radroad

Any cycling enthusiast can't help but notice that several of the top online bicycling retailers are U.K. based and so are some of the best cycling publications. It seems like Brits are enamored with bicycling as a sport and bicycles as commute vehicles in a way that Americans have never been and probably never will be. Here is an article which talks about some of the causes, including the government's support of bike to work with tax cuts, as well as outstanding olympic performances by brits in cycling.

It seems like bicycle sales are growing at an explosive pace:

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-35101252

I don't think cars will ever be displaced as the no.1 form of transportation in the US but are there lessons to be drawn from the British case?

Lazyass

It actually wasn't that popular in the UK until the last decade.

fietsbob

since 1900? few could afford cars but the lord of the manor..







Aka, 'Push bikes', because your hill climbing gear was 2 feet.






...

expatbrit

Agreed, though there was always a lot more use of bikes as transport than I've ever seen over here. (Born and raised in the UK)

Boardman and the Olympics.

The success of Wiggins, Froome, and so on.

The creation of the National Cycle Network

Distances are so much shorter there than here.

Lots of good reasons to be a cyclist in the UK.

mcours2006

Yeah, well, the author is 'bike-obsessed', so not exactly objective journalism... but sure, great for Britons. Shame that more isn't done here to incentivize people to get on bikes.

Squeeze

Because bicycles are more reliable than stereotypical British cars?

SouthFLpix

A British rider has won the Tour de France every year, save one, since 2012. That caused a cycling boom. Armstrong also caused a cycling boom in the US when he was winning Tours.

Gresp15C

Distance, climate, terrain, and spare time, combined with a higher relative cost of using a car.

Since you've mentioned e-bikes in other threads, one thing we can learn is that electric-assist can help with the first three issues.

Rajflyboy

Flip Flop Rider

because it's in Europe. Where is biking and bike racing really popular? Europe

Europe likes soccer better than the U.S. too, and the royal family! All things that will never be as popular in the U.S. as in Europe

​​​​​​​it's culture. We like a lot of stuff that you guys don't, like guns

big chainring 

Oh man, my brother subscribed to "Sporting Cyclist" magazine back in the 60's. An English publication that covered cycling in the UK and the Continent. With lines like "I want to be a coureur when I grow up dad". And Sun cycles "Too good for the shed" ads. Rudi Altig pushing Jacques Anquetil in the Barracchi Tropheo, "Courage Jacques, Courage".

England is just rich in cycling lore. You have the Bates brothers building bikes with Reynolds Cantiflex tubing and Jack Taylor, Witcomb, Holdsworth, Hetchens, on and on. Every little hamlet another frame builder. And Raleigh, Viking, Falcon, Dawes, Dunelt, and on and on. Ian Hibell riding everywhere in the world. Tommy Godwins 75,000 miles in a year. World Champions Reg Harris, Tom Simpson, Buryl Burton. Ray "the boot" Booty who broke 4 hrs for the 100 mile TT in 1956, on an 84" fixed gear!

All you have to do is watch this video and you'll get it.
https://youtu.be/QPkT0paGEnQ

radroad

That video just makes me fall in cycling all over again.

It seems like we can only get a small approximation of that culture in select college and university towns.

Gresp15C

Cycling was popular in the US around the turn of the last century. The Wright Brothers were not an anomaly -- there was a bike shop in every town. But the US is where mass production of the automobile got its start, and that's what killed cycling. Today, our cities are designed around the car.

Cycling culture thrives in college towns where the college is modeled after a Medieval European city. If you visit the typical regional or commuter college campus, it's all cars. It's not about culture, but about urban design, economics, and objective factors such as climate.

jgwilliams

Yes, lots of reasons for it, I think. Our cities, too, are designed around the car but we're finally starting to see some push-back on that - not simply, or even primarily, for cyclists but for pedestrians as well.

I can only speak for London, as I've never commuted to any other city, but for most driving in to the city is not practical. Costly as the trains are (and they are very costly) they are still way cheaper than driving due to congestion charges and parking charges as well as fuel and insurance costs. Plus there's the fact that many of our roads reach gridlock pretty frequently. The cost of travelling by train has been steadily rising at a rate greater than inflation while the service seems to be actually getting worse. I'm not surprised that those who can find an alternative do

Since June of this year I've hardly taken the train into work but I was forced to last week due to bad weather. I came to the realisation that it's actually really stressful these days. As per usual there was some melt-down with our ancient signalling system and suddenly there were no trains going my way. So you leap on the first one going in roughly the right direction, but the lack of information and poor management coordination leaves you wondering just when on earth you're going to get home, the lack of trains means you end up standing in a crowded compartment (picking up all the viruses going the rounds), and so on. The journey ended up taking me an hour longer than it would have done to cycle. With an 18 mile commute (plus a 600ft climb) most people would probably say I live too far away to cycle but I've done it so much this year that I'm probably the fittest I've been since I was 20, and I've just passed my 62nd birthday. If I've come to that conclusion then I'm sure many others have too.

SHBR

Somehow this doesn't surprise me.

Pro sports have been rigged for so long, its amazing that there are still so many enthusiasts that haven't caught on to the marketing scam.

J.Higgins 

There's a lot of sheep out there and the wolves know it.

JonnyHK 

Parking sucks.
Public transport can let you down.
Not a lot of big hills.

Lazyass

For everyone who suddenly wants the USA to be like Europe, gas prices in the UK are well over $6US a gallon. Six+ bucks a gallon. Think about that for a minute.

SHBR

Driving sucks.

tagaproject6

And taxes, don't forget taxes.

aclinjury

One effect of this is the rise of the major UK warehouse online sellers such as Chain Reaction, Wiggles, etc...
It's great for US consumers. And these UK sellers go out of their ways to grab US sellers, and probably putting the pain on the US online sellers at the same time.

Lazyass

Yes, 20% on petrol. That's just mind boggling.

sdmc530

Yes, but it works! Keeps the roads less busy and public transportation used at a high rate or bicycles. They are way more energy efficient as a county that we are. Also look at the cars people own over the pond. You don't see large SUV's, a pickup truck is owned out of need not desire. People drive compact car. I am glad I am not forced to drive a tiny car because of prices and taxes.

We could learn a little bit from them on environmentally friendliness. Granted their county/cities and such is closer together than the US but they make us look silly in the public transportation set up.

I wish I didn't have to own two cars. If my wife and I could get by with one vehicle I would be all over that for the money savings alone. But just not possible.

TimothyH

Nobody said that the USA should be just like Europe.

The thread asked why cycling was more popular in the UK, that's all. That's what people are discussing.

I find the responses from non-US members fascinating.


-Tim-

Lazyass

It's criminal to make your citizens pay that kind of money for one gallon of gas. Trying to justify it just because you personally don't like or need an automobile is wrong. It would not work in the USA. Just look at the summer of 2008.