First Impressions of Zuid-Holland

First impressions of Zuid-Holland

The biggest difference between Zuid-Holland and anywhere I've been in the US is the bicycles. I would estimate that one in four to one in three Delfters' have a bicycle as their primary mode of transit. I would say there are a few obvious contributing factors.

The first factor is that Dutch people despise obesity. On a recent poll about attractiveness, obesity was one of the biggest turn-offs of a Dutch significant other. If I had to guess, I would say this value comes from needing to reclaim land from the ocean. Over a quarter of the land in the Netherlands is below sea level; land scarcity and uncertainty necessitated hard work.

The second factor is the price of gasoline. Gas is currently 1,499 euros / liter (the annoying last 9 appears to be universal). This translates to roughly $9 / gallon. The government imposes much higher taxes on gasoline than in the states. I am not a big fan of government involvement, however I'd agree that gasoline taxes in the United States are too low to capture all the externalities (I can't find the sources I've seen relating to this).

The third factor, obviously related to a large market, is the availability of different bicycle models. There is an analog spectrum of bicycle to motorcycle here:

Human-powered bicycle <-> Motor-assisted bicycle <-> Small scooter <-> Large scooter <-> Motorcycle

Motor-assisted bicycles are nearly non-existant in the US. I don't think I had previously seen, in person, a motor-assisted bicycle. Delfters, especially little old ladies, love these models. I'm tempted to hack around with one. I've read about one or two TU Delft students creating battery-assisted bicycles for their MSc thesis.

As an aside, while scooter riders wear standard motorcycle-style helmets, I haven't seen an adult nor teenage bicyclist wearing a helmet. (EDIT: I saw a police officer on a bicycle today, and he was wearing a helmet).

The fourth factor is that the infrastructure is very bicycle-friendly. There are many shortcuts around town that only scooters, bicycles, and bicycle-hybrids are allowed to use. On the main roads there are bicycle lanes seperated from the automobile lanes. Some of these roads have separate bicycle stop lights from the main lights.

The last factor (bicycle-friendly infrastructure) has clearly taken a lot of government involvement. I'm not familiar enough with the regulations and government here to speak to the advantages and disadvantages of having much stricter regulation.

For all the love of bicycles, I have not found a great bike shop yet. During one of my random walks on the internet I found a list saying you're only a true Delfter if you bought your bike at a open market. I didn't see a bike stall at the open market on Sunday, though there is a market on Wednesday that I haven't searched extensively. Once I get to know some people at the University I'll ask about where they bought their bikes. Until then I'll just jealously watch the bike riders zoom by me on my morning walk.



(note: I wrote this post on my laptop before I had regular internet access)