It's a Joy to be on a Bike Again! : The 1980s Onward

Pete Jordan, is the author of the In the City of Bikes: The Story of the Amsterdam Cyclist. He has lived in Amsterdam since 2002. Pete’s work has been featured on public radio’s This American Life and in the New York Times. He’s also the author of "Dishwasher: One Man's Quest to Wash Dishes in All Fifty States."

In the introduction, the author started with his stories about his son riding his first bike and to when his son can do dangerous trick and how his son has grown. In this story, he wants the reader to understand the role of being a father and wants what the best for their children.

Then after the introduction, Pete clearly wants to emphasize the history of cycling after the late 1970s. In the 1970, a major restructuring of the city’s traffic circulation took place. Between 1975 and 1980, bicycle usage on that stretch increased by 56 percent, while auto usage dropped by the same percentage. After the bike demo and the election in 1982, the city government’s attitude toward biking finally changed significantly for the better. Many new separated bike paths were installed to avoid cyclists exposed to the dangerous posed by cars and trucks.

In 19990, more bike infrastructure were implemented which made the city an even more welcoming place to cycle.  In 1950, the numbers of cars was dropping meanwhile the number of cyclists continue to rise. During 1980s and ‘90s, conditions for Amsterdam cycling had improved greatly. In 2008, Mayor Job Cohen warned student that bought stolen bike as a criminal. He warned them, “If you buy a bike for thirty dollars, you can be sure it’s stolen. And buying stolen property is, according to the criminal code… a crime!”.  A publicity campaign titled “Don’t Give Thieves a Chance!’ was launched in order to prevent thefts. In between 2001 and 2008, the bike theft rate in Amsterdam dropped by half.

 
Queen Withelmina 

Queen Withelmina had earned the Dutch royal family a reputation as a cycling monarchy. Still, the idea of a cycling monarchy reinforced a view of the royal family as everyday folks just like their subjects. In 1998, the Rijksmuseum passageway was closed to cyclists for more than a year while building was renovated. In 2008, Wim Pijbes- a new head director of the museum called for cyclists to be completely banned from the passageway when the museum reopened in 2013. However, in June 2012, the city’s executive board advised the city council to vote to keep the passageway accessible to the cyclist. Pijebs reacted with fury. Even though he stood in the passageway and insisted to a reporter, “It’s not a bike path.” The city council felt otherwise. A majority support the cyclists retaining their rights since 19^th century: access to the central portals of passageway.

 

 Rijksmuseum passageway 

 Overall from his book, Pete writes excellent history about the cyclists in Amsterdam and also the difficulties that they have to face in order to gain their rights. He explained everything in details so that the readers can understand the event that’s happening in the past based on the history and based on his experiences.