'A Mockery of the Non-Binary': Stockholm's Gender-Equal Bike Lanes Ridiculed on Twitter

In recent decades, Sweden has been a staunch supporter of gender equality, to the extent that the country's government declared itself feminist. On a more local level, Stockholm City's drive for gender equality has previously hit the headlines with such exciting innovations as “feminist snow removal”.

In a bid to become more gender-equal, Stockholm City has taken the very important step of introducing pictograms of women's bicycles to indicate cycle lanes.

Until now, cycle lanes have been marked with pictograms of men's bicycles - causing hurt and confusion to feminists who feel they are not welcome along these paths. But now, after employing its best minds for several months, Stockholm City council has unveiled the new symbol which has so far been introduced in 11 different lanes across the city.

“Despite the fact that there are more women than men who cycle, the bicycle symbols have so far shown men's bicycles. Now Stockholm finally has equal cycle paths,” the city's traffic councillor Daniel Helldén of the Green Party told the news outlet Mitt i.

In the future, men's and women's bicycle symbols will alternate on the city's bicycle lanes, symbolising its quest for equality.

However, this staggering achievement was not met on social media with quite the reverence its instigators imagined.

“Finally! I have been worried about this all my life. Now I can breathe. So nice that someone handles these incredibly important issues!” one user wrote sarcastically.

Screengrabs of tweets about gender-neutral bicycle lanes in Stockholm

© Photo / screengrab from Twitter

“It is called a bicycle with a low step-through frame. Attributing gender to a particular form of bicycle construction is lousy. We are actually living in 2022. Daniel Helldén should apologise,” Moderate MP Hanif Bali tweeted.

Screengrabs of tweets about gender-neutral bicycle lanes in Stockholm

© Photo / screengrab from Twitter

“This is quite a scandal. Binary bike lanes? Are there only two genders?” another user scoffed.

Screengrabs of tweets about gender-neutral bicycle lanes in Stockholm

© Photo / screengrab from Twitter

“This is a mockery of the non-binary. Where should they cycle?” yet another one wrote.

“Good and important! The agency that developed the design is worth every penny. Now that this has finally been fixed, you can go on and tackle the next problem, which is the present pedestrian crossings symbols. Unfortunately, there are only white figures there, which feels very uncomfortable”, another one chimed in.

Screengrabs of tweets about gender-neutral bicycle lanes in Stockholm

© Photo / screengrab from Twitter

“We have:
– Fatal shootings

– No-go zones

– Humiliation robberies

– Islamism

– 300,000+ poor pensioners

– Honour-based oppression

– 9 out of 10 foreign criminals avoiding deportation

– Rape

– Hospital queues

Screengrabs of tweets about gender-neutral bicycle lanes in Stockholm

© Photo / screengrab from Twitter

But the Greens choose to waste taxpayers' money on gender-equal cycle paths. Talk about having priorities wrong!” another one tweeted.

Sweden has long been a strong promoter of gender equality, to the extent that the government declared itself feminist.

The city of Stockholm previously unleashed memes of “feminist snow shovelling”, a pattern of removing snow based on the idea that men and women move differently in traffic, with women walking, cycling and taking public transport more often and men choosing to drive.