Italian bicycle sales 'surpass those of cars'

Most of you know that I am an avid cycling fan and a bicycle owner too, so this is good news for me:  Italians bought more bicycles than cars in 2011 for the first time in decades, according to local media reports.

Last year around 1.75 million bicycles were sold, about 2,000 more than the number of new cars registered.

The change is attributed to a slump in car sales during the economic crisis and the rising price of petrol, as well as bikes coming back into fashion.

Car sales in Italy have slumped to the level at which they stood in 1964!

I guess that's one of the few good sides to the economic crisis, it made some people turn to healthier means of transportation.

When are you going to get yourself a bicycle?

I am from Holland Johnny, everyone in our family has two bicycles....................lol

I can't ride a bike to save my life so the answer is never.  I can ride it in straight lines but not round bends.  I always manage to fall off on bends.  Even when I lived in Germany and we all went shopping together via bike, I kept falling off....as did my shopping. 

blue

Getting to town would be easy, all downhill.  Coming back, though, I'd have a hard enough time walking and I don't think biking would get me anywhere but rolling backwards down the hills. 

It's a nice and happy little thought though.  What I'd really like to try is one of those new motorcycles with two wheels in front and one in back.  Looks fun and with the two wheels in front I probably wouldn't fall over on the turns.

Bikes are definitely a cheaper means of transportation and I think it depends on where you live. Things tend to be a bit more relaxed in Europe which is something I admire. The constant hustle bustle in some cities for many lifestyles has no room for bike except for exercise and leisure time.

I have always loved to ride a bike, but living in a major city makes it rough to depend on it as daily transportation not to mention the traffic that would run you over in the process. The motorists get very angry when cyclists are on the streets obstructing traffic. Everyone is always in such a hurry.

Lips

I have finally moved to a part of the city where is possible and much safer to ride a bike, so I will definively buy one soon.  I like riding a bike but it wasn't really possible before.