“Little by little I began to enjoy an unprecedented succession of colors and shapes even with my eyes closed. Fantastic kaleidoscopic images arose in me, alternating, varied, opened and closed in circles and spirals, and exploded as sources of color, rearranged and mixed in a constant flow.”
Hofmann's narration well describes a bike trip (also drug-free!), and this gave rise to the celebration, which became official on April 19th, 1985 when Thomas B. Roberts, a university professor from Illinois, wanted to commemorate this experience.
From human traction to electricity
The evolution of the bicycle has been more focused on design, since its principle of mobility remains the same: pedaling on two wheels. Today, with the rise of electric, they have not only become more effective in transporting people, but they have also been definitively integrated into the sustainable vehicle segment.
At Enel X, our business division that goes hand in hand with these trends, we have Enel electric bicycles with permission to ride on Bogota's bicycle lanes, as they meet the legal requirements for maximum speed and assisted pedaling.
Advantages of this type of transport include, in addition to cutting down CO2 emissions, reduced travel time within the city and the possibility to exercise while traveling.
Safe mobility
During these times of quarantine, the bicycle has become the vehicle with the least mobility restrictions in Bogota, because it is the most versatile means of transport by allowing long or very short journeys, it is cost-free, promotes social distancing and also, it is easy to disinfect.
Based on these advantages, the Bogota Mobility Secretariat has enabled, since the beginning of the quarantine to date, additional routes or emergency bicycle lanes in high demand roads, such as Carrera Séptima, Las Américas, Avenida Boyacá, Calle 26 and Calle 80.
This means that, to the 550 kilometers of existing routes, 35 kilometers of temporary bicycle lanes with support personnel were added. The initiative was followed by cities such as Mexico City, New York, Berlin, Toronto, Washington and Auckland, among others.
Pedal to help
Likewise, electric bikes from a well-known bicycle rental brand have been presented as a very valuable mobility option for medical personnel who are attending to health emergencies.
The company lent 400 vehicles to doctors and nurses of the public health system so that they can move without risk of contagion. The initiative is part of the Bogota Mayor's Office “Bogota solidarity at home” program, which ensures a minimum income for the city's most vulnerable families while the quarantine lasts.
From every point of view, bicycles are the transportation means of the future, and perhaps it is time for more of us to adopt them when everything returns to "normal" and we are looking to improve on some aspects of our old lives.