Chapter 1 of 9
About 11 minutes left
The cycle track is not optional
Where to ride, and where not to.
Copenhagen's cycle tracks are separate from the road, usually raised a step above it and a step below the pavement. Where one exists, that is where you ride - not on the road beside it, and never on the pavement. This is not a preference or a local custom: using the cycle track is required by law wherever one has been built, and riding on the road instead is an offence even if the road looks emptier.
Tracks run one way only, in the same direction as the motor traffic next to them. There is no shared central lane and no contraflow unless a sign specifically says so. If you need to go the other way, you cross the road at a junction or a crossing and use the track on the other side. Riding the wrong way down a track is one of the most dangerous things a visitor can do here, because everyone else is travelling at speed and is not looking for someone coming at them.
The pavement belongs to people on foot. If you need to be on it - to reach a doorway, to get around roadworks, to cross at a pedestrian crossing - get off and push. A bicycle being wheeled is legally a pedestrian; a bicycle being ridden is a vehicle. That single distinction resolves most of the situations visitors find confusing.
All of this feels strict for about ten minutes, and then it starts feeling obvious. It is why the whole system moves as fast and as calmly as it does: everyone is where everyone else expects them to be.
The rules in detail
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Use the cycle track where there is one
Mandatory wherever a track has been built alongside the road. Riding on the carriageway instead is an offence, and so is riding on the pavement.
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Tracks are one-way
They follow the direction of the motor traffic beside them. To travel the other way, cross over and use the track on the opposite side.
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One-way streets need a sign
Many Copenhagen one-way streets do allow cycling against the flow, but only where a sign shows cycles are exempt. Without the sign, it is an offence.
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Two abreast is allowed - until it isn't
Riding side by side is permitted when it does not obstruct or endanger anyone. On a busy track at rush hour it does both, so ride single file.
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Dismount at pedestrian crossings
A pedestrian crossing is for people on foot. Get off, walk the bike across, get back on. Riding across is an offence and gives you no priority.
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Where the track ends
Where a cycle track stops, you continue on the road, keeping right. Do not move onto the pavement to avoid traffic.
What it costs if you get it wrong
| Cycling on the pavement | 700 DKK |
|---|---|
| Riding against the direction of traffic | 700 DKK |
| Riding in a way that obstructs other traffic | 700 DKK |
Indicative amounts as of August 2026. Fines are adjusted periodically and the figure on the day is what counts.
Where this comes from
- Færdselsloven (the Danish Road Traffic Act), chapters on cyclists
- Rådet for Sikker Trafik - cycling guidance
- Cyklistforbundet - the Danish Cyclists' Federation
This chapter is complete in itself. For routes, rentals and repairs, see bikesafecph.com ↗