Zille: the old bird gets more cycling than I do.

[Cippo]

So, Premier Helen Zille and a few of her ministers in Western Cape, representatives from BEN (Bicycle Empowerment Network), Argus PnP Cycle tour different WC goverment departments are cycling from Plettenberg Bay to Cape Town over next few days. They started in Plett today and cycled all the way to Knysna. Along the way from today they will stop off in towns and handover 100 bicycles donated by BEN to schools, neighbourhood watch and community organisations and health workers. The aim is to get kids to school in areas where transport is not available, to help community organisations like neighbourhood watches to patrol and assist health workers who deliver chronic medications. This is the first tour of more to come in province. Follow on Twitter , @HZsBTcycletour. Tommorrow they will do more than 60km from George to Mosselbay. Although they will not cycle the full distance from Plett to Cpt they will cover almost 250km in total over next few days. The tour ends at new Khayalitsha hospital on Thursday.

Edited June 17, 2012 by Super Mario

[Cippo]

The tour got caught in the rain today as they approached Knysna. On entering Knysna it came down in buckets and the Premier just kept on going. Seems like not even rain is going to stop the Premier.

 

Rule #9 of the Velominati says that if you ride in bad weather youre a bad ass.

[T-Bob]

Rule 9 is right...

 

Great initiative I reckon. Met the BEN guys and they are doing great things. Think Zille is building for a decent seeding for next years argus

[Cippo]

Rule 9 is right...

 

Great initiative I reckon. Met the BEN guys and they are doing great things. Think Zille is building for a decent seeding for next years argus

 

Well Dave Bellairs is in BT tour as well. Zille is reported to be doing Amashova this year as well. Its raining in George so Rule 9 is being enforced. Seems like an entry requirement for ministers to get into cabinet. Dan Plato, Donald Grant, ministers of housing, tourism, cultural affairs are there as well.

 

Guys and girls from BEN doing good work. To date I think they have handed out over 10000 bikes. Whoop whoop.

Edited June 18, 2012 by Super Mario

[Slowbee]

she really is riding the whole route ?

[Cippo]

she really is riding the whole route ?

 

Yes she is. Its in total over 200km. Today was from George to Mbay about 50km most of it in the rain. Stops are made along the way at community centres, schools and clinics.

[Chris Willemse]

Well done to Zille and her team. Had a couple of them in the shop spending some money. Even Dan Plato who is on a nice Cannondale MTB.

[Cippo]

Well done to Zille and her team. Had a couple of them in the shop spending some money. Even Dan Plato who is on a nice Cannondale MTB.

 

Mr. Plato is rolling along on a really nice Jekyll. Its really a good initiative and shows leadership that these ministers and premier have tackled this tour. Conditions on first two days have been tough.

[LeTurbo]

Media Statement by Premier Helen Zille

 

 

From Sunday, 17 June to Thursday, 21 June; I will be cycling with a group including provincial Cabinet Ministers, the Bicycle Empowerment Network, Cycling SA and some of our staff who work on projects like Shova Kalula and Safely Home, in stages, from Plettenberg Bay to Cape Town.

 

The aim of the Cycle Tour is to promote healthier life choices and to take our "Better Together" message out to residents of the province. "Better Together" is about opportunities and responsibility. We, as the government, have the duty to provide opportunities for citizens to improve their circumstances and empower themselves so they can live lives they value while citizens have the responsibility to make use of those opportunities and make the effort to improve their lives and those of others.

 

During the Cycle Tour, we will stop in Knysna, George, Mossel Bay, Albertinia, Riversdale, Swellendam, Hermanus, Strand and Khayelitsha to take part in events where we will handover more than a hundred bicycles to people to enable them to fulfil their responsibilities better.

 

The bicycles and other equipment will be handed over to neighbourhood watches, chronic medication dispensing units, farmworker development programmes and schools. People will use their bikes to improve their own and their communities' lives. The neighbourhood watches will use the bikes for patrols, the chronic medication dispensing units for making community care workers mobile, farmworker development programmes for children on farms to get to extra-mural activities and schools to assist with learner transport.

 

It is noteworthy and fortuitous that the second day of the Better Together Cycle Tour, Monday 18 June, is International Ride to Work Day, when people around the world are encouraged to commute to work on scooters, motorcycles and, ideally, bicycles. The day aims to highlight the benefits of using non-motor vehicle personal transportation such as:

• Saving time - by avoiding traffic congestion that often characterises daily commutes by car
  
• Saving money - by reducing, or eliminating, fuel consumption
  
• Saving the environment - by contributing to the reduction of carbon emissions and thus minimising personal carbon footprint
  

 

 

 

I therefore encourage commuters in Cape Town and around the province to ride (instead of driving) to work on 18 June and in this way, symbolically take part in the Better Together Cycle Tour in their own small way.

 

The Western Cape Government spends more than R1-billion each year on diseases that could be significantly reduced if everyone made healthier choices about their lives and sexual behaviour. This Cycle Tour not only demonstrates our active commitment to those lifestyle choices, it is an opportunity for me to take this important "Better Together" message out to the people themselves. We will continue providing excellent health services to the Western Cape, but it is everyone's responsibility to keep themselves as healthy as possible.

 

Then we could potentially save R1-billion we currently spend on preventable diseases to spend on other things like education, unpreventable health conditions and job creation.

 

This will be the first of several Better Together Cycle Tours that I will undertake. My aim is to have cycled throughout the Western Cape by the end of my term as Premier in 2014, spreading the message of active citizenship and co-responsibility to make things better together to all our residents.

[Clinton1]

Wonder when Zuma and his cronies will get on their bikes?

 

Yet another reason everyone should be voting DA. Don't just talk the talk...

[kosmonooit]

How much is this symbolic PR window dressing?

[Pieterg]

Zille for President

[Clinton1]

How much is this symbolic PR window dressing?

 

Is all interactions with the public not PR window dressing? The point is she is doing it and not just talking.

[kosmonooit]

Is all interactions with the public not PR window dressing? The point is she is doing it and not just talking.

 

What cycle down the road then jump in car around the corner like she did at Argus?

 

'lip service' to the cause i.m.h.o

 

c.f Mayor Boris in London. Not that I am Tory, but big up to him because he actually cycles to work.

[Clinton1]

What cycle down the road then jump in car around the corner like she did at Argus?

 

'lip service' to the cause i.m.h.o

 

c.f Mayor Boris in London. Not that I am Tory, but big up to him because he actually cycles to work.

 

Ahh, an anti-DA chap are you?

 

And stop making up crap, yes she did switch to a tandem at doctor's order but I see no mention of a car:

 

http://www.embark.co.za/index.php/2012/03/11/helen-zille-completes-the-argus/

[reteid]

was there not a picture of our friend juju in cyclelab checking out bikes awhile ago? maybe all these e toll things will now be reopened as bicycle lanes.