Pedal power sways Muscovites despite perils
Moscow: Two years ago, Luiza Nesterova would never have dreamt of cycling to work in Russia’s capital. But now she bikes everywhere, undeterred by busy roads that are still a battleground for cyclists.
In the city of 12 million, biking round snarled streets seems to make perfect sense, but Moscow “isn’t an easy city for cyclists,” admits 30-year-old Nesterova, a consultant in a finance company. Uncrossable highways filled with speeding cars cut through the centre, drivers are oblivious to cyclists and, for over half the year, the city is smothered in snow and ice.
Every day — winter or summer — Nesterova gets on her pale green bike, undaunted, and rides for more than five kilometres along very busy roads with no cycle lanes and no cycle helmet. “When it snows, I just wear warmer gloves,” she says, adding that she gets in the saddle even when it is minus 27 degrees Celsius.
To encourage other Muscovites to do the same, she has created an Instagram page — @luizinbike2.0 — that gets viewed more than 5,400 times per day. She often gets interviewed by Russian media and has become a kind of “ambassador” for cycling.
“My dream is for cycling to become the norm and for people not to see me as ‘brave’ any more,” she said.
“There are more and more people, who would like to ride bikes but they are very scared of cars here and so drivers don’t learn to share the road with cyclists.”
“Moscow is a city made for cars.”
In a bid to change that negative image, Moscow city hall has invested in developing cycling over the last couple of years.
In 2013 the city launched its own bike sharing system, Velobike, copying the “Boris Bikes” and “Velib” networks in London and Paris.
Last year, some 196,000 people got bikes from the now 380 stations around the city. The authorities spend some 150 million rubles ($2.5 million, 2.2 million euros) annually on the scheme.
At the same time, Moscow’s modest number of cycle lanes has also expanded. But, still, it remains just a fraction of the amount in established bike-friendly capitals in Western Europe.