Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands

303 East Wacker Drive, Suite 2600, Chicago, IL 60601 USA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September, 2010
Contacts:

Peter Verheyen
Deputy Consul General
Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Chicago
312.856.0110 ex 512 / chi-ea@minbuza.nl
Ethan Spotts
Director of Marketing
Active Transportation Alliance, Chicago
312.427.3325 ex 287 / ethan@activetrans.org

ThinkBike Workshops a Dutch Boost to Chicagos bike-ability

Dutch Consulate General and Active Transportation Alliance Host First Bilateral
Bike Workshop to Make Chicago More Bike-Friendly, September 23-24, 2010
The Consulate General of the Netherlands, in close cooperation with the Active
Transportation Alliance; the State of Illinois; the City of Chicago; the Chicago
Metropolitan Agency for Planning; the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus and others will
host the 2-day event, ThinkBike Workshops: A Dutch Boost to Chicagos Bike-ability
on September 23 and 24, 2010.
The ThinkBike Workshops will bring together Dutch bicycle transportation experts,
Chicago area politicians, planners, advocates, engineers and business people to plan
and discuss how Chicago can become more bike-friendly. Two teams, consisting of
Chicago and Dutch specialists, will survey Chicago by bike and discuss how streets,
intersections and whole neighborhoods can be improved for optimal bike use. Other
topics of discussion at the workshops will include bike safety, commuting by bike,
biking to school, bike parking, bikes and public transport, law enforcement, etc.
Bicycle advocates, and other interested Chicagoans are invited to attend the opening
session of these workshops, that will take place on Thursday, September 23 from 8:30
AM till 10:00 AM in the James R. Thompson Center auditorium, 100 W. Randolph
Street. The session will be emceed by Geoffrey Baer, WTTW Channel 11s famous
local travel documentary host, who will debut a new bicycling-focused show, Biking

the Boulevards, later this fall. The session will also feature a keynote speech from
Eric Gilliland, executive director of the National Association of City Transportation
Officials, who will address the state of bicycling in Chicago and where it can grow.
The event is free and open to the public. Registration, at no charge, will be available at
www.activetrans.org.
The closing session is by invitation only for local politicians and other decisionmakers
who will be invited to hear the Dutch and American teams present their findings on
Friday, September 24 from 4:30 PM till 7:00 PM in the ING Caf, 22 E. Chestnut
Street.
Members of the media are invited to cover the opening and closing sessions of the
Workshops and join the Dutch and US experts as they ride bikes through
Chicago. Media should notify: Peter Verheyen at chi-ea@minbuza.nl.
"We are delighted to work with the Consulate General of the Netherlands as Chicago
continues to be more bicycle-friendly," said Ron Burke, executive director of the
Active Transportation Alliance. "Dutch politicians, community leaders and residents
have long been models of people who are committed to livable and bikeable
communities. We are excited to learn much more from them."
The Netherlands is a country committed to sustainability, where nearly 30 percent of
trips up to 5 miles in distance are made by bike. A strong bike policy is integral to
Dutch sustainability measures. There are 1.1 bicycles per person in the Netherlands,
resulting in less traffic, less pollution and a healthier population, said Willem Schiff,
Consul General. The bicycle is the most popular form of transportation for the 16
million people who live in the Netherlands, added Schiff.
Through a multi-city initiative, Dutch experts and companies are increasing bicycle
use in the United States. Chicago is the first U.S. city to host such an event; visits to
other American cities are planned for this fall as well as 2011. The consulate is pleased
to be part of this event that highlights the long-standing friendship and further
strengthens the great relationship between Chicago, the U.S. and the Netherlands.