Cycle journeys
Cycling is a quick and easy way to travel, which also gives you a regular exercise routine. It's estimated that cycling can take 10 years off your ‘fitness age’ due to the development of a stronger heart and lungs, increased muscle mass, and can help relieve stress.
Benefits of cycling
Possible benefits to you include:
- improving your fitness
- relieving stress
- helping the environment
- saving money
- saving time
You can find out more at the page below:
Cycling to work
Cycling is a great way to commute to work as it can be cheaper, healthier and may even save you time.
With more cyclists and fewer cars on the road, the overall environment would be improved for everyone.
Cycle to Work Scheme
The Cycle to Work Scheme promotes bicycles as a sustainable transport option to encourage healthier journeys and reduce pollution.
It provides a tax-break which enables employers, through a salary sacrifice arrangement, to provide bicycles for their employees to cycle all or part of their journey to work.
The cost is recovered from the employee’s salary over an agreed period, usually 12 to 18 months.
At the end of the period the employee can return the bicycle or can arrange to buy it outright from the employer.
You can find out how the scheme works at this link:
Cycle-friendly employers
Many employers understand the benefits of having a workforce that cycles.
Some have led the way in providing facilities and measures that makes their staff able to cycle to and from work, as well as for business use.
Examples of this include:
- indoor or outdoor secure cycle parking
- showers, changing rooms and lockers
- annual bike user allowances
- providing pool bikes and accessories for business trips
- bike mileage rates for business use
- promoting the facilities to staff
- providing maps of local routes
- relaxing the dress code and introducing flexible working hours
Cycling to school
If your child’s school is near your home, cycling is a great way for them to get there and back. It will also contribute to a child’s recommended 60 minutes of daily exercise.
It may even be a faster and cheaper way of getting to school if the usual route often has a lot of traffic.
Children tend to love the freedom that cycling offers. It develops their independence and confidence,especially those who are moving into post primary school education.
Reducing traffic around schools will:
- provide a better environment for children
and
- improve road safety for everyone
It is also well-documented that children who walk or cycle to school will arrive more alert and ready to learn than those who are driven.
While cycling offers many benefits, it's understandable that parents and teachers may have concerns around road safety. There are worksheets, resources, and more information on road safety for primary schools or for post primary school children at these links:
Active school travel
A number of schools in NI are taking part in a programme to provide walking and cycling skills to pupils.
Find out more about the Active school travel in Northern Ireland programme.
Bicycles on public transport
All bicycles are carried free of charge on Translink buses and trains, but certain conditions apply and they are not allowed before 9.30 am from Monday to Friday.
There is space for two full-sized bicycles on buses and four full-sized bicycles on trains, allocated on a first come, first served basis.
There are no restrictions to the number of folding bicycles.