Top 10 Countries with Most Bicycles per Capita

一人当たりの自転車の所有権上位10カ国

More than a billion bicycles ply the world's roads. That is more than double the number of automobiles.

Here are the ten countries with the highest per capita bicycle ownership.

1. Netherlands (Population: 6,652,800 Bicycles: 16,500,000 Percentage: 99.1%)
2. Denmark (Population: 5,560,628 Bicycles: 4,500,000 Percentage: 80.1%)
3. Germany (Population: 81,802,000 Bicycles: 62,000,000 Percentage  75.8%)
4. Sweden (Population: 9,418,732 Bicycles: 6,000,000 Percentage: 63.7%)
5. Norway (Population: 4,943,000 Bicycles: 3,000,000 Percentage: 60.7%)
6. Finland (Population: 5,380,200 Bicycles: 3,250,000 Percentage: 60.4%)
7. Japan (Population: 127,370,000 Bicycles: 72,540,000 Percentage: 56.9%)
8. Switzerland (Population: 7,782,900 Bycicles: 3,800,000 Percentage: 48.8)
9. Belgium (Population: 10,827,519 Bicycles: 5,200,000 Percentage: 48%)
10. China (Population: 1,342,700,000 Bicycles: >500,000,000 Percentage: 37.2%)

Not surprisingly, the USA does not fare well (Population: 310,936,000 Bicycles: 100,000,000 Bicylists: 32,2%).

Note: some of the above math and numbers seem a bit off - Holland? - but we are not going to dip our big toe in that pond.

Source: Sacramento News and Review


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Cycling Rates By Country Japan

国ごとの一日平均自転車走行距離

According to Cycling Info, Holland tops the world in terms of daily kilometers traveled on a bike at 2.5 (1.5 miles).

Other countries noted were:

2. Denmark (1.6 km)
3. Belgium (0.9 km)
3. Germany (0.9 km)

EU Average (0.5 km)

10. UK (0.2 km)

12. USA (0.1 km)

For EU countries and the UK, data is from 2002; for the USA, it is from 2003.

For some reason, though, Japan did not make it onto the list. A short online search turned up a Cabinet Office report form 2010.

On page 99, above graph V-5, it reads: "the average bike user [in Japan] rides 20.5 km a week, or 2.928 km per day."

That would make Japan number one in the world.

Tomorrow we will compare rates of cycling safety by country.


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Japan Third Best Country for Cycling

日本は世界の第３自転車大国

Japan has been selected as the third best country for cycling in the world.

Uber cycling blog Copenhagize writes that Japan ranks after Denmark and Holland as the best place to cycle in the world.

Who knew?

Germans, and others, would probably beg to differ. However, the blog has the basic facts right:

Japanese cities have wonderful bicycle parking infrastructure (though little in the way of dedicated lanes); cycling is a part of the Japanese DNA; everyone cycles; bicycles are not toys but practical tools, and have been for decades; and, in spite of the chaos on the streets and sidewalks, there is little conflict.

Here is a longer quote:

It is quite amazing to me how many aren't aware that Japan is the third great cycling nation after DK and NL. Even urban mobility colleagues often say, "really?" when I highlight this fact.

This film is a long series of clips that show what kind of bicycle nation Japan is. It's all there. Sorry. Yet another country (and it's an automobile powerhouse, a rich country, a country with cities that have narrow streets, etc etc) to either make other cities feel hopelessly insecure or... further empowered to catch up.

Be sure to click over to the Vimeo page to read the text from the guy who made it. He's had enough of sub-cultural bicycle niches. He wants Bicycle Society.

Here's an excerpt:

"According to my crude interpretation/analogy a society that cycles is more equal to the one that doesn’t.


Here in Japan grannies do it, kids do it, salary men do it, so do Yankees, the yakuza, teachers, nurses, office ladies, students, fashionistas, moms carrying an entire family, farmers, delivery men, chefs, the police, old men do it slowly with their knees sticking out, fixies, hipsters, local councilors, udon deliverers, students and anime characters do it too.

And they do it on the footpath and without fancy lyrca, fancy bikes and helmets too. They just do it. People cycle because it makes sense.

And it’s not that they don’t like their cars in Japan. It’s just that cycling makes sense."


The wonderful blog TokyobyBike adds a bit of meat to the article.

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