#BIKE2WORK AND EVERYWHERE: How youth activists from Zaporizhzhia are transforming an industrial city into a bicycle-friendly city

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12.09.2019

The industrial city Zaporizhzhia has started on a path to make itself greener. Its city council allocated UAH 850,000 (USD 31,000) for the development of bicycle infrastructure in 2019. Then in April, the city’s Department of Infrastructure and Urban Facilities announced a tender for a concept on developing cycling infrastructure. A targeted advocacy campaign, organised by the NGO Spilno HUB with UNDP support, was behind this success.

Iryna Yarko, media coordinator of the “Bicycle Infrastructure Development in Zaporizhzhia” campaign, says cycling is not just good for health ­­– it’s a creative way to bring people together.

“People who ride bikes are our inspiration,” Yarko says. “Indeed, the bicycle is not only the perfect form of transport to get to work or enjoy some leisure activities, it also brings proactive citizens together, creating an engaged community.”

Yarko also believes initiatives like the Cycling Infrastructure Development Programme approved by the city council could transform Zaporizhzhia into an eco-friendlier city.

“We’re breaking the stereotype that Zaporizhzhia is a city of factories,” the civic activist says. “It’s a city that brings about opportunities for social initiatives and positive changes. The key here is to come up with your big idea and start acting.”

Almost a third of the residents of Zaporizhzhia -- a city with a population of 149,000, located some 430 kilometres south-east of Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv – regularly ride bicycles, according to a 2017 sociological survey by Zaporizhzhia National University.

Young people make up a significant share of active cyclists, with 38 percent of bike riders being young people aged 18-29. Another 29 percent are people aged 30 to 39, and 32 percent are those aged 40 to 60.

On top of that, nearly 52,000 city residents say they would ride a bicycle, but are hesitant about doing so. What’s holding them back, according to the survey, is that many think bicycle infrastructure is still not well enough developed to travel safely in the city on two wheels.

So the newly approved municipal program opens a real opportunity to turn Zaporizhzhia into a "green" city, where the bicycle becomes a common means of transport -- just as in many developed cities around the world, explains Oleksandr Ralyk, a Spilno HUB volunteer and a private entrepreneur.

“According to the programme approved by the city council in December 2018, there will be a bicycle infrastructure plan developed for Zaporizhzhia,” Ralyk says. “Besides, from 2020 onwards, funds are to be allocated for the construction of cycle paths.”

The Cycling Infrastructure Development Programme in Zaporizhzhia has only been approved for 2019. But Ralyk has no doubt that the city authorities will go on to approve a strategy for cycling infrastructure development, and allocate funds for the next few years as well.

Crucially, this openness to cooperation from the city authorities is not some kind of a miracle: it is the practical result of a well-developed advocacy campaign and a productive dialogue with local officials. Maksym Kushchenko, Head of the Roads and Bridges Infrastructure Department in Zaporizhzhia City Council, welcomes the bicycle community’s initiatives: “Our youth is active, positive and full of ideas. It’s great that they put forth these changes,” he says.

It started merely as an initiative from civic activists to develop a bicycle infrastructure. Initially, the city council received a petition requesting the approval of the Cycling Infrastructure Development Program.

But by December 2018, city council deputies voted to approve the program at the council’s 47th session. The Spilno HUB activists actively participated at all stages of the process: from discussing the programme in committee, drawing up a draft of the programme together with officials, and planning budget allocations.

“The programme details a step-by-step plan. Its key principle is this one: safe roads for all – cyclists, drivers, and pedestrians,” Kushchenko stresses.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR ADVOCACY CAMPAIGN A SUCCESS

Anna Dvorna, chairwoman of Spilno HUB learned how to plan and implement an advocacy campaign, and how to motivate young people to bring about positive changes, at a UNDP training course on Civic Education for Youth Workers.

Here, Dvorna shares the secrets of advocacy for civic activists:

Start your advocacy campaign well in advance. Carefully plan your campaign, and progress step-by-step.

Meet state officials face-to-face to have discussions with key decision makers. It’s essential to maintain cooperation with them throughout the whole process.

Engage fellow citizens in decision-making: Committed residents of your city could be co-creators of positive changes, and they will become your allies.

Remember: even if a decision is taken – this is just the beginning. Next, the advocacy should focus on achieving the implementation of the adopted strategy.

The Advocacy Campaign for the bicycle infrastructure development in Zaporizhzhia was implemented as part of the Civic Education for Youth Workers Course under the Youth Worker Program, supported by the Civil Society for Enhanced Democracy and Human Rights in Ukraine Programme of United Nations Development Program in Ukraine and funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark.

Text: Oksana Khomei, photo credit: Alina Yermolaieva / UNDP Ukraine

Zaporizhzhia, Zaporizhia Oblast, Ukraine

The full story is available at https://undpukraine.exposure.co/bike2work-and-everywhere