Odense - the National Cycle City of Denmark

http://www.euro.who.int/document/hepan/casestudiesT&H/E90144_annexes_1-48.pdf
Eine wirklich interessantes Projekt was da hier in Dänemark gemacht wurde:

Country: Denmark
Title: Odense - the National Cycle City of Denmark
Type of action: Engineering or infrastructural measures combined with publicity or motivational campaign and/or practical offers to promote active modes of transport
Setting: Municipality of Odense
Target audience: Cyclists in Odense
Target beneficiaries: Cyclists in Odense-Specific campaigns addressed children and workplaces

Driving force (project leader): Project lead by a project manager with the City of Odense
Partners:
- Ministry of Transport
- National Road Directorate
- Municipality of Odense
- Health sector represented by the University of Southern Denmark
Timeframe: 1999 - 2002
Number of target population reached: (no information provided)
Financing/cost:
- Ministry of Transport
- National Road Directorate

Description of initiative/action

Aims and objectives:
- The citizens of Odense should consciously notice an improvement in their well-being.
- To increase the number of bicycle journeys in Odense by 20% compared to the years 1996-1997 by the end of 2002. During the same period the number of people who use a bicycle more than three times a week should be increased by 20%.
- The number of cyclists killed or injured in accidents involving more than one party
should be reduced by 20% in the same period.
The citizens of the Municipality of Odense should view Odense as a better place in which to
cycle.

Description:
From 1999 to 2002 Odense was the official National Cycle City of Denmark. The
Municipality of Odense received half of the total budget of DKr 20 million as a subsidy from
the Ministry of Transport and the National Road Directorate.
Odense is Denmark’s third largest city, with 185 000 inhabitants, 37 public schools and 140
kindergartens (for 3-to-6-year-olds).
Over a four-year period, 50 projects were developed and implemented, such as improvement of traffic lights and junction crossing (“green waves”), web site and interactive trip planner, increasing the quality of cycling paths, more and safer parking facilities etc. Activities also included the development of new options and initiatives. Communication
aspects were also emphasized.

Activities:
A mix of measures (infrastructure or engineering measures, changes in regulations and a
publicity or marketing and image campaign). The project concentrated on the
implementation of concrete infrastructural improvements and publicity campaigns but also
included a quite extended evaluation that gives new knowledge about cycling and health
aspects.

Planning and implementation
Contribution of each sector/partner:(No information provided)

Evaluation
The evaluation report based on panel survey, a traffic survey and a survey on traffic safety as
well as an attempted health impact assessment.
- Panel survey: a representative sample of the population aged 15-60, mainly on the perception of the activities, recall of activities carried out, priorities etc.
- Traffic survey: Statistic Denmark's transport investigation, a national traffic survey.
- Survey on traffic safety: regular, national survey by the police.

Results:
Health-enhancing physical activity outcomes:
- Between 1999 and 2002, journeys made by bicycle increased by 20%, an estimated
25 000 new cycling journeys per day and some 3 extra minutes of physical activity
per day and inhabitant.
- In addition, the number of km travelling per person per day declined substantially
and, accordingly, transport by car or public transport declined by 15% and 45%,
respectively.
- The project also reduced the number of cars owned.
- The number of accidents involving cyclists fell by 20%.
- Cyclists and other road-users were surveyed to discover the outcomes of the Cycle City project. Results show that 82% of those surveyed believed Odense had excellent urban cycling facilities and over each year of the project, the city had become a better place in which to cycle.

Lessons learned
Sustainability:
It is stated that a sustainable effect was expected due to the reduction in car ownership. In
fact, the volume of bicycle traffic remained the same in 2003 after the project ended.

Transferability:
The project experiences could be transferred after the necessary adaptations to the
respective local situation. In fact, Odense already served as a basis for other similar
projects, e.g. the Sustrans Safe Routes to School project.

Assessment of the collaboration from the view of the transport sector:
The project has given a new angle to promote cycling with a very broad and numerous list of
initiatives. A whole cycling identity has been build up and the public awareness on cycling is
stronger than ever.

Assessment of the collaboration from the view of the health sector:
It has been proven that cycling can have significant value for people’s health because
cycling gives daily exercise.

Additional information/ specific comments (No information provided)
Contact
Name Troels Andersen, Project Manager
Address City of Odense, Norregade 36-38, DK-5000 Odense C,
Denmark
Tel +45 65 51 27 51
E-mail ta@odense.dk
URL http://www.cykelby.dk/english.asp
Documentation http://www.cykelby.dk/pdf/cykel_inet.pdf