How Subways Changed Cities Forever

 From the crowded streets of Victorian London to the neon-lit avenues of modern Tokyo, subways have reshaped the way cities grow, function, and connect. Today, we explore how the development of underground transit systems transformed cities across the world, making them more efficient, accessible, and sustainable. Let’s dive into two iconic examples: the London Underground and the Tokyo Metro.

The Birth of the Subway: London Underground

London, the capital of the British Empire in the 19th century, faced a growing crisis: overcrowded streets. As the city’s population soared past 3 million in the mid-1800s, horse-drawn carriages clogged the roads, and the newly built railways couldn’t keep up with demand. The solution? Go underground.

• The World’s First Subway
  The London Underground, or “the Tube,” became the world's first underground railway when it opened on January 10, 1863. The inaugural line, the Metropolitan Railway, stretched 6 kilometers (3.7 miles), connecting Paddington to Farringdon. It was a groundbreaking achievement, carrying over 38,000 passengers on its first day of operation. By the end of its first year, the line had transported 9.5 million passengers.
• Impact on Urban Development
  The Tube revolutionized how Londoners lived and worked. Before the Underground, most people lived close to their workplaces, cramming into the city center. With the introduction of the subway, Londoners could now commute from more distant suburbs, leading to the expansion of the city. This new accessibility encouraged the growth of residential neighborhoods like Ealing and Hammersmith, effectively laying the groundwork for modern suburban living.
• Engineering Marvels and Innovations
  The early tunnels of the Tube were dug using the “cut-and-cover” method, but this technique disrupted city life. By 1890, the world’s first deep-level electric railway opened on the Northern Line, which used a new technique called the Greathead Shield for tunneling. These electric trains eliminated the smoke and soot of steam engines, making underground travel much cleaner and safer. Today, the London Underground spans 402 kilometers (250 miles) of track and serves 272 stations, making it one of the largest subway systems in the world.
• Economic Boost
  The Tube didn’t just change commuting; it boosted London’s economy. It’s estimated that the London Underground generates around £10 billion in economic value each year by reducing congestion, improving access to jobs, and increasing property values near stations.

Tokyo Metro: The Pinnacle of Efficiency

On the other side of the world, Tokyo faced its own challenges as it grew into a bustling metropolis. By the early 20th century, the city was teeming with life, and the streets were jam-packed. Inspired by London, New York, and Berlin, Japan embarked on building its own subway system to alleviate surface traffic and accommodate its rapidly growing population.

• A Humble Beginning
  The Tokyo Metro’s first line, the Ginza Line, opened in 1927, stretching 2.2 kilometers (1.4 miles) between Asakusa and Ueno. Despite its small size, it became an instant success, with 100,000 passengers on its first day. The demand was so high that the operator had to use former streetcars to handle the overflow of commuters.
• Efficiency and Punctuality
  Today, the Tokyo Metro is known for its legendary efficiency and punctuality. It operates 9 lines covering 195 kilometers (121 miles) and serves around 6.84 million passengers daily. When combined with the Toei Subway, Tokyo’s total underground system handles over 10 million daily commuters, making it one of the busiest subway systems in the world.

The trains are famous for their timeliness, with an average delay of just 18 seconds per train. This dedication to punctuality has earned the Tokyo Metro a reputation as one of the most reliable public transit systems globally. It’s even common for station attendants to distribute “train delay certificates” if a train is more than 5 minutes late, so commuters can show proof of the delay to their employers.

• Smart Use of Technology
  Tokyo’s subway system is not just about getting people from point A to point B; it’s about enhancing the commuter experience. Stations are equipped with amenities like air-conditioning, Wi-Fi, and detailed real-time information displays. In recent years, the Tokyo Metro has adopted energy-efficient LED lighting and regenerative braking systems, reducing energy consumption by 20%.
• Economic and Social Impact
  The Metro’s efficiency has made Tokyo a more attractive city to live in, supporting its status as a global financial center. According to studies, the availability of the subway has increased property values near stations by up to 30% and played a key role in reducing the city's overall carbon emissions. The Tokyo Metro system is a testament to how a well-designed subway can enhance urban quality of life.

Subways Around the World: A Global Impact

The impact of subways extends far beyond London and Tokyo. Let’s take a quick look at how subways have transformed other cities around the world.

