Children’s bicycle education is an important part of the school curriculum in countries with high rates of cycle participation and safety. The numbers of children travelling to school by bicycle has fallen dramatically over the last three decades and bicycle education is an essential requirement in any effort to reverse this trend. The following links provide information on the various bicycle education courses available around Australia:
Australia:
- Cycling Promotion Fund, Child safety and bike riding
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Highlights the importance of children’s participation in cycling and what can be done to help ensure cycling is a safe, enjoyable experience. This document provides useful advice for parents and carers on frequently asked cycling questions. - Department for Planning and Infrastructure (WA), website, Teaching a child to ride should be done in steps, Cycling fact sheet No. 15, Government of Western Australia
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This document provides an outline of the steps involved in helping children to begin to ride.
New South Wales:
- Roads and Traffic Authority, website, Bicycle education
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Provides a list of contacts for bicycle education programs and centres across metropolitan and regional NSW.
Queensland:
- Queensland Transport, website, Bicycle education
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This webpage provides introductory information and relevant links to bicycle education programs and resources for Queensland. - Queensland Transport, 2001, Cycling: a guide for parents and carers, Queensland Government.
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This guide outlines basic cycle safety information useful for parents and carers, as well as contact information for Bike Ed programs in Queensland.
South Australia:
- Department for Transport, Energy and Infrastructure, website, Bike Ed Program
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Bike Ed is the national bicycle education program and is designed for primary school children. - Safe Routes to School Program
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Tasmania:
- Cycling South, website, Cycle training courses
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This webpage outlines a range of bicycle training courses on offer in Tasmania, including beginners, intermediate and commuter courses.
Victoria:
- Bicycle Victoria, website, Bicycle education for children and adults
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This short document provides a brief overview of the importance of bicycle education programs, an explanation of Bike Ed and Cycle On, as well as a list of Victorian based cycle education providers. - Bicycle Victoria, 2006, Traffic schools, Bicycle Victoria, Melbourne.
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This document provides an explanation of traffic schools and their locations across Victoria. - Bicycle Victoria, website, Education programs
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This page provides a general overview of bicycle education, with useful links. - TravelSmart (VIC), website, TravelSmart Education
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This webpage outlines the Victorian Government’s TravelSmart Education program; run in two separate streams, schools and universities. - Environment Victoria, Families of the future - cycling with kids
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Introductory courses on family cycling for parents of young children and children riding together. - Walk and Ride Wednesday
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Evaluation of a pilot project funded by Environmnet Victoria, Shire of Melton and the Australian Government Department of the Environment and Heritage - getting school aged children to walk and cycle to school.
Western Australia:
- Department for Planning and Infrastructure (WA), undated, Children really benefit from riding to school, Cycling fact sheet No. 35, Government of Western Australia.
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This document provides helpful tips to parents interested in enabling their children to ride safely to school.
New Zealand:
- Christchurch City Council, website, Cycle Safe Christchurch
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Cycle Safe Christchurch is a cycling program operating in Christchurch for school pupils in grade 6. - NZ Transport Agency (2008) Cyclist skills training - A guide for the set-up and delivery of cyclist training in New Zealand, Prepared by Opus International Consultants Ltd
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The guidelines have been adapted to suit the New Zealand environment from the UK Bikeability programme established on behalf of Cycling England. These guidelines have been evaluated as best practice, particularly for providing practical cycling skills on the road. - NZ Transport Agency (2008) "Cyclist skills training: Summary of the guide",
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Cyclist skills training: A guide for the set-up and delivery of cyclist training in New Zealand outlines:- a consistent ‘best practice’ approach for the delivery of cyclist skills training in New Zealand
- the cyclist skill sets (or outcomes) that need to be achieved at each level of training.
International:
- Litman, T., 2007, School transport management: encouraging alternatives to driving to school, Victoria Transport Policy Institute, Canada.
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This section of the TDM Encyclopedia Visit Site provides useful information, including many hyperlinks, for those wishing to reduce car trips to school by making it safer and more enjoyable to cycle. - Cycle Training Standards Board
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The Cycle Training Standards Board (CTSB) was formed in February 2007 by the Department for Transport as the custodian body of the National Standards for Cycle Training. The National Standards are the Government approved standards for cycle training. The CTSB replaces the development group, which over the last four years has developed and refined The National Standards. - Bikeability Website
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Bikeability is a brand new cycling award scheme which before long will have thousands of children whizzing about on their bikes and pedalling their way to success. - Robin Urban Smith (2008) "P.S.76 Bike Rodeo", StreetFilms (2:50 mins)
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Students at P.S. 76, the Bennington School, in the Bronx, celebrated the completion of a month long physical education unit on bike safety and riding by holding a schoolyard bike "rodeo" on Wednesday. - Mozer, D. Tips for Teaching / Learning to Bicycle, IBike
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The traditional method of teaching a kid to bicycle was to run along side them holding them up-right and pushing them until they final did it under their own power and coordination. A tool to help with this is the " EZ-Bar". More on common mistakes while teaching bicycling. - Mozer, D. Infant / Baby / Kid; Bicycle, Trailer, Backpack, Child Carrier, Helmet & Bike Safety
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The primary determinant of when an infant can join his or her parents on bike rides is the strength of the the child's neck. Because of the jostling and the additional weight of a helmet (8-10 oz.), this is a few months after a baby can first hold their head up. Note: Some jurisdictions have laws requiring passengers on bicycles to be at least one year old.
Usually by age 12 months parents can start checking with the child's physician to see if they have the neck development to safely go for a bike ride. Most toddlers' neck and shoulder muscles can tolerate the weight of a helmet and absorb shock from bumps in the road at 1 years old.
