Mayor Son Bae-chan vows to improve cycling conditions residents can feel
Paju announced Thursday that it has won the top prize in Gyeonggi Province's "2026 Bicycle Use Promotion Policy Evaluation" for cities and counties.
The evaluation assessed all 31 cities and counties in Gyeonggi Province across three areas: bicycle safety accident prevention measures, maintenance of cycling paths and policies to promote their use, and outstanding initiatives to encourage cycling overall.
Paju earned high marks for improving cycling infrastructure with rider safety in mind, running hands-on safety education programs and campaigning to spread a culture of safe cycling.
The city was particularly recognized for repaving aging sections of the Pyeonghwa Nuri-gil bicycle path and for conducting regular safety inspections and facility maintenance to keep cycling conditions pleasant.
Paju also ran a mobile bicycle safety education program for elementary school students across the city. The program included hands-on sessions where participants climbed into the driver's seat of large vehicles to experience blind spots firsthand, as well as demonstrations comparing the braking distances of fixed-gear bicycles — which have recently drawn safety concerns — and conventional bicycles, with the aim of preventing traffic accidents in everyday situations.
"We will do our best to improve cycling conditions that residents can truly feel, through measures such as upgrading aging bicycle paths and expanding hands-on safety education," Mayor Son Bae-chan said.
pjh@heraldcorp.com
