Bike Buses Get Canberra Kids Moving

4 May

“Bike buses solve multiple problems at once, and Canberra kids want them”

Bike buses are a structured ride along a set route with pick up spots, similar to an actual bus route, but using bicycles. They create safety in numbers to help people get where they’re going, reduce climate emissions, and fight screen time and loneliness. Children develop their confidence and independence, and burn off energy so they reach school happy and ready to learn. Some parents tell me that usually their child is hard to wake up, but on bike bus day, they’re raring to go.

Bike buses have existed in various forms and names since the 2000s, but became a phenomenon when Barcelona’s Bici Bus appeared in social media in 2021, inspiring Portland primary school teacher Sam Balto ( @CoachBalto ) to begin his own bike bus in 2022. Sam’s bike bus videos have become a worldwide hit, with adults in comments beneath his videos crying happy tears. Some for the joy of seeing children riding together. Others recall childhoods before car bloat and their sheer volume made that dangerous.

Canberra has at least three bike buses. There’s a weekly one in the inner northern suburb of Lyneham for primary school students, a Tuesday one for adults, and a monthly one for adults who work between West Belconnen and Barton. Lyneham’s started in December 2023 as a collaboration with Walk Cycle Lyneham, Canberra by Bike, and local parents and carers.

I cried the first time our Lyneham bike bus crossed the Ginninderra Drive overpass and saw children waiting on nearby Archibald St.

Our bike bus attracts between five and 10 children each Wednesday. Children choose songs to blast from a big speaker on the back of my blue cargo bike. Songs from recent children’s movies are favourites, although some children like classic bands like Deep Purple and AC/DC. One boy has chosen the same song every edition for more than two years. It’s Viva Scotia by the Borderers.

Last year for Ride 2 School Day, 26 children and about 20 adults happily rolled from the North Lyneham shops. We had 15 children for this year’s edition, some of whom joined for the first time.

But Ride 2 School Day needn’t be annually. It could be a daily thing for many children, if the adults in their lives thought children could ride safely alone. Safer streets, especially those with 30km/h limits, make that possible. A person hit by a driver doing 30km/h has a 90 percent chance of surviving. The higher the speed, the lower that chance.

Countries including Wales, Scotland, and Spain have 30 default limits, as do more than 40 cities across the European Union, and parts of Melbourne and Perth. Benefits include fewer crashes, quieter streets, less air pollution, and more chances for random interactions with neighbours and friends on the street. Interactions people on bikes have long enjoyed.

Paris Lord, founder of Canberra by Bike Design Company, is a former board member of the ACT’s oldest cycling advocacy organisation, Pedal Power, has helped start three bike buses in Canberra, and advised on versions in Brisbane and Sydney.

He holds a webinar at 8pm on the first Tuesday of each month about what is a bike bus, and how to start one. Email him for the link.