With bike weddings, bike parades, hundreds of naked bicyclists, bike fashion shows, popular & interesting cargo bikes, and travelling bike pubs, Portland is #3 on this great bicycle city photo tours list.

Portland has great bicycle facilities (colored bike lanes, bike boxes at intersections, great bike signs, off-road bicycle paths, etc.), a large number of people using the bicycle for transportation, and a bike culture that brings the fun of bicycling to another level.

As a result of these factors and more, Portland was the first large city in the US to achieve the Platinum level Bike Friendly award from the League of American Bicyclists (LAB) — the Platinum level being the highest level possible (above Gold, Silver and Bronze). It is truly a world-class bicycle city now, and the amazing photos in this photo tour help to show that.

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Home of the upcoming climate change conference, Copenhagen is #4 in this great bicycle city photo tour series. With about 55% of trips being by bicycle, Copenhagen is an amazing place to visit or live if you like bicycling.

The photos to follow give you a taste of this great bicycle city. From dogs on bikes to bikes on bikes, from bikes in ice to bike counters, enjoy these great bicycle photos.

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From bicycle lovers to lovers on bikes, bike art to art on bikes, the largest bicycle sharing program in the world to some of the smallest bikers, enjoy this bicycle city photo tour of Paris, France!

Paris doesn’t have a long history as one of the best bicycle cities, but with the introduction of the largest bicycle sharing program in the world, bicycling in Paris has boomed and the city is becoming commonly associated with the bicycle now. Its whole culture is changing due to the bicycle’s increasing relevance in the city’s daily life.

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Groningen would be number one on this list if we were looking at percentage of residents who bicycle for transportation purposes. About 57% of travel in Groningen is by bicycle!

The city has been named the world’s best bicycle city a couple of times (1993 and 2006). It is a university city which is part of the reason why it has so many people bicycling, but it has done amazing things to make the city more bicycle friendly as well. The bicycle facilities you can see on the following pages will probably blow your mind away.

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Berlin is a great bicycle city! Full of bicyclists, bike art, bicycle infrastructure, and unique bikes for a variety of different purposes, Berlin is #7 on this “great bicycle cities” list.

If you go to Germany, you will probably hear some Germans saying how much they love their cars (i.e. Mercedes, BMW, Audi). However, you will probably be surprised to see how many people actually love their bikes. Berlin is perhaps the best example. You can see people from across the class spectrum using the bicycle for a wide range of purposes. Even the postal service and other delivery services use bicycles.

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Naked bicyclists, folding bikes, balloon bikes, and more — enjoy this bicycle photo tour of Barcelona.

The third B in a row, Barcelona is next on this list of great bicycle cities (right ahead of Basel, Switzerland and Bogota, Columbia). As a dense city with a wonderful climate, Barcelona is naturally a wonderful place for bicyclists. However, a lot has been done to make it more so. The biggest carrot encouraging bicycling, by far, is Barcelona’s relatively new bike sharing program — Bicing. This is perhaps the best or second best bike sharing program in the world. It is one of a new generation of sophisticated, smart bike sharing programs. Read more about it on page 2.

Beyond Bicing, the city is also working on creating new bicycling routes and bike parking and it hosts fun Bike Week celebrations every year in May. Also, it has been creating better infrastructure for bicyclists due to so many more people bicycling within the past few years. It is transforming itself into a truly world-leading bicycle city.

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Bogota is a true testament of how a city can be transformed. Through “radical” action for a better city and clean green transportation, Bogota has become a leader in bicycle transportation.

One step ahead of Basel, Switzerland on this list, Bogota boasts an amazing transformation in the transportation infrastructure and alternative transportation usage of a modern city. Unlike many cities that are renovating primarily for cars or, more admirably, mass-transit, Bogota made sure to put a lot of focus on improving their city for bicyclists and pedestrians as well, the greenest transportation modes!

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If a picture is worth a thousand words, this series of photo tours is going to be worth about a hundred thousand.

You have probably heard before that the cities on this list are great bicycle cities, but the following photo tours will give you a better and more entertaining visual explanation of why they are considered to be so great.

From public art to art on bikes, seas of bicycles to bicycles that could carry a swimming pool, high heels to naked bicyclists, check out these upcoming photo tours of some of the world’s greatest bicycle cities.

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England is working to combine two of the world’s cleanest methods of transportation through a new initiative.

A handful of strongly funded programs are geared to get more people bicycling to and from rail stations in England.

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Londoners will soon be able to hire bikes in the centre of town for short journeys, under plans announced this week by the mayor, Boris Johnson.

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At least year’s event, 150 cyclists raised over $2000 for the local nonprofit.

Located right in the heart of East Atlanta, Sopo Bicycle Co-op is an amazing resource for local cyclists. The shop provides tools, education and free bicycle maintenance to anyone who pops in with a ride. You can even build your own bike there! Frames and various parts are available on a suggested donation basis, and their knowledgeable volunteers are always around to help out during shop hours.

