In Switzerland, only die-hards would probably get on their bikes that day. Quite different in Nijmegen, the tenth largest city in the Netherlands with 180,000 inhabitants. Bicycle tires cut the puddles of rain in time. Sometimes it’s a normal bicycle, sometimes an e-bike, then a transport e-bike.
Already at eight in the morning, bikes roll into the city on the so-called Velobahn. This wide, red band that has been connecting the cities of Arnhem and Nijmegen, which are 20 kilometers apart, for a few years. A pioneering project that is now being imitated around the world. Soon also in Switzerland. Velobahns are intended to make e-biking safer and thus more attractive.
The new, sustainable highways
The Velobahn, the bicycle counterpart to the Autobahn, is the most spectacular reaction to the e-bike boom, its opportunities and problems. In the Netherlands, Velobahn has already persuaded thousands of car commuters to change trains. The city planner Sjors van Duren is the initiator of the Velobahnen. He explains: “We have linked larger agglomerations with safe and convenient cycle paths. And it is precisely this that has ensured that the e-bike in particular has become an attractive alternative in competition with the car.»
Since the opening of the Velobahn, ten percent fewer cars have been driving on the motorway between Arnhem and Nijmegen in the commuter direction. Of course, the Velobahn is also built for motorless bicycles. But the distance is predestined for commuting with fast e-bikes. Car and train are hardly faster. And because a Velobahn is four to five meters wide, e-bikes don’t get in the way of motorless people. The crossing-free route of the Velobahn also makes it safer for everyone. And safety is a central topic in the discussion about e-bikes.
More e-bike accidents?
The number of seriously injured and killed e-bike riders in Switzerland increases every year. There are no figures on the (increasing) mileage of e-bikes. However, the practically parallel development of sales figures and accidents indicates that the increasing accident figures are also a reflection of more frequent use. Industry experts assume that there are now 1.3 million e-bikes on Swiss roads. Only: They all operate on roads that were built either for cars or for slower bicycles. Still.
Baden – Zurich on the Velobahn
Since this year, however, the first cycle tracks based on the Dutch model have also been planned in Switzerland. A study by the Federal Roads Office Astra shows: In Switzerland, traffic on motorways that run parallel to the planned cycle lanes could decrease by two to four percent. However, it will be years before these bike lanes are ready for use. No one likes to commit to opening dates.
Legend:
Swiss Velobahn?
The map shows potential bicycle lanes in Switzerland, which coincide with commuter traffic.
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The e-bike city
But the e-bike boom is not the only focus for traffic planners on bicycle railways. Swiss cities also need to be rethought if cycling is to become safer and therefore more attractive. The ETH study called E-Bike-City is currently investigating a radical transformation of Zurich. What would happen if half of the street area was reserved for e-bikes and the like?
The key to achieving the climate goals?
ETH professor Kay Axhausen initiated the study. In terms of motivation, he says: “We can only achieve the climate goals in the cities by switching from motorized individual transport to more bicycle and slow-moving traffic.” You can’t do that with the electrification of vehicles alone.
ETH forecasts show that switching from combustion engines to electric motors would initially lead to a lower overall CO₂ balance. However, this would be offset in the near future by population growth, more mileage for electric cars due to reduced environmental concerns, and the convenience of autonomous driving.
The E-Bike-City study now wants to develop the basics of how people can be motivated to switch to e-bikes or bicycles. One thing is clear: security is key. But how do you achieve that? Here, too, the researchers were inspired by Veloland Netherlands.
Bicycle accident more likely in Zurich than in Amsterdam
Amsterdam has been transformed into a bike city for 50 years – with success. Meredith Glaser from the University of Amsterdam has dealt with the history of the cycling city of Amsterdam: “As soon as the traffic-calmed streets came into existence, the accidents with injuries and fatalities in the city fell massively.” The risk of being fatally injured in a bicycle accident is around three to four times lower in Amsterdam today than in Zurich.
Legend:
Impact of the Velobahn
The Velobahn characterizes the cityscape of Amsterdam. Where cars used to stand, there is now space for bicycles and pedestrians. Above you can see the comparison of the Van Ostadestraat from 1970 and today, and below the Ferdinand Bol Straat from 1982 and today.
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The traffic engineer Clarissa Livingston is developing the planning principles for the e-bike city and has already ridden a bike in Amsterdam herself: “I found the traffic routing in Amsterdam very intuitive for bicycles.” The cycling areas are clearly marked with red pavement, cycling routes are continuous.
Suddenly disappearing bike lanes like in this country? none. And now the bike city of Amsterdam is also becoming an e-bike city. This after more and more Amsterdammers complained that city traffic had become more dangerous with the increasing number of e-bikes.
As soon as traffic-calmed streets came into existence, the number of accidents involving injuries and fatalities in the city dropped massively.
guest car
A similar problem arises here as in Swiss cities: the limited space. Ideally, bicycles also need a lane that is at least two meters wide in urban areas in order to be able to overtake safely. The Dutch cycle lanes will now be extended over the entire lane and the speed will be reduced to 30 km/h. For all. And the cars are clearly signaled that they are “te gast”, i.e. guests, on these roads.
But what would the implementation of an e-bike city in Zurich look like? More space for bikes also means less space for cars. The professor for traffic planning and transport systems Kay Axhausen emphasizes that the access possibilities for craftsmen, for people who are dependent on the car or for emergency vehicles should remain. It would not be 100 percent, but 50 percent for the bikes, he says. One of the sub-studies is now examining how this can be guaranteed using a one-way system.
Participation study
Further studies within the E-Bike City project want to know how big the switching effect would be and who would switch from which means of transport. This was also the Ebis study launched. Here, e-bikers can help themselves to generate data on user behavior. So that the researchers can see, for example, which routes e-bikers prefer.
E-Bike City for the undecided
Another E-Bike City sub-project wants to know which design elements have a positive effect on the sense of safety. Initial findings show that cyclists feel safer if cycle paths are clearly separated from other traffic and from tram tracks. But colored areas and solid dividing lines between bicycle and car traffic also help. Especially seniors, parents and women. All population groups who still often do without bicycles or e-bikes because of the dangers of traffic.
As in Zurich, so in Bern, Basel or St. Gallen
When the results of the E-Bike City study are available in three years, they should also help other Swiss cities to plan their cycle path network. Kay Axhausen is convinced: “If an e-bike city works in Zurich, it will also work in other cities.” After all, Zurich is the biggest challenge for Swiss traffic planners.
Back in the Netherlands. Where, despite the rainy weather, people commute many kilometers into the city by bike. In fact, surveys show that even when the weather is bad, 80 percent of good-weather riders still use their bikes or e-bikes. Probably not just because the Dutch are particularly weatherproof, but because a safe and comfortable bike connection is the basis for feeling good and daring to switch to e-bikes or bicycles.