{"id":220154,"date":"2025-10-17T12:03:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-17T12:03:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/220154\/"},"modified":"2025-10-17T12:03:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-17T12:03:09","slug":"you-can-feel-the-city-wants-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/220154\/","title":{"rendered":"‘You can feel the city wants you’"},"content":{"rendered":"

For bike commuters in Copenhagen, catching a string of green lights during rush hour is no fluke; it’s part of a “green wave” design that’s now expanding citywide in an effort to help rush-hour cyclists.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This wave is greener in more ways than one; lots of green lights make the cycling experience more seamless, encouraging people to bike, and, in turn, benefiting the environment.<\/p>\n

Since its launch about 16 years ago, Copenhagen has synchronized traffic signals on major routes so that a cyclist traveling at about 12 mph can roll through multiple intersections without stopping, according to The Guardian<\/a>. Under a new municipal budget, the system will be extended to 15 additional routes.<\/p>\n

The expansion signals the Danish capital’s serious and continued commitment to nudging residents away from fossil-fueled transport<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This approach makes the city more convenient and can help Copenhagen achieve broader climate and public health goals.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Multiple studies show that cycling reduces carbon output. One study<\/a> published in Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment found that cyclists had 84% lower emissions from travel than non-cyclists. The Cycling Embassy of Denmark<\/a> also reported that “the amount of people who choose bicycles in favor of cars save Copenhagen from 90,000 tons of CO2 emission annually.”<\/p>\n


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Per the United Nations<\/a>, half of all residents in Copenhagen cycle to work or school each day, and the city now boasts more bicycles than people. On a global scale, more people cycling in place of driving cars could cut urban transport emissions by up to 10%, according to the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

More bike riders and fewer drivers lead to fewer tailpipe pollutants, cleaner air, better mental and physical health<\/a>, and less noise exposure. The Danish government has reported<\/a> that residents who cycle take 1.1 million fewer sick days in total, and every kilometer biked instead of driven generates roughly $1.17 in health benefits.<\/p>\n

Copenhagen’s green wave has become so popular that more cyclists are on the road, and many have had positive responses to the expansion.<\/p>\n

Lars, a cyclist, told The Guardian, “The idea is nice because usually the lights are set at the speed of the cars.”<\/p>\n

“It’s so important to have the freedom on a bike to just ride along at a good speed,” Line Barfod, the city’s mayor for technology<\/a> and environment, told the outlet. “You can feel the city wants you \u2014 and supports you \u2014 going on a bike.”<\/p>\n

If Copenhagen’s green wave creates a global ripple effect, it could encourage people to choose cycling and improve the health of their communities and the planet.<\/p>\n

Join our free newsletter<\/a> for good news and useful tips, and don’t miss this cool list<\/a> of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\"Cool<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"For bike commuters in Copenhagen, catching a string of green lights during rush hour is no fluke; it’s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":220155,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[569],"tags":[64,63,82990,784,94774,22103,82993,85,14715],"class_list":["post-220154","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-change-the-way-you-get-around","tag-cycling","tag-good-health-news","tag-good-news","tag-ride-a-bike-instead-of-driving","tag-sports","tag-yahoo-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220154","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=220154"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220154\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/220155"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=220154"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=220154"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=220154"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}