Eliza Relman/Insider
For two months I lived in Berlin and commuted to work by bike.
As a New Yorker who cycles in the city, it was incredibly refreshing to reside in a spot with better bike infrastructure and far more respect for cyclists’ rights on the road.
Most of the German capital is connected by well-marked bicycle lanes on streets and sidewalks, with traffic lights specifically for cyclists at busy intersections.
And Berlin has boosted spending on bike infrastructure to €51 million annually — almost five times more than New York City spends.
But bike traffic in Berlin is growing, and Germans are quick to say the streets are increasingly unsafe for cyclists.
Here’s what my bicycle commute looks like in Berlin.
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For two months last summer I lived in Berlin and commuted to work by bicycle.
As a New Yorker who often cycles in the city, it’s been incredibly refreshing to bike in a place with significantly better infrastructure and much more respect for cyclists’ rights to the street.
The majority of the German funding is linked by bike lanes with traffic lights for cyclists in intersections.
Pedestrians also appear far less annoyed and terrified by their own fellow commuters, while drivers in cars respect the lanes and buses and trucks often wave cyclists prior to making a turn. Pedestrians look both ways before crossing jaywalk and bike lanes far less than they do in most American cities.
Last summer, Berlin passed legislation mandating the city spend euro;51 million (roughly $56 million) annually on bike infrastructure. By 2025, Berlin needs one-third of all travel to be done on bike.
Meanwhile, in New York City, fisherman deaths have jeopardized , prompting the town to boost spending on bike infrastructure to $58 million over the subsequent five years, about 20% of the things Berlin spends yearly.
While Berlin’s bike infrastructure is far superior to New York’s, as bike traffic grows, Germans are fast to say it is far from perfect. Additional smaller German cities are known for being more bike-friendly. And a few other European metropolises, like Copenhagen and Amsterdam, are better places to cycle.
Here’s what my bike ride Resembles at Berlin:
I leave my flat and head to the bike lane on my road at the Berlin area of Wedding.
Eliza Relman/Insider
I bike along the canal for a little, where there’s a park and a vast route for bikers and pedestrians.
Eliza Relman/Insider
The lane proceeds with a transparent demarcation between pedestrian walkway (cobblestones) and bike lane (paved path).
Eliza Relman/Insider
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