Suburban
AN organisation which promotes road safety in Zimbabwe, the Road Safe Zimbabwe Trust, has embarked on a safety awareness campaign for cyclists.
Peter Tanyanyiwa Suburban Reporter
Under the campaign dubbed “Ghost Bike”, the trust is placing white bicycles around the city at different points with a message of putting the cyclists’ safety first.
The campaign follows numerous road accident deaths involving cyclists being recorded around the country. Cyclists are falling victims to reckless driving by some motorists and they cycle at great risk because most main roads do not have separate cycling tracks.
Even on roads with cycling tracks and pedestrian paths, cyclists and pedestrians are still exposed to danger because impatient motorists particularly pirate taxi drivers and kombi drivers encroach onto their way.
Road Safe Zimbabwe Trust founder and executive director said to create a safe on and off-road cycling environment, there is need to improve driver and cyclist attitudes and behaviour towards each other.
This is the message they are putting on the bicycles they are placing at strategic sites across the city.
“We are working on a cyclist safety awareness and we’re doing this through what we are calling a ‘Ghost Bike’ project. Basically, we are planting white bicycles around the city with cycle safety messages. So far we have about 15 bicycles placed and we are putting up the cyclist safety messages. Cyclists are among the most vulnerable road users. There isn’t adequate and safe infrastructure for cycling in Zimbabwe. Motorists are running over cyclists leaving several injured and some dead because of simply failing to share the road,” he said.
The trust put one bicycle at Newlands Shopping Centre.
He said that cycling has become popular for a variety of reasons. It has been documented that cycling helps to reduce the risk of diabetes, some forms of cancer, cardiovascular diseases and depression. He said for whatever reason people chose to cycle, their safety should be prioritised.
“Cycling is a mode of transport for many people in Zimbabwe for various reasons. Some prefer active mobility others want more environmentally friendly transport with little to no carbon emissions and therefore opt to cycle and they can’t afford the cost of daily commuting using public transport.
Whatever the reason, people should have a choice on how they access their daily occupations. We recently met with the Mayor of Harare and launched Harare Bike Day where the Mayor made a commitment to prioritise cycling infrastructure.
“The City of Bulawayo has also recently launched their cycling promotion as a means of everyday mobility. There is a mural that we are putting up in Africa Unity Square in partnership with City of Harare and supported by the Embassy of Netherlands. We have partnered with Altmedia who have started work to properly brand it. We are working around having the Ambassador of Netherlands doing an unveiling of the Africa Unity Square mural once the branding is complete hopefully in time for World Day of Remembrance of Road Traffic victims on Sunday 20 November,” said Nyaude.
There is another one placed along Sam Nujoma Street.
Harare residents are calling for cycle tracks on their main roads to be resuscitated, as cars cannot compete with cyclists on the same road.
First Mutual Holdings Limited has gone into partnership with the City of Harare under which the two organisations are constructing a cycle track from the intersection of Whitwell Road and Liberation Legacy Way (formerly Borrowdale Road) into town.
Harare residents have commended the partnership but urged the local authority to spread the programme to other suburbs in the capital city.
Some residents said they prefer cycling but there were no cycling tracks from their suburbs going into town. The residents said the track being built from Borrowdale to the city centre might help ease congestion as those interested in cycling will now be able to do so.