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One major deterrent for city bicyclists is lack of parking. Some Japanese cities have taken it upon themselves to remedy the problem with the Eco Cycle, a profoundly weird machine that takes your bike and parks it underground for safe-keeping. The Eco Cycle costs 2,600 yen for a monthly ticket. What do you think— would you trust your bike here?

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The police officer who seemingly randomly picked a bicyclist out of a critical mass crowd to tackle has been indicted for falsifying records and could also soon be charged with misdemeanor assault. The YouTube video [below], which went viral soon after the incident, was instrumental in the indictment.

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Beautiful Off-Road Bike Paths & Great Bicycle Signage

Image Credit 1: knallaerbse via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: freddy via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: nchenga via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Arts & Crafts Bikes

Image Credit 1: Jope 1978 via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: missdarling via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: alicetiara via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Great Bike Parking of All Sorts

To a secure bike center under the train station with attendants where you can also buy or rent a bike, visit a full-service bike shop, go to one of several available cafes, or get bikes maps and information:

Image Credit 1: Julikeishon en Basel via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: Climens via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: kbrookes via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: Márcio Cabral de Moura via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: acezz3000 via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: kbrookes via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: freddy via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Weather-Protected, Artistic Bike Seats

Image Credit: JackVinson via flickr under a Creative Commons license

A new report reveals an estimated 389,300 children and adolescents 18-years and younger were treated in emergency departments for bicycle-related injuries, making bicycles second only to cars in consumer products that cause childhood injuries.

Even with mandated helmets and safety programs, children are experiencing contusions and abrasions (30 percent), lacerations (30 percent) and fractures (19 percent) mostly to their extremities followed closely by face and head injuries. According to the study, boys are 70% more likely than girls to be hurt on bikes. Tracy Mehan, a research associate at the Center for Injury Research and Policy of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and author of a new study explains the results:

While the number of injuries decreased slightly over the 16-year study period, in 2005 an average of 850 children per day were seen in emergency departments for bicycle-related injuries.  The magnitude of bicycle-related injuries each year is evidence that prevention of these injuries needs to remain a priority.

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The driver?  New York State Senator Jeff Klein.

So you’re telling me you’re not going to vote for dedicated bike lanes, huh?

Read Beavan’s letter to Klein here.

Beautiful Off-Road Bike Paths & Great Bicycle Signage

Image Credit 1: knallaerbse via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: freddy via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: nchenga via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Arts & Crafts Bikes

Image Credit 1: Jope 1978 via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: missdarling via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: alicetiara via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Great Bike Parking of All Sorts

To a secure bike center under the train station with attendants where you can also buy or rent a bike, visit a full-service bike shop, go to one of several available cafes, or get bikes maps and information:

Image Credit 1: Julikeishon en Basel via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: Climens via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: kbrookes via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: Márcio Cabral de Moura via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: acezz3000 via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: kbrookes via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: freddy via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Weather-Protected, Artistic Bike Seats

Image Credit: JackVinson via flickr under a Creative Commons license

This week from our friends at ZapRoot: The most notorious bicycle thief is caught in Canada. Find out how Green is Joe Biden? Check out a new batch of Alternative Autos.

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Starting last May, UW-Madison police started locating the GPS-equipped bikes in places where previous bike thefts have occurred. When one of those bikes starts moving, cops know they’ve got a likely thief on the move. They can follow the bike’s movements on their computers, then dispatch officers to the scene to catch the culprit.

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Image credit: Ziko at Wikimedia Commons

Beautiful Off-Road Bike Paths & Great Bicycle Signage

Image Credit 1: knallaerbse via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: freddy via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: nchenga via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Arts & Crafts Bikes

Image Credit 1: Jope 1978 via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: missdarling via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: alicetiara via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Great Bike Parking of All Sorts

To a secure bike center under the train station with attendants where you can also buy or rent a bike, visit a full-service bike shop, go to one of several available cafes, or get bikes maps and information:

Image Credit 1: Julikeishon en Basel via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: Climens via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: kbrookes via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: Márcio Cabral de Moura via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: acezz3000 via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: kbrookes via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: freddy via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Weather-Protected, Artistic Bike Seats

Image Credit: JackVinson via flickr under a Creative Commons license

In Zimbabwe, bicycles are increasingly becoming popular, albeit for a different reason: money and economics. With a current world record inflation of 11,2 million percent and rising on a daily basis, many people in Zimbabwe are struggling to make ends meet with very meager salaries.

As a means to cope with high transport costs (a product of the Zimbabwe’s hyperinflationary economy), many workers have taken to bicycling in their hordes. Previously stigmatized as a sign of poverty, bicycles have taken on a new form as a means of affordable transportation to work.

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