Cut-throat world of the danish bike lanes

It is a cut-throat world on the danish bike lanes. On some days it feels like everything is out to get you. Children, elderly people, other cyclists... especially other cyclist and they are creative about it. Everybody except the car drivers, they, are super considerate to cyclists. And of course they are, if there is a crash with a cyclist and driver being a part of it it will be drivers fault by default unless cyclist went through red light. But at the same time, deep down, drivers hate cyclists.

"Copenhagen cyclists are the worst", one of my friends said.

And I must say that I understand the sentiment. 

When I just arrived I was working with a friend who isn't a passionate cyclist. Also, we both recently moved to Copenhagen and we didn't know the city so we were relying on a GPS a lot and we weren't riding fast. We were definitely slower cyclists out there. Oooo boy, I was feeling like a moving target! Other cyclist were just swooshing past us, often angrily using their bells, somehow you can just hear the frustration from the way the person uses a bike bell. We were just a slow crawling nuisance that was reducing Danish commuting efficiency.

That lasted for two months. My friend and me learned the ropes of our job and we started working independently. Since, by that time I got to know the city as well I started riding my usual style, fast and determined, like a well integrated immigrant.

Since then I saw the other dark side of Copenhagen cyclists. They don't care for pedestrians at all and sometimes they really should. Danish cycling infrastructure is great but it has it's flaws. For example bus stations are in between the road and the bike lane, so when passengers are going on or of the bus they must go across the bike lane. On multiple occasions, when bus would stop and passengers would start going of, I would either stop or crawl so people can normally get of the bus. I thought other cyclists would do the same, I was wrong. They don't, they just go into mode; moving obstacles... avoid... avoid, so they just go zig-zaging through the passengers getting of the bus and almost colliding with me, since I am letting people go over the bike lane. Even though the default is, squeeze through the pedestrians and try not to hit them, I still stop and let them through and risk being ran over by a determined Dane on the bike. It is the same with crosswalks. You would think when people are crossing the road on the green light that cyclists would let them through, they don't. I guess their reasoning is that if someone ends up under their wheels, it is their fault.

Position of the bike lane in between the road and the sidewalk causes other problems as well. When people are getting out of the car, or fetching stuff from the car they have to be on the bike lane. That is what is causing a lot of potentially dangerous situations. On multiple occasions I was in a situation where I thought that I will slam into the person getting out of the car, or into the person going across the bike lane. Two times I was in a situation in which the person going across the bike lane saw me, looked me straight into the eyes, acknowledged that I am approaching and still made a step unto the bike lane even though I was just 2 meters away approaching in high speed. Fortunately for me, disk brakes had enough power to stop me before I hit the person.

Cyclist are also a menace to other cyclists. A lot of them is making turns without signaling, joining the bike lane without any thought of the incoming traffic, squeezing in past you in places where there is enough room for just one bike, people riding children bikes overtake when it seems there isn't enough space. On occasions it can really feel like: "Ok, this one will crash into me, but then they don't." I will conclude that I am the inexperienced one.

To conclude these 2 cycling posts. Danish bike lanes are amazing. If a person lives and works in Copenhagen there really is no reason to commute by car. The fastest way of commuting is using the bike, but it isn't the safest one. So, in a tame country of Denmark, where everything is regulated and controlled, if you want to get some adrenaline, get a bike and jump in! Who knows, maybe that is the reason why are Danes doing it, so they can feel alive at least while they are in their daily commute.

Cycling in Denmark

Cycling is a great hobby of mine. In the second year of studies I was mugged in a tram in Zagreb and for a short period of time I was afraid of using Zagreb public transportation. That didn't last long but it lasted long enough for me to notice the crappy old green bike in front of the apartment. I think dad bought it when I was a kid, but nobody ever used it. That time I thought, why not, let's try. Oooo the freedom.... being independent from public transport, not wasting your life away in traffic jams and the commuting speed. It was love on the first sight and it just grew from there. First it led to me working as a bike courier as I was wrapping up my studies. And I loved that stupid job. Roaming around the city on the bike for the whole day, beautiful! 

After I got into the grove I was doing between 50 and 80 km a day and then one day I woke up and asked myself: "How far could I go if I just cycle in one direction?" The answer was the coastline. Zagreb is located a bit less then 200km from the coastline. And that was it, eternal love between my bike and me was sealed.

As it turned out my dear friend was equally crazy about cycling as I was. From 2010 to 2016, 4 out of 6 summers we spent on cycling trips around Europe: Berlin, Tirana, Lake Ohrid, Swiss Alps, Krakow, Sarajevo, Dubrovnik, Prague; to name just a few places we have seen with our best 2 wheeled friends.

Cycling is just a part of me and it will always be a part of my life in a smaller or larger degree.

Before I moved to Denmark I knew that Denmark has an amazing cycling infrastructure and that the cycling is a big thing there. Even with that knowledge I wasn't prepared for reality, which was just WoW.

First time Al'Shadar took me to the center of Copenhagen I felt like a small child, full of awe and wonder for the new world. Bike lanes were everywhere and they were wide enough so you can overtake and they were packed! First group of people commuting was around 70 bikes large! Up to that point the largest group of other fellow cyclist I was waiting for the trafficlight in Zagreb was 5! So I recon you can understand my surprise when I saw a group of that size.

Danish cycling infrastructure is just amazing. There are not two places in Denmark that are not connected with a bike lane. Bike lanes are just everywhere in Denmark even between nowhere and nowhere. For real! There are even bike lanes in rural area with just couple of people living in them.

