You can currently collect your free copy of the JUCA Johannesburg Bicycle Commuter Map from the following locations. We will update this as new locations are added.

Whippet Cycles – 300 Commissioner St, Maboneng (Jeppestown)

Linden Cycles – 3rd Avenue, Linden

Dunkeld Cycles – Lower Level, Dunkeld West Shopping Centre, Corner of Bompas & Jan Smuts

Sprocket and Jack – 45 Chester Rd, Parkwood

Cycology – 44 Stanley Avenue, Milpark

Mike’s Bikes – 39 Gleneagles Road, Greenside

Westdene Cycles – 13 Perth Road, Westdene

Linkd Offices – 2 Sherwood Rd, Forest Town

DOPE store – 95 Commissioner Street, CBD

Boundless – 129 Fox Street 1st floor, CBD

Article by Nkululeko Sithole, Cycle Wits

The Johannesburg Urban Cyclists Association (JUCA) has sponsored two of Wits’ greats: Jamie Mithi and Henry Masuku with bicycles for the 2015 cycling advocacy and training programme. As part of the sponsorship, the two students also received helmets, locks, repair kits and training.

Jamie, a Law student, SCR wellness officer and Project W executive member is one of the lucky recipients of this generous donation from JUCA for the year 2015. As part of his engagement with the programme, he gets to use the bicycle to commute to and fro campus and advocate for cycling to students around campus. As a Project W executive member, his roles for Cycle Wits include campaigning for the building or structuring of bike ramps around campus for students who cycle and to get the school counsel aware on issues related to cycling on and around campus.

When interviewed about his feelings on cycling and how he thinks the school can make cycling visible and a possibility to other students who are interested in it, he responded by saying that the University should provide more bicycle parking racks to ensure safety for cyclists who fear using their bicycles to get to school because of less or invisible parking spaces and that cycling culture should be expanded to attract more students to start cycling.  As a gym fanatic, he furthermore states that cycling has helped him burn belly fat and that his friends and peers think he looks “really cool” as a cycler. He adds that cycling helps evade horrendous Johannesburg traffic and that it helps him get to the places he wishes faster than walking does.

Henry Masuku is a Medical student at Wits University and resides in Newtown. He is also an executive member of Project W at the University. He says that he started cycling as a way of saving transport money commuting to and from Newtown daily, and that being sponsored with a bike helped a lot! Adding to that, he says there are a few downsides to cycling like hearing the sounds of car engines and hoots while riding, but the advantages of cycling surpasses them. He says, as a fitness worm, he enjoys the extra-workout that cycling provides for him and that the admiration he gets from his peers is awesome. He’s asked questions like, where did you get your bike? How can I get one? Etc. which proves that quite a considerable amount of people want to partake in cycling.

With regards to how he feels other people can be convinced to cycle more, he advises more commuter cycling on and around Wits campus, connecting with Cycle Wits, the staff/student cyclist group and that if the school put up more parking racks those students with bicycles would use them to travel to school.

 

On Saturday 14 March 2015, the Johannesburg Urban Cyclists Association (JUCA) celebrated a first for the city: the launch of the first ever Johannesburg Commuter Bicycle Map. Speakers at the launch included Rehana Moosajee, Gauteng MEC for Roads & Transport, Ismal Vadi, and David du Preez.

Here is a short clip of the MEC’s speech:

The map shows safer, quieter and least hilly cycling routes through the City. Showing the new bicycle lanes built by the City, as well as those that will be built over the next year, the map also includes sites of interest, such as public swimming pools, markets and parks, and key public transport nodes (such as train stations). The aim of the map is to show that it is possible to cycle around Johannesburg, and to encourage people to try cycling as a transport option.

The map will be distributed for free at tourism agencies, cycling shops, universities, public offices and elsewhere. People can also request copies of the map by contacting JUCA .

The launch of the commuter map is a significant achievement and testimony to the power of partnership. First conceived of by a JUCA, the 100 kilometers of routes on the map were voluntarily tested by a number of experienced commuter cyclists, who gave of their time and energy to test-ride all the routes.

The map also includes journey time estimates. For example, to cycle from Westbury to the CBD, it takes 40 minutes there and 45 minutes back for a cyclist of average fitness and experience.

The map is currntly only available in print form. Please contact us to get your copy.

The production and printing of the map was made possible by sponsors, the University of the Witwatersrand and Levi Commuter, as well as the in-kind input of mapping and design expertise from Esri South Africa and The Content Bar respectively.

“For a community based organization this is a significant milestone”, said David Du Preez, Chairperson of JUCA. “We are very proud of this achievement, and believe that many commuter cyclists – existing and future – will find our map very useful. In the future we hope to develop an mobile digital app based on this map, in order to make it even more accessible.”

Below are some images from the launch of the map.

Our thanks to Whippet Cycling for hosting our launch outside their shop, and all who came to celebrate with us.