ultra-high quality car and public transport infrastructure. You have the option to pick any mode of transport you prefer and all destinations are usually closely reachable by all the modes within comparable travel times. Furthermore because so many people will prefer other modes over car-use you will be on a road without much traffic. Only those few who have to drive or those who really like to drive will usually be driving in the Netherlands so that means we do more with less asphalt. It's a win-win-win-win situation simply by giving people the freedom to choose more things and accommodating all of those options seriously in the infrastructure.
That being said.. if you move here you will naturally start choosing the bike or walking for many short distance trips and you might not even give your car a second thought most of the time. Even with long distance trips you will probably notice that a train is much more comfortable than driving somewhere and the last-mile-problem is usually solved at every destination you can think of. Either with borrow-bikes or an excellent bus/tram system.
If you go to a Dutch school you'll have to, as it is part of the Dutch school curriculum, you'll have to get your "fiets diploma". But other than that, no. But it's nice to be able to go anywhere, anytime.
Great insight into how it works there.. lessons for Australia
thank you so much for this beautiful bicycle tour Reindert from Suriname
The Netherlands are a paradise for bikers.
I really really mean that, nothing to do I live here also.
Do you have to cycle? No, but you will want to.
"Dutch parents are not very keen on transporting their own kids to school."
Or anywhere, really.
My parents, who have always had a car, have only picked me up by car ONCE in my life. That was when the trains didn't run and I had no other way to get home. And I have always been perfectly happy with that. From a young age I could go many places unaccompanied by bike, walking or with public transport. And having such independence from a young age has always felt really good. Not just for me, but for my parents as well.
My sister lives in New Zealand in a typical American-style suburb and her kids really can't go anywhere on their own. Their school is far away across several dangerous, busy roads. Ditto for their friends, most stores or the city center. So until they have their driver's license they have to rely on their parents to go anywhere. My sister is slowly turning into a 'soccer mom', ferrying her kids to school, friends, sports etc.
I myself haven't driven a car in over 2 years. My job is easy to reach with public transport and most other things I can easily do by bike. The only time I ever felt the need to own a car was when I was living abroad.
My parents picked me up once or twice but only when there was a good reason for it, like a broken bike (mostly you had to walk home because we didn't have mobile phones back then) or when there was a (thunder) storm, but that's about it. We went through rain and snow and my first highschool was in the next town and took me 45 minutes cycling.
@@Linda-hs1lk I remember the walking home bit when your bike broke down. Got a ride home once by the police cause they thought the weather was way to bad to have me walk home the last 5 km with my bike. They almost gave my mum a heart attack when she saw me getting out of the police van.
Living in The Netherlands I never realized how good our infrastructure for biking is, it’s so normal. Never gave it any thought.
You are so right. It feels like how the world should be! I just came back from the USA and it is definitely not like here!
Having lived in The Netherlands myself i did not realize myself, until i moved to Belgium still within walking distance of the border and already there's a HUGE difference in biking infrastructure, ur if u even have a biking lane here. Makes me mis The Netherlands more and more..
Wrong there are school buses and taxis in the Netherlands depending on the distance the child has to cover to get to school and the capacity and age of the child.
It is certainly discouraged that parents drive their children to school however by selective parking restrictions etc - plus communication from the school
There are no school busses like in the US in the Netherlands. I mean I've never heard of any. Only for disabled people there is a taxi.
If you were talking about public transport then yes, a lot of students go by public transport.
There are only school busses for kids with special needs.
Gosh I hate it when teenagers cycle three abreast! It's actually against traffic regulations and there used to be PSA signs everywhere saying '3 is teveel!' (3 is too many!), but I don't see them anymore, unfortunately
😂 true, and then I remember I was a teenager once, cycling 3 abreast.
Or actually, remember I do it now as well: with 4 its easier, you'll cycle 2 on 2, with 3 it feels like you're ditching someone.
Sounds wrong to say dutch parents are not very keen to drive their kids to school. Dutch parents know the Netherlands have an infrastructure that enables their kids to get to school in a safe way themself. In other countries you find a lot of "smart" parents who drive their kids to school by car to protect them from the high traffic volume at schools which is caused by exactly those parents.
I think it is because of the reasons you mention that Dutch parents are not very keen to drive their kids to school. Typically, if a Dutch kid would ask their mother to drive them to school, the mother would say "jaa, doeeei".
Hey, that's my neck of the woods! @1:27 is the bike overpass near Zoetermeer train station, and @1:39 is Voorschoten train station. I used to cycle there on my way to work every day before Corona.
It definitely is, I just wanted to say it as well, the school probably is Rijnlands lyceum Wassenaar
If you wanne see a mega save roundabout just check de Hovenring in Veldhoven.
