Urban Bicycling and its Contribution to Transportation Sustainability: Comparison between European and Chinese Cities

With today's challenges of global climate change, cities increasingly regard bicycling as a means to promote urban sustainability, liveability, and public health. Copenhagen, which not only was voted as the "Best City of Cyclists 2012", but also as "the World's Most Liveable City 2012", is a city of great inspiration. Copenhagen is popular for its current bicycle culture, but China has in fact also had a long history of bicycle use and was in the 1980s known as the "Bicycle Kingdom". Unfortunately, this reputation has foregone as a result of strong economic growth, increased urbanization and expanded city areas leading to rapid motorization and car-dependence. This research will highlight the bicycle development in China and make a comparison of the situation in Copenhagen and thereby to find suitable future suggestions for urban planners and transportation designers for urbanization in China.