Warning: Trying to access array offset on value of type bool in /usr/www/users/urnnet/a/story.php on line 43 MUK Lecturer Wants Global Bicycle Day Declared :: Uganda Radionetwork
The Makerere University Urban Planning lecturer says World Bicycle day will be used to promote the health and environmental benefits associated with riding bicycles as a means of transportation.
Amanda Nagbirano, a courageous woman that rides her bicycle through Kampala is determined to move her passion for cycling higher by urging UN Secretary General to designate a World Bicycle day.
The Makerere University Urban Planning lecturer says World Bicycle day will be used to promote the health and environmental benefits associated with riding bicycles as a means of transportation.
Ngabirano, who is a member of World Cycling Alliance Board, says documentation has been compiled and will soon be used to lobby the UN about the need for world bicycle day.
Ngabirano in an interview says a bicycle does not require fuelling so it can be used as a tool for reducing pollution. She says those that choose to ride bicycles could also save money.
Giving her own experience, Ngabirano says she was able to save a significant amount of money by choosing to ride to her workplace at Makerere.
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Ngabirano is bitter that despite the benefits of the bicycle in many countries, no day has been set aside to push for its use as well as recognise it internationally.
Quoting the November 2015 statistics by the Institute for Transportation and Development policy, Ngabirano says over 25 trillion dollars can be saved by 2050 if more people chose cycling.
Ngabirano says there is also the need to change the perception that a bicycle is a poor person's mode of transport.
She says the bicycle revolution in Kampala and major highways will require planners to provide spaces for bicycles, pedestrians and other non-motorised means of transport.
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Jacob Byamukama, the Manager Transport Planning and Traffic Management at Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) admitted that the old road network in the city did not provide space for non-motored forms of transport.
He says the current road designs ensured that the drainage system is covered to create space for pedestrians and pedal cyclists.
Byamukama however says there is also need to ensure that road users don't abuse such facilities. He says sometimes passenger allow motorists to drive on spaces meant for pedestrians.
