Cycling Week hopes for traffic to run peacefully

The Helsinki Metropolitan Area Cycling Week invites locals to get on their bikes between 3 and 12 May 2024. The bicycle commuters are served breakfast in Keilaniemi on Wednesday May 8 from 7:00 till 9:00. The free and low-threshold events welcome cyclists and bicycle enthusiasts of all ages and levels. You do not need to have your own bike to participate, city bikes are an adequate option. 
 
The theme for the week is peaceful traffic, which refers to a calm traffic environment and the calm behaviour of road users. A traffic environment and traffic culture that are perceived to be safe and peaceful increase the appeal of cycling among all age groups.  
 
The traffic environment can be calmed through limitations and by structural means that are known to be important for traffic safety and comfort. Calming the traffic environment is important in every location where the aim is to improve the appeal and safety of walking and cycling. Special attention must be paid to areas that already have or are intended to draw large numbers of children. These include day care and school route as well as the nearby areas of schools and day care centres. Correspondingly, peaceful traffic environments are needed for recreational trips in the vicinity of cultural institutions, libraries and sports facilities. 
 
“When the traffic environment is sufficiently safe and smooth for children to cycle independently, it will be exactly that for everyone from beginners to seniors – regardless of age,” explains Executive Director of Helsinki Region Cyclists (Hepo) Henni Ahvenlampi. 
 
The Cycling Week in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area is coordinated by Helsinki Region Cyclists association (Hepo). The week’s events will be organised in cooperation with the cities of Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa Helsinki Region Transport (HSL), and other operators in the bicycle sector. Hepo volunteers will also contribute to the event. 
 
The aim of both the Helsinki Metropolitan Area cities and the Cycling Week events is to encourage people to cycle and increase the use of bicycles in all travelling. We encourage people to consider their options when moving from one place to another. It is important to increase people’s awareness of the benefits of cycling and to enhance cycling’s position in our traffic culture. In terms of the bicycle infrastructure, we encourage building an environment where people of all ages with different types of bikes can both ride and park their bikes safely and with ease during all seasons. 
 

  
Wednesday 8/5

Breakfast for Cyclists

The popular Breakfast for Cyclists event invites everyone to pedal to Keilaniemi in Espoo. Breakfast catering will be available Wednesday 8 May in Keilaniemi, Espoo, in front of Laguuni. Hepo volunteers will serve breakfast to cyclists from 7:00 till 9:00. 
 
Espoo Breakfast for Cyclists event in Facebook: https://fb.me/e/1yxnDNkhi(external link, opens in a new window) 

Friday, 10 May

Release of the school route orienteering

The school route orienteering for the Cycling Week will be released on Friday 10 May at hepo.fi(external link, opens in a new window). The orienteering invites the whole family to explore the best and most promising school routes in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. You can cycle the route in your own time and go through only one school route, for example.

Programmes for the events will be published at hepo.fi/pyorailyviikko/(external link, opens in a new window) and Hepo’s Facebook(external link, opens in a new window) events. 
 
More information on Cycling Week: 
 
Taija Timonen 
Producer, Helsinki Region Cyclists, +358 50 0877877, taija.timonen@hepo.fi 
 
Henni Ahvenlampi 
Executive Director, Helsinki Region Cyclists, +358 41 3191002, henni.ahvenlampi@hepo.fi 
 
Helsinki Region Cyclists

Helsinki Region Cyclists (Hepo) is a non-government organisation focused on the promotion of cycling.

Network of cycling municipalities

The network of cycling municipalities coordinate the national Cycling Week which is the largest and most diverse cycling event in Finland. The Cycling Week mobilises thousands of Finnish people and attracts new cyclists.