• New York City
  The New York City Subway, opened in 1904, is one of the oldest and most extensive subway systems, with 472 stations and over 394 kilometers (245 miles) of track. It serves 4.3 million passengers daily and operates 24/7, making it a lifeline for the city that never sleeps. The subway system has played a key role in New York's economic growth, helping connect workers to jobs in the sprawling metropolis.
• Moscow Metro
  Known for its stunning architecture and grand chandeliers, the Moscow Metro serves over 6.6 million passengers daily. It’s not only a transport system but also a cultural icon, with stations often referred to as “underground palaces.” The system spans 241 stations and features a punctuality rate of 99.99%.
• Shanghai Metro
  As the world’s largest subway network by route length, the Shanghai Metro covers over 803 kilometers (499 miles) with 510 stations. Opened in 1993, it has rapidly expanded to accommodate the city’s massive population, transporting over 10 million passengers daily.

Conclusion: How Subways Continue to Shape Cities

Subways are more than just a way to get around; they’re a powerful force for urban transformation. The London Underground pioneered the concept, showing cities how to grow beyond their crowded cores. Tokyo’s Metro took the idea to the next level, blending punctuality with cutting-edge technology to keep one of the world’s largest cities moving. From reducing traffic congestion to lowering carbon emissions, subways have proved to be a game-changer for urban living.

As cities continue to grow, the lessons learned from London, Tokyo, and other subway pioneers will be more important than ever. Investing in efficient, reliable, and sustainable transit systems is not just a matter of convenience—it’s essential for the future of our cities.

More about public transportation: 

Top 10 Metro and Light Rail Systems in Southeast Asia Ranked

Relations of Public Transport Use and Car Ownership with Neighbourhood and City-Level Travel Purposes in Kerman, Iran

System Dynamics Modeling and Fuzzy MCDM Approach as Support for Assessment of Sustainability Management on the Example of Transport Sector Company

The Neighborhood Effect on Keeping Non-Commuting Journeys within Compact and Sprawled Districts

Children’s Independent Mobility to School in Seven European Countries: A Multinomial Logit Model

Roundabouts vs. Intersections: Which One Rules the Road?

 Introduction: The Great Roadway Debate

In urban planning, one of the most heated debates centers around a simple question: roundabouts or intersections? Each has its own merits and drawbacks. But which one truly excels in terms of safety, efficiency, and sustainability? Let’s explore the data and dive into real-world examples.

The Roundabout Revolution: UK’s Safety Marvel

The UK leads the world in roundabouts, with over 25,000 in use. Why the popularity? Safety. Roundabouts reduce overall collisions by 37% and serious crashes by 75%, according to the UK Department for Transport. The city of Milton Keynes is a standout example, featuring numerous roundabouts and boasting one of the lowest accident rates in the country.

Data from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) reveals roundabouts can reduce fatal crashes by up to 90% compared to signal-controlled intersections. This is because roundabouts force drivers to slow down and yield, significantly lowering the risk of high-speed collisions.

American Intersections: The Safety and Efficiency Dilemma

In the United States, intersections are responsible for nearly 50% of all urban traffic crashes, according to the Federal Highway Administration. High-speed impacts, red-light running, and distracted driving are the main culprits. For instance, the intersection at La Cienega Blvd and Venice Blvd in Los Angeles has over 200 accidents each year, highlighting the dangers of traditional traffic lights.

American drivers also waste time and fuel waiting at red lights. On average, they spend 97 hours per year stuck in traffic, costing the U.S. economy $87 billion annually in lost productivity.

Roundabouts: Efficiency in Motion

Roundabouts are known for their efficiency. A single-lane roundabout can handle up to 2,000 vehicles per hour while reducing delays by 89%. In Swindon, UK, the famous “Magic Roundabout” has proven to be an effective solution for heavy traffic with minimal congestion.

Roundabouts also reduce emissions. The U.S. Department of Transportation found that switching from intersections to roundabouts can cut vehicle emissions by 30% due to reduced idling. Carmel, Indiana, often called the “Roundabout Capital of the U.S.,” has over 140 roundabouts and has seen a 40% drop in accidents, saving more than 24,000 gallons of fuel annually.

The American Shift: Embracing Roundabouts

Even in the U.S., where intersections have traditionally dominated, some cities are starting to embrace roundabouts. Texas, for example, reported a 50% reduction in crashes in areas where roundabouts were introduced. Kansas City, Missouri replaced several four-way stops with roundabouts, resulting in a significant drop in accidents within the first year.

From an economic standpoint, roundabouts are cheaper to maintain than traffic lights. A typical traffic light system costs up to $10,000 per year in maintenance and electricity, while roundabouts require minimal upkeep after installation.

