Cycling is kind to the environment so it is an excellent way to take in the city. Here are 4bike-friendly cities having adopted this green mode of transport to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Montréal has already established protected bike paths since the 1980s. BIXI is the city’s bike-sharing system with 9, 600 bikes and almost 800 stations. Cyclists can make their visit to the Tour de L’lle Montreal, a yearly bike ride where cyclists take to the streets for a day without any other vehicles being allowed on the roads.

Cycling in Malmö is enjoyable due to the relaxed and easy-going manner of most cyclists. The calming atmosphere makes it a great experience, even for nervous riders. A highly recommended bike route is from Ribersborg park to Limhamn Harbour, where riders can take a few good photos of the famous Oresund Bridge.

In the 1970s, bicycles were the main mode of transportation for people in Beijing. However, dedicated (专用的) cycle paths for cyclists were limited. Only in May 2019, did the city launch its first specific cycle path. This achievement in cycling facility is worth a shout-out for a city with over 21 million people.

Bogota first introduced the concept of cycle path in 1974. The idea sees cars being banned from city roads every Sunday from 7 a.m.to 2 p.m., helping cyclists, runners and walkers exercise safely. Since then, the city has slowly but steadily expanded the program, including setting up dedicated cycle paths. As a result, Bogota now has 550km of bike paths and is the most bike-friendly city in Latin America.

【推荐3】The London Underground is the oldest underground train network in the world. Opened in 1863, there are a total of eleven lines, 270 stations and over 400 km of track.     1     It carries about 3 million passengers every day. The deepest stations are over 60 metres below the surface, however, 55% of the tracks run above it.

In the 1830s London’s authorities had the idea of linking the centre of London with the large train stations which were located farther away.     2     Wooden carriages were powered by steam engine. The system of tracks gradually expanded. By the end of the 19th century most lines used electricity to power the trains.

The London Underground normally operates daily between 5 a. m. and midnight. Some lines stay open throughout the night on special occasions, like New Year’s Eve. London Underground stations can get very crowded during the weekday rush hours.     3    

The well-known symbol of the London Underground, a red circle with a blue bar, was developed at the beginning of the 20th century and has not changed much since then.     4     Many original stations have been restored and look similar to the way they did over a century ago.

    5     Because the water level of the Thames is constantly on the rise, thousands of cubic metres of water must be pumped out of some of the underground stations every day.

Although so many people use the underground every day, the safety record of the system is very good.

【推荐2】In recent years, a number of China’s technological innovations have been making their moves in the world. Among them, four stand out with a reputation of China’s “four great new inventions” in modern times, which have made the daily life of the public more and more convenient.

1. SHARED BICYCLES

Shared bicycles, concentrating on dealing with ‘the last mile’ in people’s trips, have boomed over the last two years. Mobike and Ofo became the mainstream after the fierce market competition. According to a survey launched by Questmobile, the monthly frequency of use of the mobile amounted to 1.1 billion in September this year.

2. HIGH-SPEED RAIL

Boasting low cost and quick delivery, China has built the world’s longest high-speed rail (HSR) network. It had operated 2,595 high-speed trains by 2016, which took up 60 percent of the world’s total high-speed trains.

3. ALIPAY

Alipay, or Zhifubao, has become China’s leading mobile and online payment service, established in 2004 by China’s e-commerce giant Alibaba Group. Alipay can also be used for transferring money from one Alipay online account to another account, or from the online account to a bank account by binding a debit card to the online account.

4. E-COMMERCE

With around 731 million Internet users, China has been the world’s largest and fastest-growing e-commerce market. According to the statistics from Chinese Statistical Bureau, in 2016, China’s online retail sales reached 5155.6 billion yuan, with year on year growth up to 26.2%. Online shopping has become a vital part of life. The function of supermarket is even brought online and fresh products become available in first-tier cities now.