You might need a subscription to read this Wall Street Journal article, so I'll paraphrase it here: it's a glowing article on the miracles of bike transportation in Amsterdam and Copenhagen where an astonishing 40% and 33% (respectively) of commuters bike to work. Granted these cities are flat, but they also have phenomenal biking infrastructure that makes biking safe, practical and popular. In contast, the US remains woefully difficult (and often dangerous) to commute by bicycle in. More importantly, even here in San Francisco, popular culture seems adamant that using a bicycle for daily transportation is anathema to being a good American - a deeply set paranoia that is made all the more difficult to overcome given our astonishingly bad bicycle infrastructure. Even in Manhattan (the west side highway notwithstanding), getting around by bike is a challenging and gutsty proposition.

Needless to say, I'm thrilled that America's leading business publication is singing the praises of the Danish and Dutch. Hopefully it means influential people are listening.

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