A car-free planet? The notion may not be as far-fetched as it sounds. All over the world, governments and biking enthusiasts are looking for ways to make urban environments – which for more than a century have been designed to keep motorists happy – more friendly toward pedal-pushers. To wit: car-clogged Paris is working to implement a 150m-euro plan to make the French city the "world capital of cycling” by 2020. And with this surge in popularity comes a surge in choice: each year, cyclists see the arrival of dozens of new models, from bare-bones beach cruisers to composite-framed pedal-electric bikes that cost as much as a car. Herewith, we pick 10 of our favourites, including a titanium bike that folds to the size of one of its wheels, a Kickstarter-funded build-it-yourself bike made of bamboo, and a recumbent four-wheeled cargo hauler that’s supplanting diesel-powered delivery trucks in European cities.

(BBC)