Brussels Mobility launched a new campaign to encourage expats to use their bicycles more to get around the capital.
Eight international ambassadors have joined the campaign and have launched a website detailing various cycling routes throughout the Brussels-Capital Region, the mobility office announced in a press release.
The region has the largest expat community in Europe, with its 220,000 international residents making up nearly 20% of Brussels' population. Brussels Mobility therefore pointed to expats' "tremendous growth potential within the Brussels cycling community".
"Brussels has been labelled a car city for a long time, but the capital is changing," said Brussels Minister for Mobility Elke Van den Brandt. "Many new and safe cycling facilities have been created in the capital of Europe. We want to encourage all Brussels residents, including expats, to cycle more often."
Ambassadors, not influencers
For this reason, eight ambassadors from different countries were asked to join the team. The countries represented are Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, Botswana, New Zealand, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia. Each ambassador tells of their cycling experience and their favourite places to cycle in various YouTube videos.
For Botswana's Ambassador to Belgium, Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba, cycling in Brussels means "engaging in something important to the people of the country that you are in. It's always exciting as an ambassador to dip into the local culture."
New Zealand's Ambassador to Belgium, Diana Reaich, sees cycling as a break from our busy everyday lives. "I would absolutely encourage expats to get out and about on their bikes more as it's good for the body, it's good for the soul, and it's definitely good for the planet."
Figures in the press release show that Brussels has 513 kilometres of cycle paths, either marked, separated or shared with pedestrians – twice as many as a decade ago, which shows the increasing infrastructure to accommodate cyclists in the city.
In addition, there are 36,606 public bike parking spaces – three times more than in 2014. The recent interest in shared bicycles has also seen 7,681 circulating in the region.
Summer Bike Routes
Tapping into this growing interest, Brussels Mobility has listed several so-called Summer Bike Routes showcasing the very best that Brussels has to offer.
"Along the way, [cyclists] can discover some of the city's most beautiful parks, historic districts and iconic monuments," the press release read. "There is even an Ambassador Route that connects the hotspots of the eight participating ambassadors."
Each route has a detailed map that can be downloaded, as well as descriptions and tips for each route to allow each cyclist to plan their journey.
Two ambassadors cycling through a park in Brussels. Credit: Brussels Mobility
"We have been encouraging Brussels residents to use bicycles more for years," said Sofie Walschap, advertising manager at Bike for Brussels. "And we are seeing that these efforts are paying off, as the number of cyclists is increasing by around 13% each year."
Indeed, at the beginning of June, the record was broken for the highest number of cyclists in one day in the Brussels-Capital Region with 50,000 cyclists, according to figures from Brussels Mobility.
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The Belgian Ambassador for the campaign, Stéphane Mund, said that cycling is a moment where he can both exercise and clear his head and is his "modest contribution to the environment."
The Summer Bike Routes can be found on the Bike for Brussels website.