Conclusion: The Clear Winner?

So, which is better: roundabouts or intersections? Roundabouts clearly have the edge in terms of safety, efficiency, and sustainability. They reduce crashes, save time, and cut down on emissions. Although retrofitting existing intersections can be costly, the long-term benefits make roundabouts a smart investment for cities looking to improve road safety.

As cities like Carmel and Swindon have shown, roundabouts aren't just quirky British road designs—they're a blueprint for safer, smarter, and greener urban planning. The next time you navigate one, remember: it's more than a circle; it’s the future of our cities.

The influence of neighbourhood design on travel behaviour: Empirical evidence from North East England

by Paulus Teguh Aditjandra, Corinne Mulley, and John D. Nelson

This paper investigates the factors that affect travel behaviour within neighbourhoods in Tyne and Wear, North East England while accounting for differences in attitudes and perceptions. Ten different neighbourhoods have been carefully selected to characterise the two different types of traditional and suburban neighbourhood street layouts. A self-administered questionnaire has been delivered to 2200 households to capture neighbourhood design, travel patterns, travel attitudes and socio-economic characteristics. Multivariate analysis of cross-sectional data shows that some socio-economic variables as well as travel attitudes and neighbourhood design preferences can explain the differences in travel patterns between the two distinct neighbourhood designs. The results show additionally that the traditional neighbourhood group is more sensitive to factors of perception and attitudes in relation to neighbourhood design that lead to walking, cycling and public transport use travel patterns, suggesting that land-use policy designed to accommodate lower carbon-based travel together with measures to encourage active travel will have greater impact on the traditional group than the suburban group. This finding suggests that generic measures imposed by many governments, and certainly implied by current UK land-use policy, to promote sustainable mobility should be selectively targeted.

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more about travel behavior:

Mobility biographies. A new perspective for understanding travel behaviour

How the Built Environment Influences Non-Work Travel: Theoretical and Empirical Essays 

MODELING THE CHOICE CONTINUUM: AN INTEGRATED MODEL OF RESIDENTIAL LOCATION, AUTO OWNERSHIP, BICYCLE OWNERSHIP, AND COMMUTE TOUR MODE CHOICE DECISIONS

A Copula-Based Approach to Accommodate Residential Self-Selection Effects in Travel Behavior Modeling

The Impact of Bicycling Facilities on Commute Mode Share

UNDERSTANDING PERCEPTIONS OF ACCESSIBILITY AND MOBILITY THROUGH STRUCTURATION THEORY

Incremental Integration of Land Use and Activity-Based Travel Modeling: Workplace Choices and Travel Demand

Documentary film: Sprawling from Grace: The Consequences of Suburbanization

The influence of urban physical form on trip generation, evidence from metropolitan Shiraz, Iran

Urban Travel Route and Activity Choice Survey (UTRACS): An Internet-Based Prompted Recall Activity Travel Survey using GPS Data

URBAN TRANSPORT AND LOCAL GOVERNANCE IN ASIAN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

New German community models car-free living

UNDERSTANDING PERCEPTIONS OF ACCESSIBILITY AND MOBILITY THROUGH STRUCTURATION THEORY

by Mark Graham

Structuration theory in geography states that social systems are reproduced through the relationships between systems, structures, actors and their perceptions. Therefore, understanding the modes through which social systems are reproduced will allow for a clearer understanding of the nature of society. However, much of the relevant social theory has not been empirically tested. Thus, by empirically examining general perceptual differences between different built environments, on a macro and a micro level, it is hoped that the links between perceptions, social structures, and the built environment can be more fully understood. A better understanding of these links will, in turn, allow the relevant social theory (in this case, structuration theory) in geography to be advanced from a theoretical to an empirical stage. A clearer understanding of the links between perceptions, the built environment, and the reproduction of social systems will not only advance the field of geography, but will also have ramifications in the fields of psychology, sociology, economics, marketing, and urban planning.
The purpose of this study is to examine how structural differences between locations may result in differences in people’s perceptions about and interactions with the landscape. I hypothesize that there are fundamental differences in the way people perceive and interact with landscapes in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and Penzance, England, in part because of the broader structural and environmental differences between these settings. Specifically, I hypothesize that perceptions about preferred forms of transportation to leisure and retail activities will be significantly different between residents of locations that have a significant difference in the modes of transportation to such leisure and retail activities. Bowling Green and Penzance have been chosen as study sites because great differences exist between these cities in how transportation systems to leisure and retail activities are structured.

