Bikes

 There's a good survey on SWR (public TV for SW of Germany) today, which chats over the use of bicycles in Germany.

For the record....roughly 40-percent of all Germans DON'T ride a bicycle, period. 

Once-a-week riders?  17-percent.

Daily riders (mostly to work)?  10-percent.  

Affect of Covid-19 over the past year and bike-riding?  Almost zero affect....at least that's what people said in the survey.

Promotion and more effort by the government to hype bikes?  Around forty percent of Germans suggest that more should be done.  

Back around three decades ago, I made a trip to Leiden, Netherlands.  I've been back around four times.  The city fascinates me because it's built to handle just about everyone in town riding a bicycle.  The design?  It actually goes back to the 1960s, and an effort to limit car-use within the city.

Looking for something like that in Germany?  You won't find it.  Oh....there's some cities with a pro-bike agenda, and some projects are underway....but there's not a city in Germany that is even 50-percent of what Leiden has done.

As for the statistic shown being a urban thing?  That's part of the bigger story.  If you go to rural villages of 500 residents....you won't find a pro-bike society.  It's generally in highly urbanized areas (Frankfurt or Mainz as examples).  

Having a university nearby?  A plus-up on bike use?  That's another part of the story as well.

The fact that biking is now in the inner-circle of political topics?  I would make a guess that in the sixteen states....most will list it as a top-50 subject and regional political chats will all have some pro-bike path plan to get particular voters excited.