Cycling has presented such a booming economic opportunity in the Western Cape that provincial government has now launched brand-new department that will lend itself towards growing cycling opportunities in the Mother City. The Department of Cycle Tourism is a new department within the Department of Economic Opportunities.
The new division will be headed by Quintin Smith, who will act as its deputy director, and will be dedicated to growing cycling opportunities in the province.
Cycling brings approximately R1-billion to the Western Cape’s economy, making it one of the province’s most profitable sporting incomes. This newly-launched department aims to turn the Western Cape into the cycling capital of the world.
Smith said that although this is ambitious, it is also entirely realistic.
The Department of Economic Opportunities has launched a series of cycling routes aimed at growing cycle tourism in the province in March this year.
The routes connect to form a total of 123 kilometers, and stretches from the V&A Waterfront to the Atlantic Seaboard, Hout bay, Chapman’s Peak, and ends at the beautiful Suikerbossie Hill.
“We encourage tourists and visitors to the City to see the city from the back of their bicycles and we are hoping that along the way they’ll stop in coffee shops and use businesses along the route so that we can grow the economies in those areas,” said Bianca Capazorio, spokesperson for the Department of Economic Opportunities.
Alan Winde, MEC for Economic Opportunities, has been expressing plans to turn the Western Cape into the continent’s cycling hub as far back as 2015, and even proposed a cycling track stretching from Plettenberg Bay to Cape Town.
If you are an avid cyclist in the Mother City, check out our list of must-try scenic bike routes here.
Picture: Unsplash