City bikes
Summary
In Poland, Gdansk is already well-known for its cycling culture. The city wants to continue to promote cycling and change attitudes towards cycling through new city bikes and the promotion of cycling as a trendy and safe urban lifestyle choice.
Implementing sustainable mobility
Gdansk is a leading cycling city in Poland and is building a comprehensive network of bike paths. However, the city is aware that providing the infrastructure is not enough to get citizens to leave their cars and get on their bikes. To have an impact, promoting cycling is equally important. As the number of cyclists in Gdansk increases, to educate them about safe city cycling becomes more and more important. The main objectives of the measure are to: • Promote cycling as a cool and viable alternative to the car to get around the city; and • Bring about a new cycling culture focused on safety and comfort rather than speed.
Progress
The actions carried out within measure 6.1 were mainly related to the use of the tools of social communication and promotion. Promoting the new approach to using the bicycle in urban conditions is concentrated on the change of the image of its function - from typically recreational to commuting. • „Moda na Rower” („Cycling Fashion”) open competition in two categories: for designing the best urban style cycling outfit and the best cycling accessories. • Competition for an artistic design of a cycle rack specific for Gdansk – “Rowerem do Kultury” (Cycling towards Culture”) • Cooperation with a private investor of bike rental system within promotion of the idea. Specifying and designating 50 locations for docking stations in Gdansk. Starting all the necessary procedures for implementation of the system. • Competition for the decor of TriCityBike; 63 artists participated in the contest with 80 designs submitted. • Gdanska Moda na Rower” („Gdansk Cycle Chic”) Outdoor Exhibition of real-life size photos featuring Gdansk’s 15 cyclists selected from ordinary inhabitants. They are pictured in a casual elegant setting with a background of Gdansk city landscape. They represent a whole spectrum of ages, professional profiles and various fashion tastes, but all having the same passion for everyday urban cycling. The photos were displayed in 4 attractive locations in the historic city centre of Gdansk for a period of one month. It was preceded by social campaign and media promotion. Gdansk residents were invited to submit their stories via Facebook and a special, dedicated website www.modanarower.pl. The exhibition was breaking the stereotype that a bicycle is only for those who cannot afford a car and proved that a bike is a trendy and „cool” transport mode. All the pictures were used in a calendar for the next year
Outcomes
All events, especially the Cycle Chic outdoor exhibition, turned out to have big impact on citizens. They began public discussion on everyday cycling creating a positive image of people using a bicycle as a daily transport mode. A change of attitudes and of mobility behaviour by their very nature take place slowly. Studies allow the observation of change of behaviour on the basis of respondents' declarations, the key area of change in attitude to the use of the bicycle for city journeys. The results are presented under sub headings corresponding to the areas used for indicators in the MRT.
