Ghent (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The GMF’s bike count shows cargo bikes in Ghent rose from 95 in 2014 to 688 now, increasing by about one-third yearly. They call for better infrastructure and safety measures.
In Ghent, cargo bikes are getting more popular. They mentioned that families and small businesses like them because they are good for the environment. They use them to carry kids and things instead of cars. The GMF thinks this means Ghent is doing a good job with green transport. They use the bike count to ask for safer roads, better bike paths, and more space for bikes.
“Don’t save on bicycle infrastructure and think about the cargo bike,”
GMF said.
How is Ghent responding to the rapid rise of cargo bikes and growing cyclist numbers?
Each year, the Gents Milieufront (GMF) organises a bicycle count during the morning rush hour to understand how people cycle in Ghent. Volunteers are stationed at 34 important intersections along the city ring (R40). They carefully record how many cyclists enter and exit the city.
They also note the type of bicycle used, including standard bikes, electric bikes, and cargo bikes. Officials mentioned that these counts give a good picture of how people move around the city and help track trends over time. This year’s count showed that over 23,000 cyclists used the city ring during the morning peak. Of these, more than 14,000 were heading into the city centre.
The GMF (Gents Milieufront) collects data on bicycles in the city. They use this information to ask the city to improve its bike policies. The group wants the city to keep investing in bike paths and bike parking. They say more people are cycling, especially with cargo bikes. This means the city needs to build more and better places for bikes.
GMF has a list of things the city should do. One is to pay more attention to cargo bike users. These riders need big and safe places to park their bikes. Another point is to build better bike underpasses. This helps cyclists cross busy roads safely.
GMF also wants safer bike paths near construction sites. They mentioned that right now, these places can be dangerous for cyclists because of the roadwork. The group says the city must fix this to keep cyclists safe.
When the GMF did its first bike count in 2014, cargo bikes were very rare. Only 95 cargo bikes were counted going into the city during the morning rush hour. Now, that number has grown to 688, which is 7 times more than before.
In recent years, the number of cargo bikes has gone up by about one-third every year. The GMF believes this shows cargo bikes are becoming a normal way for people to travel. They ask the city to build more bike paths and make rules that help cargo bike users because more and more people are choosing this way to move around.
