News

Interesting invention of the Netherlands: the beer bike!

Published

3 months ago

19/05/2022

Interesting invention of the Netherlands: the beer bike!

“Beer bike, pedal bar, bar bike” and more. All these names are used for the special type of bicycle invented in 1997 by the Dutch company Het Fietscafe BV.

The first idea for a beer bike came from the owner of a local bar in the Netherlands’ Stroe district. In a playful way to promote his bar at the Queen’s Day parade, the man invents the beer bike. In 2000, the bikes were developed by Het Fietscafe and took their current form.

In beer bikes, more than one passenger turns the pedals to make the bike move, while the driver is in control of the bike’s direction and brake. Meanwhile, passengers both drink the beers handed out by the bartender and have the opportunity to tour the city!

Similar types of bicycles are also used for many different purposes; eg hen parties and tourist trips. In these organizations, products such as snacks, soft drinks or coffee are offered instead of beer, but when alcohol is involved, the bicycle cannot drive without a driver.

The modern beer bike usually consists of 8 passengers and a driver. These vehicles are often designed to look like streetcars of the early 20th century, with seats next to each other for pedalers.

Beer bikes have also been involved in accidents and incidents in various places. In 2017, the Municipality of Amsterdam banned beer bikes on the grounds that they affect noise and traffic.

According to Het Fietscafe’s figures, there are currently 20 beer bikes for rent in the Netherlands, 30 in Germany and 100 in the USA! Bicycles are used fondly not only in these countries, but also in many parts of the world, including Denmark, Spain, Japan, Hungary, and Israel.

For those who want to rent a beer bike from Het Fietscafe, the prices are as follows:

12 persons (min. 2 persons), 65 per hour, 225 euro per day.

17 persons (min. 2 persons), 75 per hour, 275 euro per day.

Amsterdam special package for 15 people, 6 daily departures of 75 minutes, 375 euros.

News

Used car prices in the Netherlands fell for the first time this year

Published

4 hours ago

15/08/2022

Berry Fox

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Used car prices in the Netherlands fell for the first time this year. Data were obtained from the vehicle sales platform AutoScout24. According to the platform, the reason for the decrease is the summer holiday.

How much are used car prices in the Netherlands?

AutoScout24 stated that during the summer holidays, people’s interests are generally towards vacationing, so the decrease in prices may be due to this.

An average used car was sold for 23,531 euros in July. This rate is 1.2 percent less than the previous month. At the beginning of this year, the average price of second-hand was 22,158 euros. There has been no decline in used car prices since the spring of 2021.

On the other hand, the increase in second-hand items in other European countries continues. Prices continued to rise in France, Austria and Belgium last month, while Germany saw a small decline of 0.2 percent.

Germany is still at the top of Europe in this field, with an average used car price of 27,361 euros.

Image source: ipravda.sk

News

Declining interest in Randstad region in the Netherlands

Published

4 hours ago

15/08/2022

Berry Fox

Declining interest in Randstad region in the Netherlands

The proportion of people leaving the Randstad area in the Netherlands has increased over the past year. According to the National Statistics Agency (CBS), 75,000 people left the region last year. The number of people who moved to the region was 55 thousand.

CBS data indicated that those over the age of 30 are increasingly leaving the west of the country.

Statistics also show that the number of people leaving the Randstad area has increased since 2014. While 48 thousand people left the region in 2014, this number increased to 70 thousand in 2020.

On the other hand, the proportion of those who moved to Randstad remained roughly the same, reaching 55 thousand last year. Looking at all the data, the number of Dutch people giving up city life has been increasing since 2017.

However, the increase in the number of people leaving Randstad does not mean that the region is empty.

News

Netherlands uses Europe’s most expensive natural gas

Published

4 hours ago

15/08/2022

Berry Fox

The Netherlands became the country that used the most expensive natural gas among the European Union countries with its natural gas prices in July.

Nieuwsuur, which collects data from the comparison site Energievergelijk.nl, last month the natural gas bill of a house in the Netherlands cost 283 Euros. This rate is double that of many EU countries. Neighboring countries of the Netherlands are Germany and Belgium, a few of these countries.

In June, the peak of gas prices was in Sweden, while the Netherlands took the second place. In July, the leadership changed hands. Last month gas bills in Sweden averaged 237.

Electricity bills in the Netherlands are also quite high compared to other countries. The Dutch paid an average of 419 euros for electricity in July. There are only two European countries that face more electricity bills than the Netherlands: Italy and Denmark.

According to the estimates of Energievergelijk.nl, citizens who will renew their energy contracts this year will pay an average of 3,700 euros more per year.

Nibud, who is a budget consultant, stated that many households will have difficulty paying the bills in the future. Nearly 30 percent of them highlighted the difficulty ban on this issue last month.