Cycling in Eritrea.

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Globalti

Legendary Member
This BBC feature caught my eye: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-47709673

It's good to know that bicycles are given proper recognition in Eritrea as a convenient and affordable means of transport. In neighbouring Ethiopia, Sudan and almost all the other African countries I've visited, a bicycle is scorned as a poor person's transport and everybody aspires to owning a car, making the roads very dangerous and unhealthy for cyclists. There are pockets of sports use of bikes as @Cycleops will tell you and the Strava Global Heatmap shows sport cycling happening around cities like Accra, Lagos, Nairobbery etc. and a lot in South Africa, which has a much more sporting character.

Strava Global Heatmap: https://www.strava.com/heatmap#3.06/8.67370/12.20508/hot/ride

Ownership of GPS devices must have boomed in Africa even in the six months since I last looked at this fascinating website; it's even now showing bikes travelling down from Cairo to Addis and beyond.
 
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Brains

Legendary Member
Location
Greenwich
Some interesting regionalality in the map

For some reason Strava is far more popular in Cornwall than in Devon, and Suffolk rather than Norfolk

Germany is interesting, as Berlin and Hamburg are white as you would expect, but the area in-between is pretty dark

Looking at North Korea, you can practically work out where the individual diplomats live as there are so few tracks
 
OP
OP
Globalti

Globalti

Legendary Member
I know Lagos pretty well so I'm amazed to see how much people are riding around the city and even out into the bush, traffic being so dense and dangerous. Can only assume most riding happens early on Sunday mornings before people go out to church or visiting relatives or to the beach.
 

Gasman

Old enough to know better, too old to care!
IMG_20190316_120610.jpg

Just back from a holiday in Morocco. Not cycling but I did notice this sign on one of the larger roads.
 

lane

Veteran
Didn't know much about Eritrea so had a look. Very difficult to get a visa and lots of restrictions regarding movement when you get there. Internet is restricted on the same scale as North Korea and land borders are closed. Possibly not practical for a cheap winter cycling holiday. Looks a very nice place though.
 
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