2:37 also notice these in between bits, where you can stand with your bike. These are very handy as you dont have to wait for cars from Both sides to be gone.
(He talks about that the cars should stop for him, and yes they should in principle, but in reality they stop way less cause it's very nasty otherwise for cars to stop all the time)
There are no school busses in the netherlands but there are line busses and they stop almost al the time close to your school.
Maybe in the city. But not in rural areas
@@henkiepenkie3372 well in the polder they still stop at the middle age schools (12-18). And higher education, of course.
Earned my driver's license a year and a half ago. It coincided with the aftermath of a neck hernia which i partially got due to cycling so much. 3000km each year were quite common for me. Since you'll always be a bit forward leaning and you'll always be bouncing a bit, my neck no longer likes cycling. I do like it, but now that i don't have to, i hardly ever cycle anymore. It saddens me to a degree...
Ga ligfietsen, dat is ideaal om te kunnen fietsen met jouw klachten. Ontspannen houding voor rug, nek en polsen.
denk niet dat jij een neuroloog bent met jouw opmerking ^^
The old fashioned Dutch bikes have you sit up straight though, I never bike bended forward (and if I do in my husband's mountain bike e.g. my arms and wrists start to hurt)
@@francinewillemsen7214 Scheelt echt een stuk!
Do I want to live in The Netherlands without cycling ? NO !!!
Cycling is the main reason we moved here!
As a Dutchie, I have car (electric, lucky me), I have a bicycle (sorry, also electric) and I have to admit that it is the best way to commute, travel or get we're you want to be. And our infrastructure is good. No it's not good! It's great! Living in The Hague and working in Amsterdam for me commuting into the innercity from both cities with a bike is the cheapest, easiest, fastest and healthiest way to get there!
What's so lucky about having a electric car?
@@ToldYouSo18 Because - apart from hard to get due to supply chain issues - they are more expensive than there ICE equivalents.
@@ToldYouSo18 it's also cheaper once you own one, better for the environment, quiet and the points Eric mentioned.
Man... That's 60 kilometers (40 miles), even for Dutch people that's way to far for a bicycle commute. I'd rather take the train ;)
@@iyt6407
I commute 48 km a day (round trip) on a 2-wheel 40 kg pedal powered cargo bicycle. Granted, even for a Dutchie I am an exception.
I remember in high school I wasn't allowed to ride my bike to school due to a medical issue and I felt so left out. Everyone biked to school, I knew one kid who didn't because it would take him over an hour to get there and would have to travel alone on top of that, he went by train.
To whom it may concerned. Roundabout is in Voorschouten: burgemeester van eijklaan and wijngardenlaan intersection. And 1:25 looks like central railway station in Zoetermeer.
yes, as you can see, E10 petrol is EUR 1,979 here in december 2021 (and yes, we use a comma, not a dot)
Well observed!
In the states you’ll see a school bus stop a half mile before the school and pick up a load of kids. In all fairness, a good amount of high school kids within a mile choose to walk to school in my area, on the side of a busy road, nothing separating them except a painted white line, from moms and dads rushing to drop their kids off so they can hurry up and sit in traffic. It’s rather interesting.
As a native I've walked to school, cycled to school, and taken public transport to school. It really is a matter of distance and personal preference (Cost too I guess for the last option, though I imagine public transport is less costly than being driven to and from school by your parents).
Totally agree! I do see some people catching the public bus but the big difference for me is not seeing lines of buses out the front of the school at the end of the day.
Yes.
I can support that opinion... Yes.
You don't have to, but I remember one girl that lived near her schools and always walked. She, albeit Dutch, didn't like to cycle. As such it gets socially complicated when you want to go out in a group. But if you're an individual, sure. You can walk, take a bus, metro, tram or train. If you really need, you can even take a car. But why whould you?
In short: you don't have to, but it's definately expected.
Lovely to see! Great to see you find your way in our country. Be welcome! There is 1 other you don't mention beside infrastructure and that is the law. The cyclist is protected by law, which means that as a driver of a car, motorcycle, truck, bus or whatever, you are accountable when there is an accident. For example in your video: When 3 or 3 cyclist are cycling beside each other and I pass them with my car (even when they are coming head on) as a car driver I am responsible if an accident should occur. So drivers are more carefull when they spot a cyclist.
Yes, you have to cycle in the Netherlands, it’s mandatory. You also have to live in a wind mill, smoke weed every day and wear wooden shoes all the time.
And you have to have tulips on at least 10% of the area of your garden
When you say "there are no school buses" it almost suggests that children aren't able to go to school via public transport. There are regular buses that they can take, just not dedicated buses for school kids only.
Yes true - good point. For an Australian high school it is the common experience to have a long line of buses out the front of the school at the end of a day with a couple of teachers (sometimes with megaphones) directing students onto the correct bus. I suppose I was trying to emphasise that contrast to the Australian students.
