If you’ve been wondering what the City of Portland means when they talk about “going Platinum”, look no further than this fascinating video called “Copenhagen, City of Cyclists”. It was sent to me by a reader whose wife works for PSU’s Center for Transporation Studies.
This 22 minute video perfectly illustrates the goals and visions that Portland’s bike advocates are striving for. Here are the links:
City of Copenhagen Bike Page
Watch it on Google Video
I forwarded the link to Roger Geller, Portland’s Bicycle Coordinator, and here’s what he thought: “I found it inspiring, not only in what can be achieved, but in the manner in which it can be achieved: focus, time, priorities.”
If you dream about a city where bicycles are a safe, convenient and comfortable alternative to cars, this video will fuel your fire.
Here are a few stats I jotted down after watching it:
- Copenhagen has 100 years of bike culture and planning.
- 100,000 bike commuters every day.
- 1,000,000 km per day are ridden
- All taxis must carry bicycles.
- 25% of the city’s road budget goes toward bicycle facilities.
There’s some talk of this video being shown at the opening of the upcoming Portland Bike Summit in June. If you’re able to watch it I’d love to know what you think.
- Can Portland really expect to ever be like Copenhagen?
- If not, why not?
- How long do you think it would take us to get there?