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MODELING THE CHOICE CONTINUUM: AN INTEGRATED MODEL OF RESIDENTIAL LOCATION, AUTO OWNERSHIP, BICYCLE OWNERSHIP, AND COMMUTE TOUR MODE CHOICE DECISIONS

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A hundred years of town planning and the influence of Ebenezer Howard

by Max Steuer

The Garden City Association, now the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA), was founded on the 10th of June 1899 by a group of men hoping to create a new way of living. They were led by Ebenezer Howard, the author of To-morrow! A Peaceful Path to Real Reform. Originally the TCPA planned to celebrate its centenar y by publishing a new edition of Howard’s book. Instead, the Association’s Chairman, Sir Peter Hall, and its former Environmental Education OfŽ cer, Colin Ward, have produced a commemorative volume in two parts. The Ž rst part consists of a detailed and interesting history of the life and works of Ebenezer Howard, and the inuence of his and related ideas on town planning during the past centur y. The second part of the book is a chronicle of Hall and Ward’s ideas about the best way to accommodate the proposed building of new houses in the UK over the next few decades. Not surprisingly, the authors want to show that Howard’s thinking is relevant to current housing and town planning issues. They struggle to do so, sometimes making big claims for Howard, and at other times getting on with their own ideas and leaving Howard to one side. This book is a pivotal publication which is intended to celebrate the achievements of the town planning movement. The centenary means one thing to the members of the town planning establishment, and quite another thing to outsiders, like myself, who come from the social science tradition.
Hall and Ward describe Howard’s life prior to writing Tomorrow!, later republished as Garden Cities of To-Morrow, as, ‘one of hard grind and personal failure’ (p. 4). Howard emigrated to America, where he tried unsuccessfully to make a go of farming. When disaster struck, he was able to rescue his family and earn a ver y modest living by moving to Chicago and working as a shorthand writer. He returned to London in 1876 and carried on with shorthand as a Parliamentary reporter. He had no particular educational background, but always took an interest in social movements, rejecting most, but being rather drawn to the economist Henry George and his single land tax. Howard appears to have been a decent enough fellow with something of a gift for orator y. He hardly seems to be the kind of person who would write a book which, in Hall and Ward’s phrase, ‘would change the course of history’.

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Letschworth Garden City

Letschworth Garden City

Letschworth Garden City

more about Ebenezer Howard and Garden City:

INTRODUCTION: THE GARDEN CITY LEGACY

From Garden Cities to New Towns – An Integrative Planning Solution?

History of Letchworth Garden City

Howard Park and Howard Garden, Letchworth Garden City, Herts: Archaeological Desk Based Assessment

The Roots and Origins of New Urbanism

What is Green Urbanism? Holistic Principles to Transform Cities for Sustainability

Abadan: planning and architecture under the Anglo- Iranian Oil Company

by Mark Crinson

Industry and urbanization were brought to south-west Iran when large quantities of oil were struck there in the early years of this century. This paper explores the development of Abadan from these beginnings to the 1950s, and particularly the housing and planning forms adopted by the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company and its architect James M. Wilson. Abadan was in effect a colonial company town whose early development combined spacious bungalow compounds for British expatriate workers, barracklike lines of huts for labour recruited locally and from India, and a rapidly overcrowded ‘native town’ under local municipal control. The Company used Wilson’s expertise in an attempt to answer the physical problems created by the growth of Abadan between the wars and to deect pressure exerted both by Iranian nationalists and the British government. In the garden suburb of Bawarda he created a model solution that used planning and housing form to represent ethnic and social harmony under the discreet paternal benevolence of the Company. This, however, was inappropriate to Abadan’s problems and quickly eclipsed by the political events that led to the Company’s expulsion in 1951.

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more about urban Iran:

The influence of urban physical form on trip generation, evidence from metropolitan Shiraz, Iran

Evaluating integration between public transportation and pedestrian-oriented urban spaces in two main metro stations of Tehran

Tehran's "Bike House" Shines Green

THE ROLE OF PHYSICAL IDENTITY OF CITY IN URBAN SUSTAINABILITY (THE CASE STUDY: YAZD,IRAN)

The Mechanism of Transformation of Shiraz City from Past to Present

Earthquake Management in Iran A compilation of literature on earthquake Management

Good Governance, (as promoting in decision-making process) and its influence on urban strategic plans

Architecture: Domes Throughout History- Domes of the Past, Present and Future

via Yahoo Voices

Throughout history, domes have been used in architecture throughout the entire world. There is evidence of domes used in architecture dating back to c.1250 BC and earlier. Domes are continuing to be used as elements in architecture and are being constructed to this date. Throughout the past and present domes have been used for everything ranging from tombs to cathedrals. However there is one recurring theme in past dome structures, most of the past dome structures have been constructed for a religious purpose, whether it be burial or worship.