By "school bus" we mean a bright yellow bus that only takes kids to and from a specific school, in the morning and afternoon. People who aren't students at that school are not allowed on them. A public transport bus is just a bus (even if a kid takes one to school). So I guess they don't have school buses in the NL. Lucky Dutch people!
"super empowering"
Exactly. That is why kids use bikes. They can make their own decisions, go to their mates, go to the city center to hang out, go on a cycle-about through the fields or woods. I think I must have been only 8 or 9 when I would cylce to school all by my self (and my little brother).
And occasionally, when the weather was particularly horrid, my dad would give me a ride.
Don't forget to signal with your arm which way you're going.
Not extending the arm causes a lot accidents with bicycles.
Great video. You are saying the reason why Dutch people bike around so much is because of the infrastructure. I would disagree. I would say it is the other way around. The reason why there is a lot of infrastructure is because the Dutch bike so much. The biking culture was there before the infrastructure was there. I would say the reason why they bike so much is because of the country being very dense, so most trips are relatively short, and the fact that the Netherlands is very flat, as we all know.
One reinforces the other. Once the infrastructure is there, more people will cycle. But why would politicians create the infrastructure, if no one is interested?
On the school busing, there would have to be some of that in the country since wouldn't there always be some parents having their kids going to a private school 10-20 miles off, farther than an ordinary commute ride, and also wouldn't there sometimes be a public school assigned or selected which would also be that far for numbers of the students going there but also living generally in the same area? Obviously, this is all good stuff. What tends to happen where I've lived is that you'd wind up riding bikes to your schools up to 8th grade because they were in the same small city, but then you'd get bused to your high school since it was five miles off two cities over where the traffic would of been a safety problem.
There are schools in The Netherlands that pick kids up with taxi vans, those schools are called "VSO Schools" schools for special needs kids. (Hope my english makes sense)
@@gemluka6666 Sure that makes sense, but it would have to be for more than just those "learning disabled" or whatever else they get called.
I'm Dutch and I haven't owned a bike for over 30 years. Today I had an appointment and my car battery was flat, it was probably the 2end or 3rd time in those 30 years I wanted a bike.
Then you simply don't miss a bike because you dont know how good it is. I'm german, and until 3 years ago I also didnt own a bike for 30 years. Then I had to buy a new one for my daugther and bought one for myself too. Since then I almost didnt use my car anymore. In the city it's so much easier and relaxter to go by bike. You also can park it wherever you want and at distances below 5km that often makes the bike also faster than going by car..
You are one of the very few Dutch then. Think about the health benefits, both physically and mentally.
I guess you'll soon be stripped of your Dutch citizenship ;-)
In America, if you placed a roundabout with a bike path, the volvo in the video would definitely hit the cyclist and argue it was not the drivers' fault. Hell, even in a car, I've had people in a roundabout pull right in front of me while I'm about to pass them. Even in a country where cyclists are prioritized over cars, my exposure to traumatic accidents for pedestrians and cyclists in the US makes me very hesitant to trust heavy, metal machines will stop for me...
Ah, then there is Dutch jurisdiction: pedestrians and cyclists are never guilty in confrontation with motorists, even when they act irresponsible (children and freaks); drivers of motor vehicles are always guilty. So the insurance won't pay if you are guilty. I imagine that that would a huge incentive in the U.S. for car drivers to drive very carefully...
Cars are ALWAYS wrong so when they hit a cyclist it's going to cost them.
@@jirrenno Also most car drivers are also cyclists.
@@Linda-hs1lk Liable is the term to use here.
Once bitten, twice shy. I know how You feel.
It helps that it is very very flat in NL, and yes great bike paths.
Very true!
@1:17 ....what.....thats just dutch summer beautiful weather, makes you big and strong
le auto si fermano un bel po' di tempo prima dell'arrivo della bici, incredibile. io invece devo sempre urlare, sbracciarmi, ecc. per farmi vedere e dirgli di fermarsi.
Voorschoten and Wassenaar?!
No but it does make thing's much easier
That's funny! The part where you filmed those kids waiting for eachother at the gas station is where I live. Did not expect that.
Edit: you later even biked in my street!
That is cool! It is such a small country!
No, you don't have to cycle if you live in the Netherlands.
But purposely not doing so is only going to make things less convenient for you for no real reason. Biking in the Netherlands is just so easy and safe that there is no reason not to bike.
If you are really set on not wanting to bike, then public transport is also quite great, you might have to wait longer in between rides if you live in more isolated places, but you generally still have public transport.
1:25 with the blue and yellow is the Nelson Mandelabridge, its over a highway and i crossed it many times cause i live in that city 😋
Sweetlake City?
@@renevanleeuwen1813 Yup.
