Bicycle Ubiquity

I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride my bike;
I want to ride my bicycle, I want to ride it where I like.
-- Freddie Mercury and Queen (1978)


Ubiquitous.  Omnipresent.  Bicycles.

To say there are a lot of bicycles in Amsterdam is almost like saying there is a lot of water in the ocean.  Bicycles are all over.  I believe it is a prerequisite for living in the city.  Amsterdammers ride their bikes everywhere -- to work, to shop, to school, to eat.  While I certainly don't know any numbers, I would wager the ratio of bicycles to automobiles in central Amsterdam is at least 20 to 1.  There is even a multi-level garage at the central train station strictly for parking bikes.  Almost every street in the city has a dedicated bike lane and there are even electronic signals for bicyclists to follow much like the signals at crosswalks for pedestrians.  Bikes are parked and locked everywhere -- including along the railings of every canal bridge in the city.

We've seen bikes of all shapes and sizes.  Most bikes have baskets and saddlebags for transporting groceries, briefcases, pets -- you name it.  Men in suits, ladies in skirts and high heels, young, old -- everyone rides a bike.  It's simply the best way to get around.  What you don't see -- overweight people riding bikes.  Everyone here appears very trim.

Another ubiquitous item in Amsterdam?  The rrrring, rrrring of the bells telling you to get out of the way or else be run over.