When we put out our call for photography for this month’s Bicycle issue, we described the bicycle as a symbol of New Urbanism. It is a part of a self-reliant culture that insists on independence and functionality, one that embraces a city and its often inaccessible ends. The bicycle has been a means for us in New York City to save a precious near-$100 every month in an increasingly unreliant (yet, still, one of the world’s finest) Metro system. It allows us passage between neighborhoods unlinked by train or bus. It unifies places as we rush through, block by block, and witness the changing character of what is around us.

When we received our submissions it became clear though that New Urbanism is not the kingdom of independence. Rather, independence is the kingdom of the spirit, and our experiences in New York are a very small part of the love for the bicycle worldwide. We received photographs from all over the world, and we chose the ten best pieces, which include not just New York but also India, Mexico, The Netherlands, and Latvia. These photographs are not just linked by the iconic shape and image of the bicycle, but by the depth of emotion which we invest in the bicycle: a vehicle which not only allows us to explore our cities, but which becomes our companion and an extension of ourselves as we journey inward.

- Lemia Bodden & Jon Michael Anzalone

Original owners of the photographs presented in this article maintain all rights over their work.