Brussels will get its own cycling node network, which will allow bicyclists to easily plot (recreational) routes throughout the Capital Region, said Brussels Mobility Minister Elke Van den Brandt.
In Flanders, such a cycling network where people can map out their own routes using signposts already exists, and Van den Brandt confirmed that Brussels would also get one in the Mobility Committee on Tuesday, after a question by Green Party leader Arnaud Verstraete, reports Bruzz.
"Cycling nodes are very popular for planning leisure trips. It will become more attractive for tourists to visit Brussels by bike, which is automatically good for our hospitality and culture sectors," said Verstraete.
In 2021, the tourism agency Visit.brussels has already contacted several provinces to analyse how they rolled out the signposting of their cycling network, reports the Belga News Agency.
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Visit.brussels will start the actual implementation of the project now, including the placement of the first signs, but a study on the best locations to put the nodes will take place first - which is expected in the first half of this year.
According to Visit.brussels, the project should be completed in the last quarter of 2022. The first phase will cost about €170,000 and is financed by Brussels Mobility. Connections to other regions and signposting systems will also be included in the system.
Inhabitants of Brussels have been asking for a bicycle node network for some time now, and a group of volunteers even developed a digital network of nodes under the name BikeNode.Brussels in 2020 - containing some 250 kilometres of Brussels cycling routes.
According to reports by Bruzz, discussions are currently underway to include the work of BikeNode.Brussels in the official project.