YES!
yes its fun and safe.... explore holland the guide ountry
This is like asking, Do you have to walk? No you can just keep crawling but why would you
at 1:25, where is that bike path?
Nelson Mandela bridge in Zoetermeer
bikes are great if you live in a flat highly developed high population low acreage country with relatively mild winters. try riding to school on a ice mountain road when it is well below zero and the school is 10 miles in to town.
According to my Dad, he did it. And it was uphill both ways.
Off course you do
yes you do
next question
De biking infrastructure in The Netherlands might be one of the best things about it. It has so many benefits to society. In regards to kids I noticed from anecdotal personal experience that independent of movement has a positive effect on independence of thought and is a flywheel on personal development. I know of no studies actually done on the subject, but every time I met kids my age in The Netherlands I was struck by the difference in a general sense.
Having a car in the Netherlands is very expensive and driving even more expensive petrol € 2.01 per L parking € 7.50 per hour (Amsterdam center) Parking garage € 40. - -> 80.- per 24 hours + road tax and then the car €10000 to ???????
Why did you want a car in the Netherlands?
America: "our country is so free we can go anywhere we like with CARS!"
NL: "we have more freedom, our kids can go to and from School safely and they keep up that desire all their lives... if they stray from it and into their cars, they will go through insufferable torment in the cities"
Eh, sorry but not every roundabout has bicycle priority. It is likely in side the city boundary but is unlikely to have bicycle priority away from cities...
So, no, bicycle do not have automatic priority when entering a roundabout!
Yes you are right. I have been meaning to do a video just dedicated to roundabouts. They are a pretty amazing piece of bike infrastructure here in the Netherlands. Can’t imagine drivers in Australian cities accepting it.
im netherlands but i love your flog and go togeter in netherland
So glad you are enjoying it. I enjoy creating the videos. It helps me reinforce why I moved here.
meh, I dont have a bike anymore, but everything is close anyway for me so I dont really need it
This is all close to The Haque
Am Dutch and have no bike!
Yes you have to cycle otherwise you will deported back to your country 😁
You will get into so many situations where you realise biking is a better solution.
So you're saying the Dutch are accomplishing road safety in a roundabout way?
I would highly encourage biking if you live in the Netherlands, if only to see traffic from a bikers perspective.
👍👍
The Netherlands is so bike-dependent, you can't get anywhere any other way! Imagine those that can't afford to bike or are allergic to exercise of any form!
/s
Short answer:
YES! 🚲
If you don't cycle, we throw you into the North Sea.
Or just trow you into belgium as that is real torture
Hahahaha!
Answer: yes. And you'll also have to eat fries with mayonnaise and raw fish
sounds like a hell to live in. It's lashing it down, "jack time to go to school!", "mum, did you mean, time to swim to school?"
Should you cycle in the netherlands? Idk it really depends on the stack you're gonna use and how often you go to the gym
2:35 Look at the brand of car. Audi’s are not likely to stop :-(
lekker
In short: no. Dutch here with 2 bikes (Race and XC MTB) though I never ever cycle anywhere for means of transport. Everything with the car.
That being said: when I was a kid I used to cycle everywhere all the time and 95% of my transport was by bicycle.
Have to?! I'd rather bike anywhere, crazy drivers permitting....
Such an American question to ask
I'm Dutch and hate cycling, so after high school I've never had or rode a bike again. I'm almost 62 now...
Great video, but:
"If you don't, you'll probebly one of the only ones" - False. There are a lot of people that don't use bikes in the Netherlands. In most cities there is a very good public transportation system and plenty of people 'in the country' only use cars.
"you also find it's very tricky to go to school" - False. Lots of schools are within walking distance and plenty of parents take there kids to school with a car. Not so much in big cities, but plenty in other places. Also older kids do take public transport as most middle schools have busstops and some are even close to metro or train stations.
"bikes have right of way around roundabouts" - Not all roundabouts have this (most do). Pay attations to signs and roudmarks.
Good points Marvin. I will try to be more nuanced in future videos. I am trying to keep it fairly straight forward for the Australian class I am doing the video for. I teach at a Dutch High School and you are correct that many students do take public transport. I also notice kids getting dropped off but this is not as common and when I have asked the students it is apparently not "cool". It is certainly quite different to Australian schools.
1:32 ja die werkt ni. Echt n beginner zo te zien
Yes, if you don't do it you will get the chair.
800 bikes, that is 1600 cars per day @Dublincitycouncil...
Antwoord op je vraag is: ja.
cycling is for kids that all
Not in the Netherlands. It's healthy and really relaxing.
Segregation is key
Totally agree. Cars and bikes don’t mix too well.
I was in a school bus.
And loads of parents drop their kids with the car too...
So i dont know what you talk about..