the contribution of human powered vehicles and new bicycle technologies to mobility in africa dr...

The contribution of human powered vehicles and new bicycle technologies to mobility in Africa

Dr Peter Cox

Cycles and sustainable development

• What kind of cities do we want to have?– equality of access (affordability and inclusivity) – safe for all (young and old alike) – desirable environments – high air quality – low noise pollution

• Hyper-mobility (too much) is as much a problem as hypo-mobility (too little)

• Cleaner fuels can simply lead to smogless congestion• Well-planned sustainable development holds the

possibility of a ‘leapfrog’ factor - bypassing the wasted years of auto-domination (visible in congested British cities)

Successful examples -Infrastructure and Advocacy

Planning for cycling is not a matter of luxury but a matter of justice

• I-CE (Interface for Cycling Expertise - Netherlands)– Partnering European experience of infrastructure planning with local

development strategies

• BEN (Bicycling Empowerment Network South Africa)– Demonstrating multiple benefits of cycling

• Access to work and education• Increased productivity• Building light engineering

capacity

• Health, fitness and wellbeing• Higher quality public space• Potential for indigenous

production and endogenous economic growth

Barriers: perceptual and industrial

• Popular sterotypes of cycle obsolescence can be overcome by innovative design

• Link cycling with positive social imagery

• High quality and integral infrastructure

• Ambivalence of importing second-hand machinery – only a partial solution

• Current manufacturing investment from China

• Obvious opportunities for introduction of specifically built and designed cycles for African markets

Technologies as social constructions

• The bicycle is not a ‘designed’ technology but arises through a series of compromises and conventions

“…the absurdity of bicycle design progress for the last hundred years or so…

If car design had taken the same route [as cycle design], we would be driving Model A cars with titanium frames and the hand crank would be carbon fibre.”Leigh Wade Bike Report May 1990

Innovations in frame design

Load carrying and work bikes

Future technologies

• User innovators in EU and in Africa tend to be knowledge rich but resource poor

• Co-design engaging with open source approaches

• Creative solutions

Human-electric hybrid vehicles

The Bakmobile

a hybrid power delivery vehicle

• Pedal and electric combined allow much lighter weight than conventional electric vehicles

• Regenerative braking to maximise range

• Potential for solar cell addition to make entirely self-contained vehicle

Opportunities for investment

• Not just infrastructure

• Rider experience matters

• Partnership analysis of needs and solutions enables better planning

• Endogenous manufacture The mayor of Cape Town going by cycle taxi…