Premier and Cabinet cycle nearly 200km to give 300 bicycles to Western Cape schools
The provincial government's annual cycle tour handed bikes to 42 mostly rural schools and neighbourhood watches, and remembered a 16-year-old cyclist killed last month.
Saldanha Bay — Western Cape Premier Alan Winde and his Cabinet spent five days on their bikes, from 5 to 9 October, riding nearly 200km from Saldanha Bay to hand over 300 bicycles to schools and neighbourhood watch groups, the provincial government said.
The annual Western Cape Government Cycle Tour, part of Mobility Month this year, visited 42 schools, most of them in rural areas, with partners including the Pedal Power Association and the Bicycling Empowerment Network.
Winde said getting more people onto bicycles builds healthier lives, reduces reliance on cars and makes roads safer. The bikes are meant to give learners the benefits of cycling while teaching them to look after and share them, and to help neighbourhood watches keep communities safe. "Sometimes the best way forward is to pedal," he said.
Remembering Lilitha
On the final day, riders remembered Lilitha Lombo, 16, a member of Khaltsha Cycles Development Club, who was killed in a hit-and-run while cycling in Somerset West at the end of September. "Our roads are for everyone, not just motorists," Winde said, urging motorists, cyclists and pedestrians to look out for one another.
Source: Western Cape Office of the Premier, 11 October 2026.