The people of ancient times never had the types of technology that we have now, in the modern world, nonetheless the ancient people were able to construct their own dome structures. One of the most famous ancient dome structures is the Treasury of Atreus, which was constructed in c.1250 BC. The Treasury of Atreus was constructed as a tomb for Agamemnon. Although this tomb was a dome, and nowadays we commonly think of structures above ground, the main cavity of the Treasury of Atreus was constructed underground. The Treasury of Atreus is different from the domes we commonly think of nowadays, not only because of the fact that the building was underground but also because of the fact that the general shape of the Treasury of Atreus has more of a pyramid-like essence to it. Taking a bit of a fast forward in time, one of the next famous domes constructed, the Pantheon is currently the oldest standing dome structure in Rome. The Pantheon, constructed in 125 AD, was constructed as a place for the worship of roman gods, which is another example of dome buildings being constructed for religious reasons.

The Middle Ages were a time of little or no learning or growth, however architecture still survived. During this period the Romanesque and Gothic styles of architecture were the two most prevalent. Romanesque architecture commonly used barrel vaults, small windows very high up, and was mainly designed for strength and protection. Although Romanesque buildings were designed for strength and protection, the dome shape was still a common occurrence, however not as common as domes used in the Gothic style of architecture.

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more about architecture:

John Peponis explains: What do we Mean by Syntax in the Spatial Analysis of Architecture?

A New Architectural Standard for Sustainable-Minded Companies

The Subversive High Rise Designs of Rem Koolhaas and OMA

CN TOWER A Monument to Canadian Architecture

Montjuic Communications Tower built for the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona

A new architectural landmark in Barcelona: Torre Telefónica Diagonal ZeroZero by EMBA

Exploring the Historical Determinants of Urban Growth Patterns through Cellular Automata

by Kiril Stanilov and Michael Batty

We have adapted METRONAMICA, an established cellular automata (CA) modelling system, to simulate the historical growth of a section of a large world city. Our model is tuned to reflect the morphology of land use patterns more accurately than traditional CA models, which abstract those patterns to more aggregate spatial scales. We explore the spatial determinants of land use patterns with detailed empirical data, documenting the historical growth of West London at an unusually high level of spatial and temporal resolution. The results of the study provide support for our considered speculations: (1) that the spatial relationships between land uses and the physical environment are remarkably consistent through time, showing little variation relative to changes in historical context; and (2) that these relationships constitute a basic code for urban growth which determines the spatial signature of land development in a given metropolitan area.

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mroe about land use planning:

Municipal Finance and the Pattern of Urban Growth

Integrated land use and transportation interaction: a temporal GIS exploratory data analysis approach

IMROVING URBAN LAND USE PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT IN NIGERIA: THE CASE OF AKURE

Review of Land Use Models: Theory and Application

Current and Future Land Use Models

Pictures of the pedestrian streets in downtown Glasgow

more downtown and pedestrian street photos:

The streets of central city of Aachen, Germany

The pedestrian streets of Bochum central city

The pedestrian streets of downtown Amsterdam

Working-Class Respectability in Leicester c.1845-1880

by Barri Haynes

This paper examines a range of local working-class perceptions and attitudes in order to determine the extent to which an ethic of respectability was a formative influence on the development of workin-class conciousness and ideology in Leicester in the period c. 1845 to 1880. The conclusion is reached that respectability was an increasingly important element in working-class thought in Leicester in the period. At the same time it was an ethic with a distinctively working-class formulation, essentially collectivistic in orientation and committed to working-class independence and defering to no one. The paper also raises important questions for future investigations.

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more about urban sociology:

Retail Trade as a Route to Neighborhood Revitalization

Healthy Urban Planning The Concept, Tools, and Application

Is Detroit the new Brooklyn?

Grafitti photos, Los Angeles 1

Book Review: Cities for People

Subsidies in the Suburbs

Civil society leaders call for a new energy future

by Justin Woolford

Justin Woolford of The Change Co., on behalf of The Co-operative, introduces the inaugural meeting of a new group of civil society champions who today launch their vision for community energy in the UK with Chris Huhne, the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change. The group has been brought together by The Co-operative, Forum for the Future and Carbon Leapfrog and coincides with The Co-operative's launch of their new Community Energy Challenge. 

