SF Dad launches a “bicycle bus” for children who go to school, it reaches several dozen in size

Inspired by a ride similar to ‘bicibús’ in Barcelona, ​​a pro slow streets group created a pint-sized Critical Mass bike ride for kids who pedal en masse to school.

Imagine the old Critical Mass monthly bike ride, except without the road rage and political piety, and with mostly little youngsters going to school with their parents. It’s apparently now a new monthly thing here in San Francisco, as SFGate tells us the story of a Loosely organized “bike bus” in SF, a communal bike ride that looks like a school bus except it’s a caravan of kids on bikes, and part of the car / slow street movement that became popular during the pandemic.

“There were almost 30 people on the bus, and I think the next one will be double or triple,” race organizer and SF father Peter Belden told SFGate. “It’s so positive and fun for everyone. There were two kids who joined in on the ride, friends of my son, whose parents were having meetings, and they were allowed to ride with them. They were allowed to ride with them. hadn’t ridden a bicycle to school before, but because it was a bus, they felt safe doing it. “

This is based on a similar drive to Barcelona, ​​which NPR says is known as “bicibús” (see above). It’s an activity every Friday that has attracted hundreds of young people to cycle. It is expand to other cities in Spain, and apparently now in San Francisco as well.

It appears from SFGate’s story that there has been only one of these rides so far, in December, but Belden and his affiliated advocacy group Safe for children SF are planning another bike-bus the morning of Friday January 14. Another group without a car Friends of the slow lake held similar bike meetings in the car-free areas of the Richmond District.

As cute and healthy as these group rides and bike rides may seem, it is a political act. Kid Safe SF is very vocal in lobby for a car-free JFK Drive in Golden Gate Park, and a Large highway without a car too much. It’s no coincidence that the bike-bus trail starts at Eighth Avenue and JFK in Golden Gate Park. So while these car-free debates are politically controversial, cycling groups use a soft touch to create support to make these two controversial car-free zones permanent pedestrian spaces.

Related: A mural by local artist Amos Goldbaum was painted on Noe Valley Street [SFist]

Image: @jeffreytumlin via twitter