The Dutch government steals any bike that hasn’t moved for 14days this is how Amsterdam is not drowning in bike parts, they remove 10-15 thousand per year from the canals.

and people always park their bikes properly there.

People always park their bikes properly.

Because it's their bike and they want it to be safe and secure. Tends to be a lot different with a rental, though. And not all of this is the people themselves, either -- the rental company will often place their bikes in the middle of a walkway when initially staging them.

All the etiquette in the world isn’t going to make bike parking areas appear.

Amsterdam has been bike friendly for decades, there aren’t any bike racks near any of the stores I regularly ride to. And when there are racks they tend to be behind the building or off to a side where long term parking would be a risk for theft.

I usually end up stashing my bike near the entrance and then hiding it behind grills or mowers outside at hardware stores. Or flower racks (or pumpkin piles this time of year) at the grocery store.

We need bike racks in visible convenient places. And more of them.