It's the UN Year of Co-operatives and in the UK, things are starting to happen. The week before last, the Prime Minister announced the Government's intention to simplify the law around co-operatives. Today, a coalition of civil society leaders representing over 12 million members launch a vision for community energy in the UK. The first, intended to make it as easy to set up shop as a co-operative as it is to start any other form of business, is about community empowerment. The second, designed to help kick-start a clean energy revolution across the UK, is about community power. 

Whether we realise it or not, our communities are at an energy crossroads. And if we don't step up now and grasp the opportunity to shape our own energy futures in a turbine-hugging embrace, someone else (big oil and big gas) will do it for us. The choice is clear. Either we allow out-of-town prospectors to 'frack' around with our landscape and drill for shale gas, or we join our friends in Sussex saying we won't be druv - and maybe, just maybe, build a frack free future.

But make no mistake, this is about much more than just a green climate-friendly future - it's about 'energy democracy': a changed relationship between people and energy, from one where we are at the mercy of large profit-making energy providers and the vagaries of the market, to one where we control, generate and benefit from our own energy supply.

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photo by KaiChanVong

read more about energy:

Germany Sets Aside $130 Billion for Renewable Energy

Changing Mindsets on Sustainable Transportation

Climate, Energy and Urbanization A Guide on Strategies, Materials and Technologies for Sustainable Development in the Desert

TOWARDS A SUSTAINABLE URBAN TRANSPORT SYSTEM: PLANNING FOR NON-MOTORIZED VEHICLES IN CITIES

BEST PRACTICE IN FACILITATING AND PROMOTING ACTIVE TRAVEL

via Department for Regional Development

“Policies and strategies at all levels advocate walking and cycling but motor transport still takes priority in the big decisions and in the allocation of investment. As a consequence the UK lags badly behind many European countries in levels of active travel. To return walking and cycling to levels that can contribute to a healthy society, changes are needed in policy and practice.”1
A number of papers exist summarising the success of The Netherlands, Denmark and Germany in promoting active travel, especially cycling. Pucher et al Making Cycling Irresistible: Lessons from The Netherlands, Denmark and Germany, 2008;2 Buehler et al Sustainable Transport that Works: Lessons from Germany, 2009;3 Atkins, European Best Practice Report, 2006;4 Jacobs Consultancy, European Best Practice Report, Final Report December 2006.5 Some of these successes are discussed in more detail in the next section.

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German bikers, by Qlis

more about travel behavior in urban areas:

OVERVIEW OF LAND-USE TRANSPORT MODELS

Building More Roads Does Not Ease Congestion

How Urban Design Affect Personal Activity and Travel Choice - An Analysis of Travel Data from Sample Communities in Adelaide

Effects of Site Design on Pedestrian Travel in Mixed-Use, Medium-Density Environments

Comparative Study of Pedestrian Travel Culture in Different Cities in Japan

Bicycle policies of the European principals: continuous and integral

 A Fietsberaad Publication

The ten reports presented here are chiefly specifications of the general trend of ‘continuous’ and ‘integral’. Each town has its own story, with a different emphasis due to particularly local circumstances. The similarities and differences between the ten reports will be analysed in more detail at the end of this publication, in chapter 12. Ten cities with respectable bicycle use.
Often higher bicycle percentages are claimed. Upon closer examination, however, these only refer to local trips within municipal boundaries, or specific segments like commuter traffic. The table above and the national surveys below only provide data that are known to relate to the bicycle percentage in all trips (by inhabitants of the town or country concerned). These figures are derived from many sources; at least two per town (minor differences having been erased).

The Netherlands, Denmark, Germany and Belgium are the countries with the highest bicycle use in Europe. Within these countries, the ten cities discussed here really are foremost as far as bicycle use is concerned. Bicycle use in these countries and cities is of an altogether different level than elsewhere in Europe:
• In The Netherlands the bicycle percentage in the model split has been approx. 26% over the last decades. The top cities score between 35% and 40%; cities with the lowest bicycle use rank between 15% and 20%.
• In Denmark the bicycle percentage is between 15 and 20%. Differences in bicycle use between the cities are relatively small; bicycle use in the cities is quite commonly at a level of 20% of all trips. Only Odense and Copenhagen (far) surpass this: Odense approx. 26% and Copenhagen nearer to 32%.
• In Germany on average 10% of all trips are made by bicycle. The western federal states have a higher average bicycle use, especially Nordrhein-Westfalen. Next to Münster and Freiburg there are more cities with bicycle percentages between 20% and 30% there. In other federal states bicycles are by no means absent either; Berlin for instance has a bicycle percentage of approx. 10%.
• Belgium has an average bicycle percentage of not much more than 8%. Many cities in Flanders approach the level of Ghent: somewhat over 15%. The town of Bruges even has a slightly higher bicycle percentage.

