Welcome to World Bicycle Day, the perfect time to highlight the countless benefits and advantages of the transportation device so awesome it has been dubbed the noblest invention of mankind; the most influential piece of product design ever; and the finest mode of transport known to humanity.

They are some pretty big claims to live up to, but the bicycle does it without running low on energy – which you would use a ton of if you tried to match it with any other vehicle people have thought up.

And while it gets you there with greater efficiency and zero pollution compared to the rest of society’s transport fleet, it also has the unique qualification of doing so while enhancing your physical, mental, economic and environmental health, it’s a win-win!

But let’s not stop there. For many people, cycling is also a key plank in their social wellbeing. Group rides with friends, club events, mass-participation rides like grand fondos or charity fundraisers, bike touring, bikepacking adventures … the list of ways people use their bikes to catch up with friends or to make new ones is endless. 

Perhaps you’ve got kids and you’re worried about the state of the world we’ll be leaving them. Or you’re young enough that climate change and the destruction of our environment is something to take personally. 

Cast your mind back to the Covid-19 lockdowns and the mind-blowing before-and-after pictures of the air pollution in cities around the world. The status quo for the past many decades resulted in filthy brown skylines that weigh as heavy on our eyes as they do on our lungs. 

But cue the lockdowns and for a brief, blissful time the dominance of bikes instead of cars on our roads, and the air became so clean we could not fail to see both the utter mess we’d made of things and the obvious solution to our self-imposed problems.

Not everyone can ride a bike. We can’t wave a magic wand and make pollution, traffic gridlock, delays, stress and road rage disappear. 

But everyone who does ride a bike makes life – their own and the world we all share – just that little bit better. And that is why in 2018 the United Nations declared 3 June as World Bicycle Day to draw attention to the benefits of using the bicycle – a simple, affordable, clean and environmentally sustainable means of transportation.

So, mark this day, celebrate the potential it offers from an individual, personal level to the large-scale changes we have seen in cities and countries around the world in recent years. Each of us individually can change our lives for the better with the turn of a pedal and all of us together can make the world a better, cleaner, healthier place.

Anyone for a bike ride?

Brilliant cycling facts to celebrate:

• Just 30 minutes a day of cycling reduces the risk of diabetes, obesity, depression and many other serious diseases.
• Bike-friendly neighbourhoods are more liveable, more people-oriented, increase economic activity and are more vibrant and attractive to visit, stay, play and spend time and money in. 
• Regular riding improves the quality of your sleep, improves your heart and lung health, strengthens your bones, develops lean muscles and exposes you to vital vitamin D while you’re out in the sunshine on your bike. All these factors are significant in combating the rising health and wellbeing issues of our increasingly sedentary society.
• Cycling also benefits our hip-pocket health, both individually and as a community. Every person cycling delivers an estimated $1.67 per kilometre to the economy. The increased physical activity is estimated to save more than $800 million a year from the health budget and every dollar spent on cycling infrastructure is expected to return up to $5 to the economy.

Happy World Bicycle Day!