How many bicycles are there in the world?

A billion

Not too many people know that there are about a billion bicycles in the world, twice as many as motorcars.  Keep in mind that almost 400 million bicycles are in China.  Needless to say, every year some 50 million bicycles are produced.  It is interesting to know that the first five-seat bicycle, the quindem, was built in 1940.  Did you know that the Frenchman De Sivrac built the first bicycle-type vehicle in 1690?  The pedals were added in 1840 by a Scottish blacksmith, Kirkpatrick Macmillan, who is said to have invented the real bicycle.