Amsterdam, one of Europe’s biggest cycling cities, plans to ban large electric fatbikes from its flagship park after a rise in high-speed accidents and injuries attributed to reckless cyclists.
The ban on bicycles (which authorities say can travel at speeds of up to 60 kilometers per hour through Amsterdam’s narrow streets and paths) pleased safety activists but angered some cyclists who said it clashed with the city’s laissez-faire image.
The city council has not set a date for the ban to take effect.
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Councilor Melanie van der Horst, who first proposed the measure, said she had received a large number of complaints from pedestrians in the Vondelpark.
Older people have said they are worried about being hit and some women have reported being slapped by passing motorcyclists.
“We see a lot of fat bikes going over 50 or 60 kilometers per hour. Well, they’re only supposed to go 25, so it’s very dangerous,” Van der Horst said.
Fat bikes, which differ from conventional e-bikes with their fat tires, large batteries and heavy frames, are especially popular among young riders and delivery drivers.
Sjoerd Jonkers, owner of Fatbike, said the outright ban was an overreaction and that authorities should focus on banning illegal imported models and bikes that had been modified to go too fast.
“I love driving it, my girlfriend is in the back, my son in the front, all three of us on a bike. So I got rid of the car,” Alex Manuputty told Reuters.
Riding a flashy orange fatbike made by Stoer in the park, Manuputty said there was always resistance to new things.
“There have to be rules so that all cultures, all people, can really get along,” Manuputty said.
More than half of the 800,000 inhabitants of Amsterdam, a city famous for its bike paths, use some type of bicycle every day. Batteries are outperforming pedals. Of all bicycles sold in the Netherlands in 2024, 48% were electric and 13% were fatbikes, according to vehicle association RAI.
In October, Dutch hospitals found that people injured on fatbikes were 70% more likely to need additional medical treatment than people injured on conventional bikes.
According to the results, approximately half of fatbike accidents involved children between 12 and 15 years old. Dr. Barbara Swarthout-ten Kate, a family doctor in Amsterdam, said her practice has seen an increase in concussions and arm fractures.
He added that helmet use should be mandatory and that those under 16 should be prohibited from riding fat bikes.
“The helmet will make us safer, but also less cold,” he said.
With information from Reuters