But, cycling lanes is one thing but bicycles are something else. Before I moved I expected that in a country with such a great infrastructure, quality of the bikes will follow but it doesn't. Most of the bikes you can see in traffic are crappy old city bikes and when I say crappy I mean crappy! If bikes were supposed to pass some road safety test, most of the bikes on Danish roads would fail. At first I was surprised with that but as I started to get to know Danish culture it started to make sense. People in Denmark don't cycle because it is there hobby, they cycle to commute. Bicycle in Denmark is a transportation device and Danes treat them as such. Bicycles are tools to be used for commuting and not hobby items you will pamper.

But that can also be seen on the Danish streets. During workdays most of the bicycles looks like they will fall apart if you look them in a bad way. Weekends are a different story though. Then avid cyclists pull out their babies out of storage and these bikes are something else. Sexy roadies worth 10000 dkk or more. Mountain bikes are a rare sight in Denmark. When you get to see one, you will remember it, and that makes sense. Of course mountain bikes are not popular and why would they be. Denmark is FLAT and the usefulness of mountain-bikes is very limited. You just don't need mountain-bikes in a flat country.

But there is a lot of weird looking bike-things that are used for transportation of people and/or things. On multiple occasions I have seen a parent transporting their two or more children in children-bikes. Some of them are three wheeled with a transport spaces on the front axle, some of them have two wheels with transportation space between the wheels, but these are made just to carry cargo. The most interesting one I have seen is for transportation of blood.

To conclude, biking is huge in Denmark and you can see it everywhere. But it isn't huge because Danes are passionate bicyclers, it is huge because it is a mean of transport. But if you are a passionate cyclist, moving to Denmark will be a huge quality if life improvement.

In the next blog entry I will talk a bit about how it is to cycle on danish bike lanes.

Danes in public spaces

Denmark is a bit over regulated country. 

Laws are set in place and people adhere to them and everything is working like clockwork. Problems arise when there is a part of everyday life that is not regulated in that way, then Danes get a bit lost. Great examples is open public space that isn't strictly regulated: behavior in daily commute and in shopping.

But let's start with road traffic. That will offer a great contrast to the point I am trying to make, because it is highly regulated activity. When Danes are driving cars they are borderline boring, in a good way. When you are driving in Denmark you should feel safe. Like any other regulated aspect of life in Denmark, this one is also working spotlessly. People don't speed, during peak hours, if there is no traffic obstructions everything is flowing. If you need to change lanes, you just need to turn on the blinkers and they will immediately allow you to change lanes. Totally, non stressful and safe. My favorite element of road traffic is when Danes are using a lane that is obligatory turn. You will see ten or more cars standing in a obligatory left lane for example and all of them blinking that they will make the left turn, like they have any other options. Why is this aspect of everyday life working like clockwork? Because it is regulated and the fines for infringement of traffic rules are very high. So, Danes are not given any freedoms and nothing is left to interpretation. Speed limit is 110, you will not drive faster. When you turn left, you will blink. Easy peasy! Danes excel at following rules.

But behavior in trains, shopping malls and bike lanes is not regulated, Danes are left to their own devices and than things start going a bit wrong.

Trains and shopping malls sometimes look like battlegrounds where speed and relentless determination are essential for survival.... no wait do you need them in order to board a train or buy groceries? Of course you don't, but it certainly looks like you do.

When Danes are boarding a train they will form a narrow passage way around the doors and eagerly wait to jump on its pray. At the moment the doors open if foot does not peak in a split of a second the relentless stampede will start. If someone does want to get of, but he did not react fast enough, the Danish stampede will stop and reluctantly give only minimal space for the person to get of the train. They are on a mission! Board the train like your life depends on it! It is the same with getting of the train. If a woman with a child, person with a bike or a person in a wheelchair wants to get of the train, the Danish stampede does not care. Tightly packed line is formed and if you are not in it you must wait until they pass or you will be trampled. Women with baby carts receive help to get of the train usually from the conductor, or the first person that is trying to get on the train. I recon that a woman with a baby cart is seen as an obstruction that reduces the efficient boarding so it should be removed fast. Train rides are ruthless and should not be taken lightly in Denmark.

It is very similar in the supermarkets. When waiting in line at the cash register, you can feel them breathing down the back of your neck. If you want to take a slight step outside of the line, you are running the risk of losing your space. In general, if you display any hesitation while trying to get in line or while you are waiting in line you are doing it at your own risk, after all there is only so much food in the store, it just might run out.

If you are looking at something on the shelves and another Dane is looking at it as well but he got there before you, do not expect it will give you any space so you can look as well. The only thing you will get is a mute angry stare that says: "I got here first! I will move when I am done and not a split second before!" Ooookkkk.... it is not like the milk will run anywhere by the time you are done. There are counters to this behavior. Option I usually go for is just wait. Relentless Danish shoppers are usually done within half a minute. Second option is that you could ask them to give you some space. It would be acknowledged as demonstration of force and if you would leave the impression that you are the alpha hunter in this isle the weaker shopper could retreat and acknowledge defeat and wait it's turn.

Third alternative is to ask them for some space. With popping this question you are putting a Dane in a state of internal conflict between making a scene, if he decides not to give you space and pulling back. The last thing a Dane in public wants is to be noticed by others, so he will give up and let you look. They just can't stand being noticed by strangers.

Why is it like that? Because Danes are great at following rules. Whenever they see a rule, by default and without thinking, they oblige. That is why, if rules are set up in a smart way, that part of life will function without a glitch. But there is a negative side effect of this behavior as well, it creates boiled up frustrations inside. These frustrations surface on weekends or in non-regulated activities. That is when Danes give in to their urges that are buried deep down inside and that is what makes them to see a lady with a stroller just as an obstacle that needs to be solved in the shortest possible time!