Münster is very well known as a bicycle city. The wire bike, also known as "Leeze" in the urban vernacular, plays a special role here. There are more than twice as many bicycles here as residents. And of the approximately 1.3 million daily trips in the city, about 40 percent are made by bicycle. That's a rate three times higher than in comparable large cities and the highest mode share for large cities in all of Germany.

Why is cycling so popular in Münster? For one thing, there are hardly any inclines in the city area, so riding is easier here. In addition, distances in the city are usually short, so destinations can be reached quickly (e.g., via the Promenade (picture above)). In addition, there are a large number of schoolchildren and students, for whom bicycles are the most convenient means of transportation. And parts of the city center are closed to private cars, while cyclists are allowed to ride on all streets there.

Accordingly, cycling has been and continues to be promoted in Münster. The cycling network is 480 km long and runs along main roads as well as off-street. At major intersections, cyclists have their own turning lanes and so-called "bike locks." These are extra stops at traffic lights at a dedicated stop line in front of cars or in a dedicated bike lane next to or between cars. And everyone can safely park their own bicycle in the "Radstation Münster" bicycle parking garage at the main train station, the largest bicycle garage in Germany (picture below). There is also a bike wash facility there to get your own leeze clean.

Because of these points, Münster has been named Germany's most bicycle-friendly major city several times. And city planners from all over the world regularly come to the city to get ideas and make their own cities more bike-friendly. People have already come from Italy, Norway and the USA, for example.

Münster is also located along many bike paths, some of which run through other European countries. For example, the "Europaradweg R1", which runs from Calais in France via Berlin to St. Petersburg in Russia. The "Pilgeroute D7" is the German section of the EuroVelo pilgrimage route and goes from Flensburg in Schleswig-Holstein via Hamburg and Lower Saxony to Aachen in North Rhine-Westphalia. Münster and its neighboring city Osnabrück in Lower Saxony are connected by the "Friedensroute". The "Dortmund-Ems-Kanal-Route" runs along the Ems River and the canal from the Ruhr region through Münster to the North Sea coast. And some stops on the "100-Schlösser-Route", known throughout Germany, can also be found in the city and its environs.
 

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Further information:

(articles only available in German)

• Wikipedia article Radstation Münster

• Wikipedia article Europaradweg R1

• Wikipedia article Pilgerroute D7

• Wikipedia article Friedensroute

• Wikipedia article Dortmund-Ems-Kanal-Route

• Wikipedia article 100-Schlösser-Route