Amsterdam bridge

Amsterdam: city of cyclists. Every day we learn, innovate, and target new challenges to improve our most favorite means of transport.

About Amsterdam

City of Amsterdam logo

Amsterdam is the capital of the Netherlands, with its characteristic semi-circle medieval city centre and attractive canals. Amsterdam and bicycles have enjoyed a long-lasting love affair. In rain or shine, good times or bad, Amsterdammers embrace the bike. Making up 36% of all trips, or roughly 665,000 bike rides per day, the bike is both the most widely used and fastest growing means of transport: this makes Amsterdam one of the world's bicycle capitals. Daily cycling has become a central part of Amsterdam (and Dutch) society and a solution to congestion, even across longer commuting distances.

Main cycling challenges

A rapid increase in cycling's modal share in Amsterdam over the last 20 years means bicycle congestion has become a challenge. Bikes parked on pavements in busy areas form a common obstacle for pedestrians. The advent of different types of bicycles, such as cargo bikes and electric bikes, and their speed and size variations require infrastructure design to respond to these different types of cyclists. To keep up with Amsterdam's growth, it is vital to keep evolving, innovating and investing. Further research in innovative and smart solutions belongs to this.

Statistics

Population icon
873,289 Population
Amount of cyclists icon
30k/day Amount of cyclists
(on busiest route)
Car ownership rate icon
260 Car ownership rate
(cars per 1000 residents)
City area<
220 km² City area
Length of cycle network icon
815 km Length of cycle network
Amsterdam

Timeline

Cycling solutions

As a Cycling Capital in Handshake, Amsterdam has expertise in a wide range of cycling solutions. Its activities focus on further developing and enhancing its current cycling routes in areas of high cycling use. Amsterdam will mentor several cities in Handshake and provide knowledge and good practice for others to follow.

Amsterdam

Contact

Ria Hilhorst

PO Box 95989
1090 HB
Amsterdam
Netherlands

ria.hilhorst [at] amsterdam.nl

00 31 14020

More Amsterdam updates

Amsterdam online media

This project has received funding from the European Union‘s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme under grant agreement no 769177.

The sole responsibility for the content of this website lies with the CIVITAS Handshake project and in no way reflects the views of the European Commission.