PRIX Velostädte: Burgdorf remains Switzerland's number 1 cycling city

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PRIX Velostädte: Burgdorf remains Switzerland's number 1 cycling city

15,000 cyclists have chosen the most cycle-friendly cities in Switzerland in an online survey. Burgdorf wins the "PRIX Velostädte" and also takes first place in the small towns category. The most cycle-friendly medium-sized city is Chur, and the best large city is Winterthur. These three cities were already at the top of the ranking four years ago.

The small town of Burgdorf in the Emmental region sets an example: cyclists give it a rating of 4.8. Although this rating is not quite "good" yet, it is higher than in any other city in Switzerland. This secures the city its top position in the survey conducted every four years by Pro Velo Switzerland.

Chur ranks second in the list, having swapped places with the city of Winterthur. Zuchwil, a newcomer, comes in fourth with almost the same score. At the bottom of the ranking is Zurich; it has taken over the red lantern from Fribourg and is considered the least cycle-friendly city in Switzerland.

In the size categories, Winterthur leads among large cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants, ahead of Basel and Bern; Chur leads among medium-sized cities ahead of Köniz and Biel/Bienne; and Burgdorf leads among small towns ahead of Zuchwil and Solothurn.

The cities are on the right track

Pro Velo board member and National Councillor Roland Fischer is pleased that, with few exceptions, all evaluated cities have improved their ratings. "Apparently, the efforts to make cycling in Switzerland safer and more attractive are bearing fruit." However, the fact that even Burgdorf's top rating is still below a five must motivate everyone to further improve the conditions for cycling. Roland Fischer: "This is only possible if cycling is increasingly perceived as a healthy and environmentally friendly mode of transport."

The cyclists decide

The basis for the ranking is the assessment of around 15,000 cyclists who took part in the online survey in autumn 2013. The ranking includes those 28 cities and municipalities that received at least 130 ratings.

The survey included 34 questions on the topics of "route network", "traffic climate", "safety", "comfort", "parking facilities" and "status of cycling". Overall, the route network received the highest rating across all cities, while parking facilities and status received the lowest. Cyclists primarily appreciate being able to reach the centre directly and quickly; coexistence with pedestrians is perceived as unproblematic. However, many places lack parking facilities; many cyclists complain about theft and vandalism. Regarding snow clearance, cyclists feel they are not taken seriously by the authorities. The same applies to dangerous construction sites and cycle-unfriendly traffic light controls.

The 14 cities rated "sufficient" or "good" are, except for Biel/Bienne, all in the German-speaking part of Switzerland, spread across eight cantons, with five cities alone in the canton of Bern.

Telephone survey confirms the results

Parallel to the online survey, the office gfs.bern was commissioned to conduct a telephone survey with 500 representatively selected persons each in the cities of Basel, Bern, Lausanne, Lucerne and Zurich. The results of this survey are not directly comparable to the large survey because many non-cyclists were also called. However, the reasons for not cycling could be identified: good public transport is the main reason for not cycling, followed by reluctance to cycle in rain and cold. 10 to 18% state that they cannot cycle.

The PRIX Velostädte is supported by the Federal Roads Office (ASTRA). Sponsors of the competition prizes (for the prize draw for participants) are Stromer and Veloplus.

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