Inner West Courier: Cyclists catch the bike bus

Safety in numbers and increasing traffic congestion around the Inner City have spurred the growth of a “bike bus” initiative in Marrickville. Bike bus was started in 2001 by Marrickville Transport Action Group’s Fiona Campbell when she began riding with a friend who didn’t feel confident cycling by herself. “One of my work colleagues never learnt how to ride a bike and I was cycling from Marrickville to the city for work and we started riding together,” she said.

Ms Campbell said that bike bus had grown through word-of-mouth, with more than 20 people now using bike bus to travel to and from work cycling through the streets together in one lane riding two-abreast.

“People feel a lot more comfortable to ride in a group in traffic, especially those who are not confident bike riders,” she said.

Meeting at an agreed starting point, the bike bus travels along back streets as much as possible until reaching the CBD.

Ms Campbell said the initiative not only helped to build the confidence of riders, but also had social and environmental benefits.

“If you live 10km from town, which is about a half-hour cycle, you could save 1.3 tonnes of greenhouse emissions a year if you cycled instead of taking the car,” she said.

Riding a bike 10km to work or the local shops could save more than $1500 a year in vehicle costs.

Ms Campbell said that by riding a bike, people could free up an extra place on the roads or an extra seat on the public transport system.

“Public transport around Newtown is so congested, by riding your bike you can free up that extra space which creates a positive domino effect,” she said.

Marrickville Council has a draft bike plan on public exhibition which would expand the current bike infrastructure and invest an estimated $7.2 million over a 10-year period.

Money would be allocated for a bicycle parking plan and the integration of cycling and public transport with bicycle parking at railway stations and bus stops.

Rashell Habib