How it could be - a Dutch video.

Back in the 1960's, the Netherlands had the same problems with burgeoning road congestion as we did. By the 1970's the Dutch public, fed up with being prisoners of car traffic, started to rebel. The fight back against car domination has continued relentlessly since then. The result is a huge improvement in the urban fabric of their cities, suburbs and small towns. For more and more Dutch people, the bicycle, often in conjunction with the train, has become their preferred mode of transport.

The first thing that the authorities had to take was to liberate large amounts of road space from car domination and return it to its rightful owners.

Meanwhile, in London, the number of journeys undertaken by cycle varies from about 7% in Hackney down to about 1% here. Despite meaningless "targets" and completely useless token "cycling facilities", nothing will change until local councils, the jurassic TFL and and national government summon up the courage to put our quality of life, the autonomy, safety and the future health of our children, and the the congeniality of our surroundings before the right of a minority to sit in traffic jams.

Here is a video selling Dutch expertise bringing back congeniality to cities, towns and villages through cycling.