London 2012 blog

As someone who gets accused of being a country bumpkin, being seconded to Beijing for a month was always going to be a culture shock. The scale of the city is an assault on the senses – busy 8 lane highways cut between vast buildings, and the town dances to an incessant soundtrack of car horns and construction. Not to mention the fact that the largest sporting event on earth is in town.

However I’ve found the secret to making the city more manageable – I’ve got on my bike! Like London, Beijing streets are busy with buses, taxis and cars, but scores of bikes also pass by every minute – in wide dedicated cycle lanes separate from the traffic.

A friendly local who wanted to practice his English helped me select a trusty machine and I’ve been exploring the city on it ever since. It’s helped me to get to places I never would have done on foot and would have sped right by on the bus or taxi.


I’m fascinated by the people I say 'ni hao' to every morning on my commute – and the bikes they ride – well dressed elderly gentlemen on shoppers, younger guys nonchalantly riding side saddle on electric scooters, whole families piled onto half pedal half electric machines, and delivery drivers riding the human powered equivalent of the white van piled high with goods.

While 1000 new cars per day hit the streets of Beijing, in the UK it is cycling which is on the up – in London cycle journeys have increased by over 80% since 2000. In 2012 we want to help people to cycle to Games events, and we want to inspire people to stay on their bikes long after the games are over.

Here in Beijing where cycling is a daily way of life for so many, I’m looking forward to seeing what facilities the Olympic venues will have for cyclists, and how many foreigners will choose to cycle. Already I’ve seen new bike parking and hire locations springing up over the past few weeks – and I’m no longer the curiosity I was as more foreigners join me in the bike lanes every day.