I've traveled an awful lot in life and consider Leiden one of those exceptional towns in existence....that put bike paths/streets throughout the entire town of roughly 120,000 residents. You can get from one end of town to the other....in roughly twenty minutes. Lights are built into each bike path and control the flow of bikes.
Wear and tear? None. Almost every bike path has a rubber-like coating and I expect them to last forty years.
All of this planning had to take place decades ago and allows for the majority of residents in the town to avoid using cars. I'd take a humble guess that fifty percent of the population goes mostly without using a car except for major shopping trips. The train station is built in the center and allows for easy parking of the bike and you quickly board your train to whichever major town you work in, and return home easily and mount your bike for a quick trip to the house.
It was made this way and if you look at infrastructure......it works. Potholes are virtually non-existent. Accidents are rare.
Why can't something like this occur in the US? Maybe in a warm climate.....it might be possible. In a cold place like Chicago or Boston? It's just not feasible. Toss in crime. Throw on right-of-way issues and property accusation, and it's just impossible.
So, if you really want to see how bike paths/roads ought to be done.....go to Leiden for three days and just walk around. It'll be a simple view.....no issues.....and tons of ideas, but they just won't work elsewhere.
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