Category Archives: Copenhagen

Copenhagenize index

The Copenhagenize index is a well-known index for every person who wants to know about urban biking. It punctuates cities from more than forty countries based on several points. It gives hints and demonstrates how to do good things to promote urban biking development. It shows that not only bicycle infrastructure is important, but also advancing towards cities for people. The Copenhagenize index is not a competition, rather a showcase of actions to enter this club and a road map about successful actions for specialists.

The Copenhagenize index has three pillars: a secure and connected bike infrastructure, specific politics to increase urban biking, and budget and support. Regarding the last point, Utrech (the number one in the 2025 edition) invested 66€ per year and citizen in urban biking. Additional issues such as 89 bike parking every one thousands inhabitants or almost one third of total displacements were done by bicycle made Utrech to appear on the Copenhagenize index. These and many more ideas can be extracted from it.

The Nørreport Station

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The Nørreport Station, Copenhagen (Denmark) is a clear example of how to transform a chaotic area full of cars into an awarded place for people and bicycles which offers services for about 350,000 people per day today. This train station was built in 1916 and connected the medieval downtown with the neighbor of Nørrebro. It was a comfortable square until cars appeared.

In 2009, the council ordered a study to two different architecture companies. Conclusions were the same: too much car traffic and an extremely difficult place for pedestrians. Thus, an urgent remodeling was needed. Paths on snow made by people walking and cycling gave clues about how to deal with it. Specifically, station entrances, covered spaces and bike parking locations were inspired by cold. These facts determined the most favorable, natural fluxes for people.

In 2015, the remodeling was completed thanks to the impressive 2,500 bikes parking. Interestingly, this massive bike parking is slightly lower than the rest of the train station so that one can have a look of the set and a better place hierarchy. In addition, tourists’ jaws drop with the amazing view. Moreover, buildings in the square are made with rounded shaped glass which increases clarity and a sense of safety.

As a result, the Nørreport Station won the Danish Lighting award, the European award on Urban Public Place and the Copenhagen Best Urban Context Place in 2016; the Landezine Landscape International award in 2017; the Civic Trust award in 2018.