The Amsterdam Story The socio-economic value of cycling and innovative planning practices in context in transition Kees van Ommeren Paolo Ruffino
Questions answered in this presentation What are the economic values of cycling? How do we maximize the return on cycling investments through innovative planning practices? Kees van Ommeren (Transport economist) Paolo Ruffino (Urban planner)
Cycling in Amsterdam is already the cycling capital 820,000 inhabitants 881,000 bicycles 768 km of bike infrastructure 25 Bicycle parking complexes 225,000 bicycle racks 45% of Amsterdammers cycle daily Making 2 million km cycled per year
A growing city Population Urban development Employment Tourism +2% (2015-2016) +135% new dwellings (2014-2015) +7% new office spaces (2014-2015) +24% registered entrepreneurs (2013-2016) +2% Jobs (2014-2015) +300% AirBnB bookings (2013-2015) +3% Hotel bookings (2014-2015) Source: Gemeente Amsterdam (2016)
More growth = More mobility From the Region Incoming trips 288.000/day Outgoing trips 119.000/day From the rest of The Netherlands Incoming trips 123.000/day Outgoing trips 59.000/day Source: Amsterdam Economic Board (2016)
Pressure on the city
Cycling as central urban transport policy strategy
Amsterdam Cycling Strategy (2017-2022) Smooth cycling Easy Parking Better biking Budget: 54,5 mln (City level 5yr) 220 mln (Regional level 10yr)
How much does Amsterdam profit from cycling? Everybody knows its good for one s health, the society and the environment.. But who benefits from it? And how much? What investments can be justified from it? What added value does it bring to society?
How DECISIO answers these questions Who contibutes to financing? What is the best measure to solve the problem? Optimization of alternative (which of the alternative has higher value?) What is the business case of cycling for the traveller or companies? Effects on employment and GDP? SCBA (social costbenefit analysis) Business case Economic impact studies Bikenomics
Amsterdam Bikenomics Dashboard
Employment 873 direct employed in the bicycle sector 2500 3000 Bicycle couriers (postal services, food delivery, etc.) 35 million of added value to the city
Tourism About 500,000 bicycles rented by the 2 main bicycle rental companies in Amsterdam a year 1 Additional day = 50 mln! In the Netherlands: 200 mln of bike trips for tourism = 500 mln!
Direct economic impact 1 on fuel = 4% remains in the local economy 1 spent by a cyclist = 32% remains in the local economy
Convenient for companies Employees commuting by bike: Lower allowance / transport costs! No excuses for being late! More productive employees (1.3 less days sick) - 360/year Lower carbon footprint Better marketing image Happier and more focused employees 8.000,00 6.000,00 4.000,00 2.000,00 - Cost per employee 1 2 3 4 5 Auto Fiets
Social benefits? Standard methodology for social cost-benefit analysis for the Dutch Ministry The social effects (externalities) of cycling are monetised These are compared to the investments And discounted to the Net Present Value (NPV)
Bike infra is extremely cost-effective
Effects for traveller and the city
Input examples Value of (less) travel time Health effects and productivity
80 70 Use of public space 67 60 50 45 40 30 20 10 0 11 Car Bicycle Public Transport 9 Modal share (%) Use of space (incl. Parking) (%) 13 3 28 21 Pedestrians
Social benefits of cycling in Amsterdam 6000 h of congestion avoided and increased accessibility + 87 mln +332 million more bicycle kilometers (2010-2015) More active and healthy inhabitants (+120 of healthy life years) 40.000 ton of CO2 avoided and less noise 50.000 productive days + 7 mln + 13,7 mln + 14,7 mln = 120.000.000
Future infrastructural projects (Bike Bridge over the IJ)
Our experiece with over +30 «mega» cycling projects
So let s invest in cycling! but wait!
The story seems clear... build them and they will come
Money spent on cycling infrastructure ( /person) 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 The Netherlands (2010) Denmark (2009) Germany (2015) Norway (2016) United States (2009) United Kingdom (2010) Money spent on cycling infrastructure ( /person)
But if we look closely Bicycle mode share: Rotterdam 21% Amsterdam 45%
Dense cycling network Amsterdam Rotterdam
High quality and same standard everywhere Rotterdam Amsterdam
I.e. Supermarkets
I.e. Proximity to shops (in minutes)
Inside Amsterdam
Availability of cycling infra vs use
Land use Nieuw-West Centre
Paking tariffs
Noise and quality of the urban environment
A bicycle culture is created from more than bicycle lanes
A few simple lessons from The Netherlands 1. Start by asking what the problem is..
Good problem analysis We jump to the solution without first understanding......what societal problem are we trying to solve. If there s a problem, who is the problem owner? What could be a problem could actually be a solution
Problem or part of the solution?
Effects of reducing car lanes -21,9% of traffic (mean) - 10,6% of traffic (median)
Guess what..
A few simple lessons from The Netherlands 1. Start asking what is the problem.. 2. Create ambitious and shared cycling visions..
Cycling visions Visions are necessary to provide sense of direction and guidance Harness local and political support Create sense of ownership and committment
A few simple lessons from The Netherlands 1. Start asking what is the problem.. 2. Create ambitious and shared cycling visions.. 3. Formulate «smart» objectives and measurable indicators
A few simple lessons from The Netherlands 1. Start asking what is the problem.. 2. Create ambitious and shared cycling visions.. 3. Formulate «smart» objectives and measurable indicators 4. Involve citizens and local stakeholders
Academic institutions Research institutes, consultancies and expert groups Istituzioni accademiche Entrepreneurs Transport authorties Associations
A few simple lessons from The Netherlands 1. Start asking what is the problem.. 2. Create ambitious and shared cycling visions.. 3. Formulate both long-term and short-term objectives and «smart» indicators 4. Involve local stakeholders 5. Think holistic and integrated measures
Bicycle use not only the result of rational choices As a complex bundles of social practices Bicycle Infrastructure Traffic sign Material Cycling skills Understandings of cycling in relation to own daily life Meaning Competence Knowledge of traffic regulations Image of cycling Ability to repair a bicycle
Material
Competence
Meaning
Not different than selling a product Know your users Positive emotions Think mainstream Leverage change agents
Integrate sustainable mobility practices Bike-train commuting practice Cycling practice Train commuting practice Material Material Meaning Competence Meaning Competence
Disrupt unsustainable social practices Driving practice Material Meaning Competence
Connect transport and spatial planning TRANSPORT PLANNING Transport system Accessibility (+) Activities Land use SPATIAL PLANNING
A few simple lessons from The Netherlands 1. Start asking what is the problem.. 2. Create ambitious and shared cycling visions.. 3. Formulate both long-term and short-term objectives and «smart» indicators 4. Involve local stakeholders 5. Think holistic and integrated measures 6. Assess and compare your measures before / after the implementation
Benefit (%) More than cost-benefit analysis 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 For every effect, there is a stakeholder who could take responsibility
A few simple lessons from The Netherlands 1. Start asking what is the problem.. 2. Create ambitious and shared cycling visions.. 3. Formulate both long-term and short-term objectives and «smart» indicators 4. Involve local stakeholders 5. Think holistic and integrated measures 6. Assess and compare your measures before / after the implementation 7. Embrace uncertainty and complexity
Outcomes are uncertain. Dare to try! Seeking certainty at all costs Embracing uncertainty by experimenting
Amsterdam is not so small as you may think
Thank you for your attention Kees van Ommeren C.vanommeren@decisio.nl Paolo Ruffino P.Ruffino@decisio.nl