New Reykjavik cycling plan approved

A new cycling-path plan for Iceland’s capital Reykjavik was approved yesterday. Plans include laying 30 km of new cycle paths over the next five years.

The City Council’s aim is to make bikes a real transport option for as many people as possible. The plan contains measurable objectives to assess the success of the plan. These include:

• Share of journeys in Reykjavik made by bicycle or foot to increase from 5.5% today to 26% by 2020.
• Share of cycle paths (as a percentage of the total network) separated from cars and pedestrians to increase from 4.5% to 8% by 2020.
• Cycle parking at Council-run primary schools for 20% of staff and pupils by 2020.

The plan includes action to link existing cycle paths together and improve facilities for crossing roads, such as building subways and bridges.

Opposition councillor Halldór Halldórsson urged the Council to take another look at its priorities, in a city where more needs to be done to improve frontline services and which is suffering from insufficient school places, cutbacks to services for the elderly, and waiting lists for disabled people.

Full details of the new plan (in Icelandic) are available here.

Planned new cycle paths for 2015-20. Photo: Screenshot hjola­borg­in.is