"When the weather is really bad, I just work from home"

‘Thirteen years ago, I decided to walk to from my home in Oud-Geleen to my work in the town hall of Geleen. When I was transferred to the municipal office in Sittard, I decided to take the bicycle. We sold our second car, and I didn't even think about buying another one. I think that everyone who lives within a fifteen-minute cycling distance of their work should travel by bicycle.’

Some extra exercise every day

‘The distance to my job in Sittard is less than five kilometres, which is really easy to cover by bicycle. You save money and get fifteen minutes’ exercise twice a day. Thanks to our cycling scheme with the Municipality of Sittard-Geleen, purchasing a bicycle is also cheaper. If I need to use a car to get to a meeting, then I take one of the electric cars available at work.’

Adapting to the weather

‘If you cycle, you know that weather is going to a factor. That's something you can stress about, or you can adapt. It can be 30 degrees or -5 outside; all you need to do is dress accordingly. It's not that complicated! The combination of wind and rain is much worse than high or low temperatures. It doesn't matter so much if I arrive at work wet or with cold fingers. After all, I'll survive!’

Working at home for the day

‘Only when you cycle every day do you realize that it really doesn't rain that often. If the weather is too extreme, then I just work from home for the day. I also use the Buienradar weather app to decide whether I should leave a little earlier or later.’