EDITORS DESK
I have a confession to make — I don’t like biking. I know how, and I used to bike a lot when I was young, but biking never really charmed me, not even during the pandemic when everyone was encouraged to cycle due to the restrictions on public transportation.
Biking recently reentered my thoughts when my doctors recommended it as the best way to improve my health and shed some pounds. They advised that biking is superior compared to using a treadmill as it doesn’t exert excessive strain on my weak knees.
In recent events that I have attended as this paper’s environment editor, biking has consistently emerged as a topic of discussion. It’s often cited as a practical alternative mode of transportation, especially in our collective efforts to reduce our carbon footprint by reducing the use of gasoline-powered vehicles. People I've spoken to also swear by its effectiveness in weight loss.
However, our biking infrastructure leaves much to be desired. Roads are still primarily dominated by vehicles, and even the limited bike lanes are often “invaded” upon. Numerous news illustrates how bikers feel intimidated by vehicle owners, bus drivers, and truckers. These discouraging experiences on the road have deterred me from taking up biking on public roads.
It is for this reason that I was pleasantly surprised to be aware of the presence of a “Mobility Awards.” One of its supporters reached out to me and introduced me to the awards’ significance.
In an info, it said that the Mobility Awards “calls for the urgent improvement of transport infrastructure in Philippine cities, making it safer and more inclusive to the mobility needs of cyclists, pedestrians, and commuters.” Complementary to the launch of this award, the group also unveiled the findings of this year’s nationwide bike count program.
“A total of 147,800 cyclists were recorded by 817 volunteers. In its third year of implementation, Bilang Siklista conducted counts in 17 cities across the country, during a four-hour peak time in the morning and afternoon, on seven different weekdays in June and July. This year’s findings showed a decrease in the number of cyclists, compared to the recorded 191,578 cyclists in 2022.”
Mobility Awards national coordinator Arielle Celine Tabinga, in a press briefing, said, “The decline in the number of cyclists have been attributed by volunteers to unsafe road conditions, including deteriorating conditions of bike lanes and encroachment of motorists in designated bike lanes; the easing of Covid restrictions on public transport; and the continuous rains that poured on the days of the count. However, Quezon City and Mandaue City emerged as exceptions as they recorded an increase in number of cyclists compared to previous counts done by the Mobility Awards; this was attributed to consistent improvements in their bike lane infrastructure and programs.”
What’s commendable with this effort is the fact that Bilang Siklista was also able to examine how much carbon emissions are avoided, and savings generated in terms of fuel costs for 147,800 people on bicycles.
“Results showed that per kilometer travelled, 147,800 cyclists helped reduce 36.74 metric tons of carbon emissions, and save up to ₱615,207 worth of fuel.”
So, what does this study tell us? It provides solid evidence that biking can indeed be a tool to combat climate change. Even though the data is not comprehensive on a nationwide scale, it offers a glimpse of the positive impact of biking.
Imagine if we could also measure the “pounds” lost by bikers. The potential health benefits might just encourage more people, including myself, to finally take up biking.
(Johannes L. Chua is the editor of the Environment & Sustainability section.)