Cycling in Berlin: Better Than You’ve Been Told

Berlin gets compared unfavourably to Amsterdam and Copenhagen on cycling. The comparison is not quite fair. Amsterdam and Copenhagen had decades of cycling infrastructure investment before Berlin rebuilt itself from scratch after 1989. Given that context, the cycling infrastructure in Berlin is considerably better than people expect.

The infrastructure

The inner city districts — Mitte, Prenzlauer Berg, Friedrichshain, Kreuzberg, Neukölln, Schöneberg — have well-marked cycle lanes on most main roads. The quality is uneven. Some streets have proper segregated lanes with their own traffic lights. Others have painted lanes that are routinely blocked by delivery vehicles. The situation is improving year by year, which is something.

The best routes: the path along the Landwehr Canal from Kreuzberg west to Charlottenburg is one of my favourite rides in the city — flat, tree-lined, almost entirely separated from traffic. The Spree riverbank routes in Friedrichshain and Treptow are good. The routes through the Tiergarten park are excellent and relaxing in a way that riding through city traffic rarely is.

Rules and culture

German cycling culture is more regulated and more law-abiding than Dutch or Danish cycling. You must ride on the cycle lane if one exists — it is not optional. Red lights apply to cyclists. The fines for running red lights are real. Helmets are not required by law but are common.

Berliners are patient with confused tourists on bikes up to a point. That point is when you are blocking a cycle lane, going the wrong way, or stopping to look at your phone in the middle of the path. Don’t do these things.

Where to get a bike

Kleinanzeigen (formerly eBay Kleinanzeigen) is the best source for secondhand bikes. Budget €80–150 for something that works reliably. The rental options — Nextbike, TIER — are fine for short-term use. For stays of a month or more, a cheap secondhand bike beats monthly rental costs by week three.