Opening ceremony and plenary 1: Connecting through Cycling

Setting the stage for the week ahead, the cycling summit began with an epic bike race at the legendary 't Kuipke Velodrome, with Milan Thomas and Lieven Desomviele competing against Mathias Lefeber on a tandem bike. The Master of Ceremonies, Francesca Vanthielen, introduced the first speaker of the day, Matthias de Clercq, Mayor of the City of Ghent. Mayor de Clercq shared Ghent’s success story, detailing how it transformed into a cyclist’s haven with its pioneering spirit. Ghent became the first Belgian city to introduce a bicycle plan, implement bicycle streets, and create a largely car-free city centre. His speech was followed by inspirational words from ECF president Henk Swarttouw and Filip Watteeuw, Deputy Mayor of Ghent.

Next up was Janette Sadik-Khan, former transportation commissioner of New York City, who shared her story of how she transformed the city’s streets from pedestrianising Broadway in Times Square to building nearly 400 miles of bike lanes. While highlighting how, in major cities around the world, such as Paris and London, cyclists are now outnumbering car drivers, she underscored that building a cycling-friendly city will ultimately benefit everyone.

The plenary closed with a lively panel discussion. The biggest takeaway? Cycling breaks barriers and connects communities when designed inclusively.

Tuesday's session highlights

Wheels of change: Fighting transport poverty through access to bicycles

Under the theme ‘Connecting People and Communities’, this fast-pedal talks session discussed the incredible power of bicycles in fighting transport poverty. From the Free Velo' subsidy schemes in Lyon to the bike libraries in Greater Manchester, speakers from across Belgium, The Netherlands, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom united to present innovative and practical initiatives to ensure that cycling is not just a privilege but an accessible and empowering option for everyone.

How to keep cyclists safe in Last-Mile Delivery logistics - the SAFE-LMD project

The round-table session, moderated by ECF’s Cassandre de Froidmont, saw ECF Senior Policy Officer Ceri Woolsgrove join Margot Vandorpe, Project Manager at Urbike and Philippe Van de Casteele of the Belgian Cycle Logistics Federation on stage to discuss the critical need for both formal and informal vocational education and training (VET) to ensure that cyclists can perform safe, sustainable, and accident-free deliveries. The SAFE-LMD project developed a self-paced online training curriculum aimed at enhancing the professional skills of bicycle-based workers in the last-mile delivery sector.

Women in Cycling: Bringing diversity to the bike sector

Over in The Mastel room, this interactive session took place to emphasise the power of networks in bringing women in transport to the forefront. This three-year-old initiative, led by CIE, ECF, Velokonzept, Mobycon, and CONEBI, works towards empowering women in cycling and creating a more inclusive sector. “Trust” was the keyword mentioned by the audience in building a strong network. Caroline Van Renterghem, Impact and Public Affairs Director at Fifteen, stressed the importance of having more women working in the industry, saying, “More women behind bikes equals more women on bikes.”

The Cycling Safety Paradox: About helmets, dancing and victim blaming

One of the final sessions of the day explored the rise of safety concerns—even in traditionally safe cycling countries, alongside the increase in cycling numbers. Poising the question, how can we address cycling safety without portraying it as an inherently dangerous activity? The European Cyclists' Federation's, Ceri Woolsgrove presented on "The unknown road safety pillar - European Union road safety policy and motor vehicle regulation," highlighting the need for stricter regulations on motor vehicles to create a safer environment for cyclists. Ultimately, creating a safe cycling environment requires a multi-faceted approach. By prioritising infrastructure, promoting responsible behaviour and advocating for safer vehicles, cycling can remain a fun, healthy and accessible option for everyone.

Plenary 2: From Jam to Jazz - Rethinking traffic to change cities

Car traffic has progressively dominated public spaces, often leading to daily traffic jams and reducing space available for people to meet and children to play. The last plenary of the day had us reimagining public spaces, with cyclists in mind to promote safer, more sustainable mobility. And sometimes, your own dreams can be the greatest source of inspiration. Filip Watteeuw, still driven by his dream version of Ghent, continues to draw from this vision.

The session concluded with the presentation of the ECF Awards, which recognise cities and organisations that have made significant strides in promoting cycling. From innovative circulation plans to strategic speed regulations and car parking policies, the message was clear: a toolbox of effective solutions exists to transform our cities. This session was a powerful reminder that with vision, collaboration, and a commitment to cycling, we can create cities that are not just functional, but truly vibrant and liveable for everyone.

Winners of the ECF Awards 2024

Following Plenary Two, the European Cyclists’ Federation proudly announced the winners of the third edition of the ECF Awards, recognising some of Europe’s highest achievers in ensuring more cycling. Presented by ECF President Henk Swarttouw, ECF CEO Jill Warren and the award sponsors, the winners of the awards were the following:

• The City of Ghent for the Cycling Infrastructure Award, sponsored by Verhofsté “State-of-the-art bicycle parking systems and shelters”

• The City of Bologna for the Road Safety Award, sponsored by Geveko Markings “100 years of passion for road markings and traffic safety”

• The European Parliament for the Cycle-Friendly Employer Award, sponsored by JobRad “We get people cycling”

• The Metropolis of Lyon for the Cycling Improvement Award, sponsored by Eco-Counter “Providing communities with the necessary tools to collect and communicate bike & pedestrian count data”

• The City of Quelimane for the Best Active Mobility Initiative Award, sponsored by the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management “The Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management is committed to improving quality of life, access and mobility in a safe and sustainable environment”

The best of the rest

On Monday, ahead of Velo-city 2024, representatives of ECF’s Cities & Regions for Cyclists network met in Deinze for the CRC Network Day 2024, sponsored by Arup. Later, members gathered in Ghent for an evening of networking, catching up with the ECF community and kick-starting Velo-city conference week together (sponsored by Decathlon).

From kickstands that charge shared e-bikes to modular cycle highways, the Smart Pedal Pitch semi-finalists pitched their market-ready solutions to the Velo-citizens and a special jury. The latest cycling innovations on display covered bicycle theft, safety and convenience. Stay tuned for the announcement of the finalists tomorrow!

Did you notice that two EuroVelo routes are snaking their way through the exhibition? ECF’s scavenger hunt returns with a special prize… come back tomorrow for the chance to win a bespoke Brompton! For more information visit the ECF booth (nr 13) or Brompton booth (nr 33).

Fun zone

COMING UP ON DAY 2...

With the first day of Velo-city 2024 behind us, let us now look at all the highlights to come tomorrow on day 2!

• Plenary 3: Cycling strategies – Joining national and international forces from 9:00 – 10:15 in ‘T KUIPKE (Purple room)

• From urban to rural cycling: Paving the way for car-lite communities from 10:45 – 11:45 in STROP (Blue room)

• UN-Habitat, Africa Urban Cycling Organization, Ochenuell Mobility: Challenges and opportunities for cycling in Africa

• Promoting health and equity - Strong cross-sector partnerships to scale up pilot projects from 16:00 – 17:00 in CIBERDON (Orange room)

• Film screening: When we cycle from 17:00 – 18:30 in ‘T KUIPKE (Purple room)

• Bike parade 19:00 – 22:00

• Grab a coffee during one of the breaks tomorrow, and make sure to visit the Pierke stage to learn more about inspiring initiatives and academic research on cycling.