Although average bicycle use is much lower in other European countries, there are some striking extremes:
• In Great Britain bicycle use is on average only 2% (London even slightly lower), but there are several incidental cases with a much higher degree of bicycle use (York and Hull 11%, Oxford and particularly Cambridge close to 20%). A similar pattern – even slightly more extreme – can be discerned in Sweden and especially Italy.

• Ireland scores 3% - 4%, with virtually no upward extremes (Dublin 5% at most).
• In Sweden bicycle use is on average 7% of all trips; for cities this is 10%. Peaks: Lund and Malmö 20%. The small town of Västerås (115,000 inhabitants) has an incredible 33% bicycle percentage according to a source quoted time and time again.
• In the Czech Republic, as in other Eastern European countries, there are a few cities with some degree of bicycle use (Ostrava, Olomouc and Ceské Budejovice, between 5% and 10%) and some with an even higher bicycle use (Prostejov 20%). However, average use is low: far below 5%.
• Austria has an average bicycle percentage of 9%, with Graz (14%) and Salzburg (19%) as extremes.
• Switzerland scores approximately 11% for bicycle use, with several cities at a slightly higher level, like Bern (15%), Basel (17%) and particularly Winterthur (approx. 20%).
• France has a low average bicycle use (5%), nor has it many extremes: Strasbourg 12%, Avignon 10%.
• Although in Italy average bicycle use is as low as 5% , with Rome even far below 1%, there are a number of striking exceptions. Especially the Po valley, with cities like Parma (over 15%) and with Ferrara as the best-known extreme example: around 30% bicycle percentage. Another remarkable town elsewhere in Italy is Florence (over 20%).

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pictures of bicycle parking in Münster (Muenster), Germany:

 

more about bicycle planning:

Rent an electric bike in London

Travelwise: Bike sharing around the world

Sights and details from the 2011 NJ Bike and Walk Summit

On Amsterdam, bikes and the Copenhagen Wheel thingy

The Public transport and priority to pedestrians and bicycles as a basis for the quality of life in capital cities

Urban Bikeway Design Guide Released

NACTO Urban Bikeway Design Guide

Bike sharing around the world

By Suemedha Sood

Bike sharing is a fun, easy, environmentally friendly way to explore a new place. Here are eight cities with great 24-hour bike sharing programs that travellers should know about. 

Paris
Although community bicycle sharing has been around since at least the 1960s, Paris’s Vélib’ became the first high-profile program to spark global interested in organized bike sharing when it launched to great success in 2007. The program currently has about 20,000 bikes and 1,800 bike stations (one located every 300 metres), yielding about 50 million unique rides annually.

The details: Vélib’ required subscriptions are available for 1.70 euros per day, 8 euros per week, or 29 euros per year. Once you’ve subscribed, half-hour rides are free but each additional half-hour costs 1 euro for up to one-and-a-half hours. After that, each additional half-hour costs 2 euros.

Bike sharing in Paris, photo by sujal

Hangzhou, China
With more than 50,000 bikes and 2,050 bike stations, the Chinese city of Hangzhou is home to the world’s largest bike sharing program. Bike sharing is well integrated with other forms of public transport, with bike stations available near bus and water taxi stops.

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Bike sharing, photo by infomatique

more about bike sharing:

The Case for Bike-Share

Tehran's "Bike House" Shines Green

sustainable transport

World’s largest bike-share system in China dwarfs popular U.S. program

City of Boston Announces Its BIXI Bike Share Program Is a Go

Urban Bike Sharing System Coming to London!

Bike Share: A slice of Paris in Chicago

Metroradruhr: Germany's Ruhr Valley Inter-City Bike Sharing

Mixing Cars, Cyclists & Pedestrians on Exhibition Road – London’s Take on Shared Space

via sustainable cities collective

Way back in 2009 I blogged about plans to turn Exhibition Road – one of London’s most popular tourist destinations – into a shared space street, and in late 2011 work was finally completed. A shared space street is exactly as the name suggests – automobiles, bicycles and pedestrians all sharing the space, with few on-road markings to separate them. Though this may sound like an odd idea, similar schemes in European cities have been successful in reducing collisions, with road users paying more attention to their surroundings and travelling at a slower speed.

