Nieuwsbrief


	Monday 20 December 2010
Centre of expertise on bicycle policy CENTRE OF EXPERTISE ON BICYCLE POLICY New in the Knowledge Bank The knowledge bank of the Fietsberaad tries to present the most complete overview of information relating to cycling and associated subjects. The most relevant documents as well as the summaries of many other documents have therefore been translated into English. A selection of recent documents: Article Interventions to promote cycling: systematic review Lin Yang and others , British Medical Journal - 2010 Study to determine what interventions are effective in promoting cycling, the size of the effects of interventions, and evidence of any associated benefits on overall physical activity or anthropometric measures. Article Infrastructure, programs, and policies tot increase cycling: An international review John Pucher, Jennifer Dill, Susan Handy , Preventive Medicine 50 (2010) Assessment of existing research on the effects of various interventions on levels of bicycling. Report Making a Cycling Town: a compilation of practitioners’ experiences from the Cycling Demonstration Towns programme. Cycling England , Department for Transport Recommendations for development and delivery of a town-wide programme to promote cycling, developed from the lessons learnt working with the six Cycling Demonstration Towns. Report Analysis and synthesis of evidence on the effects of investment in six Cycling Demonstration Towns Sloman L, Cavill N, Cope A, Muller L and Kennedy A , Cycling England This paper provides a summary of evidence on changes in cycling and physical activity in six towns following the first phase of the Cycling Demonstration Town investment programme. Read more... Visit the Netherlands If you want to learn more about –Dutch – bicycle policies, directly from Dutch cycling experts, Fietsberaad International is ready to meet your needs. Prepare your visit A list of the best Dutch towns on cycling.. Read more... Organize your visit We are happy to invite you to visit the Netherlands, Read more... Invite Dutch experts Fietsberaad International also has at its disposal a group of Dutch cycling experts, our ‘bicycle ambassadors’ who are prepared to visit you. Read more.. Fietsberaad Fietsberaad is an expertise centre for cycling policy. The objective of Fietsberaad is the development, dissemination ans exchange of practical knowledge abd experience for cycling policy. Info You can reach Fietsberaad through the international co-ordinator, Hans Voerknecht. T: +31(0)30 - 2918203 Fietsberaad Gebouw Leeuwenstein Jaarbeursplein 15 3521 AM Utrecht Messages, tips, reports, brochures etc. for this newsletter can be send to the editor of this newsletter, Ron Hendriks: Subscription You can subscribe for this free e-newsletter via this link: www.fietsberaad.org	SPECIALIST'S NEWS Successful tour of US and Canada by Dutch bike experts Recently Dutch bike experts have paid a visit to four cities in Canada and the US to debate and explain opportunities to increase bicycle use there. They received a warm welcome. Read more » Amsterdam bicycle promotion Amsterdam has made a beautiful promotional video, depicting both the town and cycling. Subtitled in English, the video has already reached a considerable number of foreign websites. Read more » Austrian supermarket focuses on cyclists In Austria supermarket chain Spar has provided its branches of bicycle with bicycle stands, in cooperation with Vienna local authorities. This concerned 650 bicycle parking spaces overall. In addition a number of branches will be provided with charger facilities for electric bikes. Read more » France requires bicycle parking at residences As of 2012 new residences in France are to be equipped with a covered or safe place to park a bicycle. Charge facilities for electric bicycles will be required as well. Read more » Cycle against obesity The evidence that cycling is good for your health is piling up. Recently a publication in the American Journal of Public Health has underlined this: the more trips on foot or by bicycle, the lower the number of obese people. Read more » Health advantages of town cycling outweigh risks Despite all the dangers a cyclist may encounter in traffic, it is still healthier by far to abandon the car in favour of cycling. This is the conclusion drawn by IRAS (Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences) of Universiteit Utrecht and Planbureau voor de Leefomgeving (PBL). Read more » Increase in cycling conducive to public health, despite extra traffic casualties If 10 per cent of short car trips (up to 7.5 km) are replaced by bicycle trips, the number of traffic fatalities in the Netherlands will increase by 4 to 8. There will be an additional 500 serious casualties. But as more exercise is conducive to public health, an increase in cycling leads to improved public health overall. Read more » Trauma units call for bicycle helmets Use of a bicycle helmet leads to a reduction by 63% to 88% of the risk of head injuries. An obligation to wear a bicycle helmet will meet with much resistance from interest groups. Yet trauma units emphasize that a helmet may reduce head and brain injuries particularly in children. Read more » Parking garage becomes colourful bicycle parking How to transform a multi-storey parking garage into a bicycle parking – in Breda the basement of the Concordia garage has had a complete makeover. Not only by the placement of bicycle stands, but the grey concrete was transformed by colourful furnishings with pictures referring to the town’s history. The new bicycle parking provides room for 420 bicycles. Read more » Part-time parking on car spaces Quite a number of bicycles fit onto a car parking space, as revealed by this demonstration – with folding bicycles. The GroenLinks political party, part of the Amsterdam council, feels that more often parking spaces should be adapted to use by bicycles, if necessary part-time only at busy locations in the country’s capital . Read more » Students as role models This summer, on the eve of the Tour de France start in Rotterdam, some 500 first-grade students of seven secondary schools participated in a four-week competition to cycle the highest number of kilometres. Ultimately they covered 54,000 kilometres. Read more » Test for new blind-corner solution In the German town of Flensburg a new warning system for blind-corner accidents is being tested. A flashing light warns car drivers making a right turn when cyclists are approaching from behind. Read more »