Bikes, Kids and the Dutch

There is no getting away from cycling if you live in the Netherlands and kids and bikes go together here like pindakaas and brood. But what’s the best way to get about on two wheels with kids?

Cycling with Children in a Bakfiets

Research states that it’s safer to ferry your children around in a bakfiets (a carrier fixed to the front of the bike) than a child seat fixed to either the front or back of your bike.

The reason for this is simple – if you are involved in an accident with a car whilst on your bike more often than not heads tend to meet the windscreen. In a bakfiets this won’t happen.

The other reason cited for a bakfiets being safer than a child seat is because drivers notice a bakfiets more than child seats.

Bike Trailers to Transport Children

When I was pregnant with our third child I considered a fietskar (a child carrier in the form of a trailer that fits to the back of a bike) to make getting about easier.

I considered that it would be safer than two children in seats on the front and back of my bike – particularly given my amateurish, shaky cycling skills. The downside of bike trailers or bakfiets is that they are not cheap!

Costs

For a bakfiets you can expect to part with more than a thousand of your hard earned euro – but as a replacement for a car that’s a bargain of course.

A bike child seat will set you back anything from 50 to 100 euro depending on the model. The price for a trailer for your bike starts around 170 euro (but remember you need to buy accessories to attach your children safely in the trailer….) and can rise easily to near 1000 euro…….

Over to You: Do you cycle around with your children on your bike? Do you use child seats, a trailer of a bakfiets? Which form do you feel is safer? Did you transport your kids by bike before you moved to the Netherlands? I would love to hear your experiences!