But can this work in a city like London, where car is king? I visited Exhibition Road in November to check out the completed project, and again last weekend to see how it was settling in.

Walkin' the Streets of London : Exhibition Road to Hyde Park to Harrods, by DimitraTzanos

When first opened, these seemingly temporary signs were dotted along the street informing those in automobiles and on bicycles that this is a pedestrian priority street. Making a busy London street pedestrian priority is a big change, and clearly informing road users of that change is critical. Sadly, during this visit I saw no cars or bicycles give way to pedestrians.

When I returned last weekend I found the very same signs in a different spot. Going pedestrian priority may never become second nature for London’s road users, and these temporary signs have now been made permanent.

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mroe about London:

Urban Bike Sharing System Coming to London!

Cycling City Tensions

Grafitti photos, London 1

London’s Transport System to Become a World Leader in Ticketing Technology

Toward Low Carbon Cities: Madrid and London

London Invests on Energy Saving Technologies

The Multicultural City and the Politics of Religious Architecture: Urban Planning, Mosques and Meaning-making in Birmingham, UK

by RICHARD GALE

Mosque buildings constitute an increasingly important feature of British urban landscapes. This is confi rmed by the statistics on offi cially registered places of worship, which indicate that whilst in 1964 there were only nine offi cially registered mosques in England and Wales, by 1998 the number had increased to 614 (Peach, 2000). Many of these mosques are in converted buildings, such as houses, factories and warehouses, but others have been purposely constructed, incorporating architectural features that draw upon conceptions of tradition in Islamic architecture. Such designs have often been publicly contested, in terms that construct them as symbols of ‘alien’ cultural presences (see for example Naylor and Ryan, 2002).
There is now growing sociological and geographical literature documenting contestation over sites of worship, in which the semiotic role played by such buildings in the articulation of opposing social identities constitutes a central theme (see for example, Eade, 1993, 1996; Gale and Naylor, 2002; Naylor and Ryan, 2002). The present paper complements this literature by exploring the place of urban planning procedures in setting the parameters for such contestation, an issue that is receiving increasing academic attention (see for example, Gale, 1999; Dunn, 2001; Nye, 2001; Gale and Naylor, 2002; Isin and Siemiatycki, 2002). Moreover, the paper extends this theme by moving beyond the concern with aesthetic contestation per se. It attempts to show that urban planning mediates processes of social boundary construction that coalesce around mosque designs and becomes in turn a nexus in which some of the meanings and associations that accrue to such sites are articulated.

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birmingham central mosque, photo by Ted and Jen

birmingham central mosque, photo by onlinejones

more about architecture:

The Heights: The Anatomy of a Skyscraper

Book - Architecture and Violence

The Professional Practice Of Landscape Architecture: A Complete Guide To Starting And Running Your Own Firm

Life-size Monopoly House: The Art Of Green Architecture

Modeling the environmental impacts of urban land use and land cover change—a study in Merseyside, UK

by Stephan Pauleit, Roland Ennos, and Yvonne Golding

There is a lack of information on the environmental effects of urban change and the dynamics of greenspace. Such information is essential for a better understanding of the sustainability of urban development processes, both planned and unplanned. We therefore investigated the changes in land use and land cover of 11 residential areas in Merseyside, UK, using aerial photographs taken in 1975 and 2000.We then modeled how these changes would alter three important environmental parameters: surface temperature, runoff of rainfall, and greenspace diversity. These changes were then related to the socio-economic status of the areas, as measured by an index of multiple deprivation. The comparisons revealed a loss of greenspace in all 11 case study sites Overall, the more affluent, low density areas lost more greenspace, especially of tree cover. A major cause was infill development whereby gardens were built over. However, greenspace was also lost in already densely built-up, deprived areas due to the reuse of derelict land. As a consequence, the models used in this study predicted negative environmental impacts for all areas. The results emphasize the need to critically review concepts such as urban densification and give more weight to the preservation and management of urban greenspaces.

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more papers of this kind:

Modeling street connectivity, pedestrian movement and land-use according to standard GIS street network representations: A Comparative Study

Evaluating urban transport and land use policies through the use of an accessibility modelling framework

A STUDY ON THE CORRELATION BETWEEN PEDESTRIAN NETWORK AND PEDESTRIAN VOLUME ACCORDING TO LAND USE PATTERN

INCORPORATING LAND USE AND ACCESSIBILITY VARIABLES IN TRAVEL DEMAND MODELS