Daily records were broken on Saturday, May 9, at several examined cyclist lanes in Budapest – the growth of bicycle traffic can be felt throughout the city.
In contrast to the dramatic decline in car and public transport, bicycle traffic has remained, and even increased in Budapest. Many people have realized that in the current situation riding bicycles decreases the risk of infections, plus it is a significantly healthier and cheaper solution than driving – and you don’t even have to search for a parking space.
The development of bicycle lanes and decreasing car traffic are of paramount importance for the Municipality of Budapest. “It is very important to preserve this change, which developed during the pandemic and is providing a positive change in Budapest, because this is how the city can really belong to everyone, if we can travel freely in the city, regardless of age, gender and mode of transport” said Márton Samu Balogh, Head of the Cabinet.
According to the measurements made by the Hungarian Cycling Club, the bicycle path on the Buda embankment and Árpád bridge are the most popular, but at the same time the bicycle traffic on the Hungária boulevard and the Weiss Manfréd road cycling path to Csepel have also increased. On Saturday, more than 6,000 people cycled on the Bem embankment and about 3,800 on Árpád Bridge.
Among the new bicycle lanes, Bartók Béla road is the most popular: on the bike lane connecting the Danube with the Kelenföld railway station, more people cycled on weekdays (about 3,600 on Fridays) than on Árpád Bridge or the Museum Boulevard. The estimated daily traffic of the bicycle lane on the Grand Boulevard was around 1,600, measured at Oktogon. The traffic on Üllői road, Tétényi road, Bartók Béla road and the Grand boulevard is expected to increase further by connecting the routes and as more people are becoming familiar with it.
The research data representative of the last few weeks’ proved that riding bicycles is an accessible and good solution for the majority of Budapest residents; so far most people have not dared to travel due to car traffic.
Decreasing car traffic and new bike lanes can also help you discover routes to work, as well as tourist sights. For those new to the bicycling in the city, we recommend the useful tips collected by the Hungarian Cycling Club at http://kerekparosklub.hu/kisokos.
Pump it up!
Free bicycle pumps have been installed throughout the city to make everyday life easier for cyclists. The exact locations of the pumps are available on the map of the MyBudapest website (http://enbudapestem.hu/terkep/).
Your opinion matters!
BKK (Centre for Budapest Transport) and Budapest Közút (Budapest Public Roads) are constantly monitoring the use of temporary bicycle lanes and are deciding on the necessary corrections. They are also conducting a survey about the new bike lanes to facilitate cycling.
Source: Budapest City Hall, Hungarian Cycling Club, BKK, BVA
