Your cycling fallacy is…
“I don't use cycleways because they're dangerous”
The response
It is true that cycleways in many countries are unsafe, or of a low quality. But this doesn’t mean cycleways have to be this way.
We know how to design them properly, for safe, comfortable and efficient cycling – we just need to look at how cycling infrastructure is designed in the Netherlands and Denmark. These two countries, which have the highest density of cycleways, have the best cycling safety record by far.
Good cycling infrastructure reduces interactions with motor vehicles to an absolute minimum, and ensures that where interactions have to occur, they take place at slow speeds, with good visbility and clarity about how people should behave.
![Dutch families cycling safely at a busy urban junction Dutch families cycling safely at a busy urban junction](fallacy_images/size_display/a-family-cycling-together-in-an-urban-environment-in-the-netherlands.jpg)
Dutch families cycling safely at a busy urban junction
Photo by The Alternative Department for Transport (Copyright, used with permission)
![Vauxhall Bridge, London A new cycleway in London, opened in 2015](fallacy_images/size_display/couple-cycling-on-cycle-superhighway-5-vauxhall-bridge-london.jpg)
Vauxhall Bridge, London
A new cycleway in London, opened in 2015
Photo by As Easy as Riding a Bike (Copyright, used with permission)
![The children in this photo are too young to have taken their school cycling lessons, yet are already cycling to and from school.](fallacy_images/size_display/schoolchildren-cycling-on-a-safe-cycleway-in-the-netherlands.jpg)
The children in this photo are too young to have taken their school cycling lessons, yet are already cycling to and from school.
Photo by The Alternative Department for Transport (Copyright, used with permission)
![diagram comparing cycling levels and deaths in the netherlands denmark germany and the uk](fallacy_images/size_display/diagram-comparing-cycling-levels-and-deaths-in-the-netherlands-denmark-germany-and-the-uk.jpg)
Photo by The Alternative Department for Transport (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Related fallacies
Further reading
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Route Infrastructure and the Risk of Injuries to Bicyclists: A Case-Crossover Study — American Journal of Public Health
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Injury risk & route infrastructure — The University of British Columbia
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Identifying risk factors for on-road commuter cyclists — Journalist's Resource
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Risk of injury for bicycling on cycle tracks versus in the street — BMJ
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Risk of injury for bicycling on cycle tracks versus in the street — Journalist's Resource
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Trends in Walking and Cycling Safety: Recent Evidence From High-Income Countries, With a Focus on the United States and Germany (PDF) — American Journal of Public Health
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Protected bike lanes in New York City (PDF) — The City of New York
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High-Quality Bike Facilities Increase Ridership and Make Biking Safer — National Association of City Transportation Officials (NACTO, USA)
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How can doctors prescribe cycling when roads are unsafe? — Edmonton Journal
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Physical separation of cyclists from traffic “crucial” to dropping injury rates, shows U.S. study — Cycling Industry News
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Austin bike crashes on the decline — CBS Austin, Texas
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America's Cycling Infrastructure Is Pretty Bad, But Chicago Is An Exception That Proves The Rule — Chicagoist
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My Dream Cycleway — The Cycling Embassy of Great Britain
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National protected bike lane week: the infographic — People for Bikes
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A Health and Safety Perspective of Cycling Safety — Alistair Marshall
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But we have driveways — A View From The Cycle Path
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Cycleway design in Berlin and beyond — The Alternative Department for Transport
Deutsch
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Kreuzungsdesign in den Niederlanden: Radfahrer inbegriffen — Radfahrerzone
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Mein Traumradweg — Das Andere Bundesministerium für Verkehr
Suomi
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Pyöräilyturvallisuus — JYPS
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Pyöräliikenteen suunnitteluohje / Helsingin kaupunki — Pyöräliikenne
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Hyvät pyöräilyväylät kannustavat pyöräilemään — JYPS
Čeština
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Cykloobousměrky jsou pro cyklisty bezpečné. Tvrdí to data z pražských ulic. — Čistou stopou
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Technické podmínky 179 – Navrhování komunikací pro cyklisty — Ministerstvo dopravy ČR
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Chráněná infrastruktura versus vehikulární cyklisté — Prahou na kole
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Pražské nehody cyklistů 2020: noví cyklisté nezvýšili podíl zavinění — Městem na kole
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