Dutch bike paths increasingly dangerous, safe traffic assoc. says

Bicycle paths in the Netherlands are increasingly dangerous, according to safe traffic association VVN. Currently some 65 thousand cyclists end up at an emergency room every year, the association said to the Telegraaf.

VVN blames the increasingly dangerous bike paths on the ever-growing group of electric- and race cyclists. According to the association, these cyclists create considerable speed differences on the bike paths. The number of racing cyclists who sustained a serious injury more than doubled over the past eight years, from 2 thousand to around 5 thousand, the association said.

Cyclists also feel less safe on the road. "Research shows that almost half of the cyclists take a different route because the paths are overcrowded and it is too dangerous", a spokesperson said to the newspaper. "Ten percent abandon the bike for that reason and take the car, bus or tram again."