Cork Views: Let’s start a bike bus scheme here in Cork city

As soon as kids return to school in September, the evidence on the roads is plain for all to see – grid-lock. In cities across Ireland, heavy traffic is a constant complaint, and Cork is no exception.

Amid consistently high levels of deaths and injuries on the roads, particularly among cyclists and pedestrians, is it time to think outside the box and look at what other cities are doing to keep kids active while keeping them safe?

In the past 15 years, deaths on Irish roads have averaged around 168 per year. Added to that, the number of serious injuries on the roads has tripled in the last decade, with 1,424 serious injuries from road traffic incidents in 2022, compared to a fraction of that (474) in 2012.

The most vulnerable include cyclists, scooter users and pedestrians, who account for a third of road deaths this year, while two-in-five of all serious injuries on our roads over the past decade involved active travel users.

Is it time for the citizens of Cork to decide they’ve had enough and come up with another plan for kids to get to school without endangering them, as they risk a walk or a cycle on our busy and congested roads?

Perhaps we could follow the example of Barcelona – a city that weighed up the options for getting kids back to school after the pandemic, and came up with the idea of a ‘bici bus’, or bike bus.

This is a community-organised group who ride together along a designated route, with scheduled stops, to get to school.

It ticks a lot of boxes – it cuts down carbon emissions and air pollution, takes cars off the road, reducing congestion, and gets kids more active - getting their brains ready for the school day while they get fresh air and exercise. But, more than all of that, it’s great fun.

A bike bus prioritises two things – fun but also safety. Safety is managed in different ways. In Barcelona, the children’s parents volunteer their time, and in some cases, they have even received a police escort.

As far as I can tell, the first formal bike bus came from Brecht, Belgium in 1998, although it is possible other initiatives predated that. The municipality of Bagotá launched the first large scale network in 2014 with more than 140 bike bus routes - it’s still functioning.

The recent surge of bike buses started in Catalonia in 2021 and inspired other initiatives such as the Shawlands Bike Bus in Glasgow, the Alameda Bike Bus in Portland, U.S, and BiciBus in Frankfurt, Germany, which in turn inspired more bike buses.

With over 470 bike buses across the world, transporting approximately 32,000 children to school per week in the last four years, the movement has gained momentum globally at a time when climate change and active travel are becoming mainstream.

The Netherlands has taken the idea quite literally and produced a singular vehicle powered by cycling children. It looks like an open bus but is powered by pedalling. It is great fun to be part of and makes the school run an exciting start to their day.

In fact, Cork had its first official ‘Cycle Bus’ in 2021, as a one-off event for National Bike Week, not a regular service. This occurred at Beaumont Boys and Girls Schools and proved a huge success with a record number of bikes at both schools. The Cycle Bus departed from two locations and schoolchildren, parents, teachers, principals and volunteers come together for the morning commute. A similar scheme was run by at Scoil an Spioraid Naoimh, Bishopstown, in May.

The bike bus scheme is often a response to inadequate cycling infrastructure in cities, along with what is often perceived as an unfair allocation of road space to motor vehicles.

Most bike buses are between 1-2km long, although the global average is higher (3km) as longer routes pull up the average. Getting the distance right is seen as critical as rides that are too long are too challenging for children and distances too short are easier to walk.

The majority (80%) run about once a week or more. Most bike buses (60%) pedal together once a week and 10% run every day.

The key factor is that cycling in a group is not only more safe but also great fun. The majority of Bike Bus organisers say riding in a group is a key factor that makes participants feel safer. But parents and children also come for the fun which is a key motivator for joining the bike bus.

Often, they have music with them and the ride turns into a happy parade. Inside the pack, children and adults cycle in streets they might not normally ride if they were cycling alone. To make it even more fun, the rides often have themes that encourage children to dress up, for Christmas or Halloween with music and bubbles machines.

Some bike buses receive support from local councils, including high vis vests, bike parking racks, social media campaigns, funding help and even occasionally a police escort. Some organisers argue that bike buses are not the end goal, but rather the beginning of further change. Others envision turning bike buses into an official school transport services.

Existing bike buses offer some general tips to get started.

• Aim for once a week to begin, so excitement can build around the bike bus and children and parents can prepare.
• Have the youngest rider at the front to set the pace.
• Have people at the front who will be able to stop at road crossings to ensure traffic doesn’t try to pass. They can wait until all the riders have moved through and either move back to the front or get replaced by new ‘blockers.’
• Pick your route wisely. Keep it short and simple where possible, trying to avoid junctions with roundabouts.
• Make it fun! If there is an event or birthday, you could hand out party hats to go over their helmets. It might even help drivers to be more sympathetic to see you all having a great time.

The end goal is to ensure a safe commute for children. Hopefully, over time, children learn the value of their own pedal power and may build a life-long love for their bike.

Let’s start to improve the school run in Cork – one bike bus at a time.