An official source at the Ministry of Higher Education revealed the full details of the national bicycle initiative "bicycle for every student", under the auspices of the Egyptian Sports Federation of Universities (EUSF).
The source told Sada el-Balad English (SEE) that the initiative is scheduled to start with the beginning of the new academic year 2019-20, stressing that students and faculty will not be obliged to purchase the bike, pointing out that Egyptian universities have 3 million students and about 100,000 faculty teaching members.
The source added that the bike will be manufactured in Egypt by the Ministry of Military Production to be the first 100% homemade bike.
The bike will be manufactured in 3 different types including road bike 3000-6000 Egyptian pounds, BMX with a price range of 6 thousand pounds, and hybrid bike that will be priced between 2800-3400 pounds.
He continued, that the Egyptian Sports Union held meetings with national entities including Banque Du Caire, the National Bank of Egypt (NBE), and Banque Misr to develop details of obtaining loans to finance the bike, including a monthly installment of 100 pounds.
He explained that the first phase of the project will include the nomination of 100 outstanding students in the fields of science, sports, art and culture, and another 5% of the teaching staff to receive the bikes with soft loans.
The second phase will include a monthly bicycle festivals and events after installing tracks inside the universities, suitable storage areas, maintenance units and providing spare parts.
As for the storage of bicycles, a park in multiple areas will be constructed within the universities' campuses and operated by electronic magnetic card in the park machines.
The card works by charging the amounts of money determining the number of use of the Park, and a wheel smart meter to give students prizes for the longest distance traveled.
The source added that a mobile application will also be available, providing all information regarding awards and discounts, ranging from 20 % Up to 100% for all competing students. He continued that the bicycles will have license plates and a smart card.
Meanwhile, a bicycle track is currently being paved from the fifth settlement to the Ramses Square.
As for the objectives of the project, the source stressed that its main purpose is reducing pollution caused by transportation, and raising the level of fitness for students and university staff, as well developing relations between university bike users.
Contributed by: Taarek Refaat
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