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From having spent quite some time in Amsterdam, I would say that you're safer on a bike than on foot. When a biker rings the bell on you in Amsterdam it's not a

by codr4 8y ago

From having spent quite some time in Amsterdam, I would say that you're safer on a bike than on foot. When a biker rings the bell on you in Amsterdam it's not a heads up or suggestion to get out of the way like in the rest of the world; it's quite possibly the last thing you will ever hear. From my experience, they go fast and expect you to move out of the way. Or you could try to not walk in bike lanes, I guess; not that I had much luck identifying them.

Fritsdehacker 8y ago
I lived in Amsterdam for more than ten years and recently moved to a smaller city. Amsterdam really has it's own bike "culture". Cyclist in the rest of Holland are far more forgiving to pedestrians and other traffic in general in my experience. I have no trouble cycling in Amsterdam, but I do have to pay a lot more attention than normally.
- dstick 8y ago
  Yup, two completely different worlds. A red sign is treated more like a suggestion ;-)
- rorykoehler 8y ago
  The over abundance of naive tourists blocking the way probably destroyed any goodwill Amsterdammers may have had.
stefan_ 8y ago
Well, you walked into a bike lane. If you walk into a car lane in the US, if the comments on that Uber crash are any indication, a good number of people are perfectly fine with you dieing under the wheels of an inattentive motorist and the police will blame you on the statement of the same motorist alone. The good news is that people don't generally die from pedestrian-bike collisions; it's a freak event and you are much better off watching your step in the rain unless you slip and fall, a much more common cause of death.
- kqr 8y ago
  This is something I need to tell people way too often, and I like the way you put it. All the time I hear about "life-threatening" speed freaks on bicycles. No. That's not how it works. I'd gladly be hit by 250 lbs going 20 mph any day, when the alternative is being hit by 2000 lbs going 30 mph. Even disregarding that the latter is truly life threatening and the former is not, the cyclist is just as likely to get injured when hitting someone, unlike the car driver. The only reason bicycles appear dangerous is because the city planners encourage cyclists and pedestrians to occupy the same roads, which would be ridiculous if it weren't so sad.
dmckeon 8y ago
If the pavement below your feet is red, move off of it. Pretend it is hot lava, or stained red with the spilled blood of other naive visitors, if that helps. :-) I recall red pavement from Hamburg, as well - is it a pattern/standard only for the more coastal/flat places, or common throughout Northern EU countries?
- tokai 8y ago
  They are blue in Denmark when painted. https://www.tv2lorry.dk/files/styles/16_9_large_2x/public/media/2016/37/cykel3.jpg?itok=jaYFYZoo https://www.tv2lorry.dk/files/styles/16_9_large_2x/public/me...

by codr4 8y ago

Fritsdehacker 8y ago

I lived in Amsterdam for more than ten years and recently moved to a smaller city. Amsterdam really has it's own bike "culture". Cyclist in the rest of Holland are far more forgiving to pedestrians and other traffic in general in my experience. I have no trouble cycling in Amsterdam, but I do have to pay a lot more attention than normally.

dstick 8y ago
Yup, two completely different worlds. A red sign is treated more like a suggestion ;-)
rorykoehler 8y ago
The over abundance of naive tourists blocking the way probably destroyed any goodwill Amsterdammers may have had.

stefan_ 8y ago

Well, you walked into a bike lane. If you walk into a car lane in the US, if the comments on that Uber crash are any indication, a good number of people are perfectly fine with you dieing under the wheels of an inattentive motorist and the police will blame you on the statement of the same motorist alone. The good news is that people don't generally die from pedestrian-bike collisions; it's a freak event and you are much better off watching your step in the rain unless you slip and fall, a much more common cause of death.

kqr 8y ago
This is something I need to tell people way too often, and I like the way you put it. All the time I hear about "life-threatening" speed freaks on bicycles. No. That's not how it works. I'd gladly be hit by 250 lbs going 20 mph any day, when the alternative is being hit by 2000 lbs going 30 mph. Even disregarding that the latter is truly life threatening and the former is not, the cyclist is just as likely to get injured when hitting someone, unlike the car driver. The only reason bicycles appear dangerous is because the city planners encourage cyclists and pedestrians to occupy the same roads, which would be ridiculous if it weren't so sad.

dmckeon 8y ago

If the pavement below your feet is red, move off of it. Pretend it is hot lava, or stained red with the spilled blood of other naive visitors, if that helps. :-) I recall red pavement from Hamburg, as well - is it a pattern/standard only for the more coastal/flat places, or common throughout Northern EU countries?

tokai 8y ago
They are blue in Denmark when painted. https://www.tv2lorry.dk/files/styles/16_9_large_2x/public/media/2016/37/cykel3.jpg?itok=jaYFYZoo https://www.tv2lorry.dk/files/styles/16_9_large_2x/public/me...