Here are my top insights after experiencing the bike infrastructure here for almost a month:
Traffic Calming and Infrastructure that Drives Behavior
The traffic calming here is very interesting to witness. As a foreigner who doesn't speak the language or understand every sign, it is something that makes to roads accessible for all users. There are continuous sidewalks, extended curbs at intersections, narrower roads, and speed bumps (even for snorfietsen and bromfietsen!) that force everyone to follow the rules. This seems like a no-brainer when you experience it, but it has opened my mind to designing streets in order for people to behave how you want them to, instead of using signs. Doing so can also open up more public space and green space to be used by the surrounding community. This would work in the US, even if we are different from these countries, because it would allow for our neighborhood streets to be calmer and quieter, which is what people want for their kids, as can already be seen with the "children play here" signs in use. Traffic calming infrastructure would work better than those signs because it's not something people can ignore.
Designing Cities for Kids
In each of the cities we've been to, you can see young children alone walking/biking around and being independent. It is clear that the cities were designed so that they would feel safe enough to explore them and get around, and so their parents wouldn't worry either. There are always recreational activities for them to do and creative playgrounds that show the kids they are welcome here. It's important for us to remember to design cities so that the most vulnerable population (kids) will be safe. If we do this, everyone feels safer on the city streets. This would work in the US because people want their kids to feel safe, and ultimately kids want to be independent and will go out alone whether their parents like it or not, so creating space for kids in cities is important for the kids themselves as well for the less vulnerable people with added safety measures.
Street Redesign
Another thing that has surprised me is how many of the streets here that have nice traffic calming and bike infrastructure once looked exactly like our streets in US cities: super wide with no bike infrastructure and maybe a broken sidewalk. The people who make the argument that America could never be this country must not understand that the infrastructure here was very similar before street redesign processes took place, and that we can change our streets back home to be safer for everyone as well. None of these countries got it right on the first try, and neither did we, but that doesn't mean we can't change.
The Little Things
The small infrastructure amenities that make bike commuting easier in each of these countries are super important to the amount of people that cycle here. It's about making the bike the easiest option to get somewhere, or at least easier than the car, and having things like foot rests, trash cans, and stair ramps help people to make the "lazy" choice of getting on their bike to go to work or the grocery store. This would work in the US because people there are lazy too, and would enjoy a foot rest at a stop, or a trash can so they don't have to hold their trash until they reach one or litter. It also helps to make cyclists feel more welcome and more safe, as if they have a place there, which helps us to design our streets for people instead of cars.
Hardware and Software
Building up the hardware (infrastructure) is just as important as building the software, or the culture of respecting people on bikes and ensuring that they have a safe trip wherever they're going. Approaching it from both sides is how the Dutch have their successful fietsstraaten and rural infrastructure, and a lot of it is because the people in cars cycle places too, so they understand what it's like to be on a bike with a car behind you. Building a culture around bikes can happen with the help of infrastructure, education, and tradition. The software aspect is one of the things I hear most about why US cities "could never be cycling cities;" however, we can develop that culture with education beginning in young children. If those who drive also cycle and know how to be aware and respectful, the streets would be safer for everyone, and who doesn't want safe streets?