Cycling for everyone! - The Bikes in Brussels Fund has awarded almost 600,000 euros to eight new projects

New cycling infrastructure and equipment will be made available in the Peterbos neighbourhood of Anderlecht, thanks to some 400,000 euros in support from the Bikes in Brussels Fund, managed by the King Baudouin Foundation. The objective is to make cycling the preferred means of getting about for everyone and to open up the neighbourhood. The Fund is also supporting seven other cycling infrastructure projects initiated by six schools and an academy, to the tune of almost 200,000 euros. The call for projects is still open, so applications for support can still be made at any time.

Located in Anderlecht, the Peterbos neighbourhood is the subject of a broader renovation project that aims to revitalise and open up the neighbourhood. The ‘Peterbos Sustainable Neighbourhood Contract’ foresees the redevelopment of public spaces and rationalisation of the car’s place in favour of soft mobility.

"With around 1,400 social housing units, there are considerable challenges to ensuring accessibility in the neighbourhood”, explains Nadia Kammachi, Alderwoman for Sustainable Neighbourhood Contracts for the commune of Anderlecht. “Our local topography, the existing streets and the socio-economic profile of their users make cycling in the neighbourhood rather difficult. With the ‘Bikes in Peterbos’ project, we want to encourage the use of two wheels by improving the internal traffic circulation in the neighbourhood, reconnecting this to the supra-local cycling network and creating cycle parking, which is inexistent at present. Our ambition is for the project to serve as an example for other neighbourhoods which have a risk of being disconnected from the rest of the city.”

Led by the municipality of Anderlecht with the support of a broad coalition of public actors (Urban, BMA, SRLB, SISP, etc.), the project foresees things such as the creation of new cycle paths and the installation of cycle racks for secure parking. These changes will be carried out thanks to 194,134 euros of support from the Bikes in Brussels Fund.

In addition to the Anderlecht project, the Fonds Bikes in Brussels is also providing support to seven other new cycling infrastructure projects, amounting to 194,134 euros.

• In Evere, three schools will install infrastructure to provide parking and security for the bikes of pupils, teachers and other members of the staff. The Collège Fra-Angelico will receive 48,000 euros to build shelters around their new cycle park (also financed with aid from the Fund), as part of the college’s overall Ecoteam project. The commune’s Clair Vivre school and La Source school will respectively be granted 30,450 euros and 21,100 euros to install a double covered and closed cycle shelter, one with a re-charging terminal for electric cycles and the other for ‘standard’ cycles.
• In Etterbeek, the commune’s Paradis des Enfants school will create a covered cycle park for the cycles of pupils, parents and members of staff. The Fund is awarding the school 24,045 euros in support of the project, which is part of its general school travel plan. The RHoK Art Academy is being awarded 17,739 euros in support to install covered cycle shelters. Objective: to encourage pupils and members of staff to cycle to and from the academy.
• In Brussels City, the Sint-Jorisbasisschool wishes to teach its pupils, who are mostly from disadvantaged backgrounds, to move around the city by bike, independently and safely. The school has developed an entire project that includes the loan of cycles, learning to ride a bike, a cycle repair workshop and secured cycle parking. The Fund is providing support of 28,800 euros towards the cycling infrastructure installation.
• In Laeken, the Basisschool de Telescoop will install two secure cycle parks for the bikes of children and staff, thanks to support of 24,000 euros from the Fund. This infrastructure will be part of a more general project to promote cycling at the school.

If you would like to know more about any of these projects, please don’t hesitate to contact Cathy Verbyst (verbyst.c@kbs-frb.be, 02 549 02 78, 0478 75 01 41). We will be delighted to put you in contact with the appropriate organisation.

More about the Bikes in Brussels Fund
Created at the end of 2018, within the King Baudouin Foundation, the Bikes in Brussels Fund supports initiatives – small, medium or large scale – of associations, public bodies and public and private partnerships, which are designed to improve the cycling infrastructure of Brussels. Its objective is to enable more people to opt for cycling as the preferred means of getting around, in and to the Brussels-Capital Region. Since its creation, the Fund has already supported 45 projects and awarded grants totalling over 4 million euros. The Bikes for Brussels Fund is permanent; this means that applications for project support can be made throughout the year via www.kbs-frb.be