Path and Alignment Guidelines for Denmark's Super Cycle Highways
Denmark’s Super Cycle Highways initiative has released detailed design principles for paths and routes, emphasizing separation from motorized traffic and pedestrians, overtaking capabilities, and scalable widths to accommodate growing cyclist volumes. These guidelines ensure high-quality, cohesive infrastructure across the capital region municipalities, with minimum path widths starting at 2.5 meters for low-traffic double-directional paths and expanding to 4 meters or more for high-volume routes. By prioritizing safety and efficiency, the standards aim to boost cycling as a sustainable transport mode.
Background
Super Cycle Highways (Supercykelstier) are a flagship project in Denmark’s capital region, designed to create direct, high-capacity cycle routes connecting suburbs to urban centers. The latest guidelines on “path and alignment” (sti og tracé) outline core principles to meet five quality objectives: separation from cars as the default, full separation from pedestrian areas (discouraging shared paths), space for overtaking regardless of bike type, and path widths tailored to current and projected peak-hour cyclist volumes (sourced from tools like Mastra traffic counts).
Recommended minimum widths vary by expected one-way peak-hour traffic:
| Path Type / Expected Peak-Hour Cyclists (one direction) | 0-200 cyclists | 200-1,500 cyclists | Over 1,500 cyclists |
|---|---|---|---|
| Double-directional cycle path | 2.5-3.0 m | 3.0-4.0 m | Min. 4.0 m |
| Single-directional cycle paths | 2.25-2.5 m | 2.5-3.0 m | Min. 3.0-3.5 m |
Additional rules apply in urban areas (e.g., 2.5 m minimum for roadside double paths) and require 0.3 m extra width near fixed obstacles like barriers or trees. The guidelines also cover complementary infrastructure like bridges, lighting, and green elements, drawing from national standards such as the Danish Transport Ministry’s circulars.
Future Outlook
These standards position Super Cycle Highways as a model for global cycle infrastructure, potentially increasing cyclist numbers by accommodating future growth amid rising demand for sustainable commuting. With ongoing evaluations and expansions (including climate adaptation and connections to public transit hubs), the project could reduce car dependency in the capital region, inspiring similar initiatives worldwide. Municipal collaboration ensures continuity, with monitoring tools tracking usage and effectiveness post-implementation.