ADFC Bicycle-Friendly City Survey 2026
The Allgemeiner Deutscher Fahrrad-Club (ADFC)’s new Bicycle Climate Survey will run from September 1 through November 30, 2026. As the largest survey of its kind in Germany, it offers cyclists and local governments the opportunity to evaluate the local cycling environment. The city of Aachen is therefore calling on residents to participate in the survey and share their experiences. The results will show how cyclists perceive local conditions and how the cycling climate has evolved compared to previous surveys.
This is now the twelfth ADFC Bicycle Climate Survey. The project is funded by the Federal Ministry of Transportation (BMV) using funds from the National Bicycle Traffic Plan (NRVP). The ADFC Bicycle Climate Survey is an online questionnaire consisting of 27 questions and takes about ten minutes to complete. Participation is coordinated through the following website: https://fkt.adfc.de/
ADFC National Office, © ADFC
Key Topics of the 2026 Survey
The 2026 Bicycle-Friendly City Survey focuses on the quality and safety of cycling infrastructure. Among other things, it asks whether bike lanes are wide enough and intersections are clearly laid out, and whether cycling in the area is more “stressful or fun.”
Their everyday experiences help highlight the strengths and weaknesses of local cycling. The results provide valuable insights for transportation planners and policymakers, showing where improvements are needed and where targeted measures to enhance cycling should be implemented.
Focus on Children and Teens
For the first time, the ADFC is conducting a separate survey for children and teens aged 10 to 20 as part of the ADFC Bicycle Climate Test. Children and teens often have different routes, experiences, and needs than adults—for example, when traveling to school, visiting friends, or during their free time. This perspective is particularly valuable for the further development of cycling: The survey not only shows how young people assess current conditions but can also provide insights into the barriers preventing greater bicycle use. The City of Aachen would therefore like to encourage young people in particular to share their perspectives—regardless of whether they already bike regularly, only occasionally, or hardly at all.
Results
The nationwide ranking of the most bicycle-friendly cities and other results of the survey will be presented in the spring of 2027.
About 213,000 people across Germany participated in the most recent survey. The results of the 2024 Bicycle Climate Survey—including an interactive results map—can be found here: https://fkt.adfc.de/ueber-den-fkt/vergangene-fahrradklima-test-durchgaenge/ergebnisse-2024.
Aachen was able to improve in 2024
A look at the results of the most recent Bicycle-Friendly City Survey reveals a positive trend: 821 people participated in Aachen in 2024. The overall rating improved to a score of 3.8—down from 4.0 in 2022 and 4.2 in 2020. Among cities with 200,000 to 500,000 residents, Aachen ranked 7th out of 25 nationwide and even 3rd out of 10 in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Among other things, participants rated “recent efforts to promote cycling” particularly positively. With a score of 2.4, the city of Aachen scored 1.3 points higher here than the national average for cities in the same size category.
Past surveys also show improvements in individual areas that were previously rated less favorably. For example, the width of bike lanes and traffic routing around construction sites were rated more favorably than in earlier surveys.
Aachen also received special recognition with the “Sharing the Road” special award. With this award, the ADFC recognized, among other things, measures to improve traffic safety, campaigns promoting mutual consideration, and citizen participation.
The 2026 Bicycle-Friendly City Survey is intended to show how Aachen’s bicycle-friendly environment has evolved since the last survey. The more people who participate, the more meaningful the results will be, and the easier it will be to identify positive developments as well as areas where further action is needed.
Participants and Organizational Details
The test is divided into three parts and is intended for:
- adult cyclists (FKT Adults),
- Children and adolescents using their own questionnaire (FKT Adolescents),
- Municipalities that would like to provide their own assessment of their bicycle-friendliness (FKT municipalities).
© ADFC
Join Now
In the FKT survey, cyclists are asked about how bicycle-friendly their community is. The results provide decision-makers in local governments with important insights into necessary changes and highlight where the situation has improved and where further action is still needed.
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ADFC National Office, © ADFC
FKT Youth
At the FKT Youth Forum, everyone between the ages of 10 and 20 has a say. What is their experience with cycling in their local communities? Is it fun, or is it stressful? What holds young people back, and what motivates them? And if they don’t ride at all, what would need to change for them to start?
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