Iran Press/ America: The bicycle provides people with an opportunity to engage in physical activity, connect with their community, and maintain and improve their physical and mental health. As a form of transport, the bike offers people an affordable, convenient, and environmentally sustainable way to get to school, study, work, and other places. For all this and much more, the bicycle deserves to be celebrated – and not just once a year!
But despite all the benefits offered by the bicycle, as a mode of transport, usage on the Central Coast, and indeed within NSW and Australia, remains low by world standards.
The National Walking and Cycling Participation Survey 2023 revealed that 15.1% of NSW residents ride a bicycle in a typical week. More than one-third (38.1%) had done so in the past year. These participation rates translate to an estimated 1,227,900 residents riding in a typical week and more than 3 million riding at least once a typical year. Whilst these numbers sound positive, it’s worth keeping in mind that they include riding only once a year.
Of the people who cycled in NSW in the last month, 86.5% cycled for recreation and 27.9% used a bicycle for transport. The main transport purposes were commuting, education, and visiting friends. Very few had ridden to access public transport.
History
The idea of celebrating World Bicycle Day was first proposed by a Polish-American social scientist Professor Leszek Sibilski who worked in the United States. He started the grassroots-level campaign to get the United Nations on board in celebrating World Bicycle Day every year. Sibilski eventually received support from Turkmenistan and 56 other countries. In April 2018, the United Nations General Assembly announced that World Bicycle Day will be celebrated every year on June 3.
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