IN BRIEF
The ADFC launched on 1st September its Fahrradklima-Test 2026, its survey on how cycle-friendly German cities are, open until 30 November. The federation’s press release announces a twelfth edition and states that, for the first time, children and teenagers have their own questionnaire, alongside the one for adults and the one for local authorities. According to the ADFC, the previous edition drew around 213,000 participants. According to the ADFC, the results and the national city ranking are expected in spring 2027.
| Survey | ADFC-Fahrradklima-Test 2026, the 12e edition |
| Period | 1st September to 30 November 2026 |
| Who can take part | Anyone aged ten and over, plus local authority representatives |
| Format | 27 questions, around ten minutes |
| Strands | Three: adults, children and teenagers, local authorities |
| Participants (previous edition) | Around 213,000 |
| Funding | Federal Ministry of Transport (BMV), via the national cycling plan (NRVP) |
| Results | Spring 2027, with the national city ranking |
The exercise has a name, the Fahrradklima-Test, and an organiser, the ADFC, the German cyclists’ association: it asks cyclists to rate riding conditions in their city or their municipality. The federation’s press release sets the window — “Vom 1. September bis zum 30. November 2026” — and states that this is the twelfth edition. What is new, according to that same press release, is the space given to the youngest riders.
The Fahrradklima-Test opens a questionnaire to children
What is new fits into one line of the press release: “Erstmals stehen Kinder und Jugendliche mit einer eigenen Umfrage im Fokus” — for the first time, children and teenagers have their own survey. The press release sets out what that questionnaire covers: their cycling travel habits and what they need in order to ride properly and safely. It also describes the overall structure — “Insgesamt besteht der ADFC-Fahrradklima-Test aus drei Befragungen: für Erwachsene, für Kinder und Jugendliche sowie für Kommunen” — that is, three surveys: adults, children and teenagers, local authorities. The federation also states that the main questionnaire includes five additional questions this year on the mobility of children and teenagers.
The ADFC’s federal president, Frank Masurat, explains this split: “Kinder und Jugendliche erleben den Straßenverkehr anders als Erwachsene. Deshalb wollen wir erstmals ihre Erfahrungen direkt erfassen und ihnen eine Stimme geben” — children and teenagers experience road traffic differently from adults, so the aim is to gather their experience directly and give them a voice. In his view, the results should show local authorities where improvements are needed for young people’s safe and independent mobility. On the page it devotes to this strand, the ADFC itself states that it is aimed at children and teenagers aged 10 to 20.
27 questions, ten minutes, and a city ranking at the end
The online questionnaire has 27 questions and takes about ten minutes, the ADFC states. It asks, among other things, about the condition and width of cycle paths, about how safe people feel and about how they use their bike. To the question “Wer kann teilnehmen ?”, the survey’s official page answers: “Alle Menschen ab zehn Jahren sowie Kommunalvertreter:innen” — anyone aged ten and over, as well as local authority representatives.
The ADFC itself presents its survey as “Deutschlands größte Befragung zur Fahrradfreundlichkeit”, Germany’s largest survey on cycle-friendliness, and writes that the previous one brought together “circa 213.000 Menschen” across the country. Again according to the press release, the survey is funded by the Federal Ministry of Transport (BMV), from the funds earmarked for implementing the national cycling plan (Nationaler Radverkehrsplan).
As for what comes next, the ADFC writes that “Das bundesweite Ranking der fahrradfreundlichsten Städte und weitere Ergebnisse der Befragung werden im Frühjahr 2027 vorgestellt”: the results and the national ranking of cities are therefore expected in spring 2027. What the young questionnaire readers say about their daily journeys will not be known before that date.
