Cycling and recycling: how the Netherlands puts old bikes to good use

Young Couple Cycling in Amsterdam, Holland

Young couple on bicycles in streets of Amsterdam, Holland. (Photo by Tim Graham/Getty Images) Credit: Tim Graham

In the Netherlands, the bicycle is being used for more than just exercise – as a device to reduce the harmful impact that poverty and isolation can have on people’s health by using bikes to promote integration.


Almost 30,000 asylum seekers who have arrived in the country are waiting for their claims to be assessed and many others are affected by the cost of living crisis too.

A new project is being used to ease some of the stress by collecting old bicycles and giving them out to people who can’t afford to buy one.

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