Bike vs Cars

In Malmö, where I was born and bred, cycling is a natural choice for getting from place to place. So travelling round the world I’ve always wondered why, generally speaking, there are so few bikes. If all cities were to follow the Copenhagen model, where 40% of the population move by bike, it would mean a radical change for the planet, quantifiable in terms of health, pollution and gas consumption. The international Urban Bikers movement champions peaceful provocation and alternative research. Each cyclist displays the slogan “One Car Less” on their bikes, thus sending a positive message in a very depressing time.

The film addresses various issues, that of urban planning first and foremost. Bicycles are the symbol of cities built for people where small businesses prosper. Cars, on the other hand, favor shopping malls and large-scale infrastructure.

It speaks not of a conflict between motorists and cyclists but of planning modeled on the interests of lobbies that have made people more and more dependent on cars. Motorists themselves are the prime victims of this and pay the price in time and money lost in endless traffic jams. The documentary shows different cities and metropolises. Los Angeles is the mother of all freeways with a model that has been copied worldwide over the years.

Once it had the best public transport on the globe, now it has probably the worst, and it’s clear that this wasn’t a natural transition. São Paulo, on the other hand, represents emerging economies with growing numbers of middle-class consumers. Car sales are soaring and frustration is mounting. The average commuter spends three hours a day in traffic, and in Toronto they even elected a mayor who wanted to “stop the war on cars.” The problem affects most democracies and makes change highly complicated, even where it is clearly necessary. In the film, utopia is represented by Copenhagen, a city on a human scale where bicycles reign, even in the freezing cold winters.