{"id":17204,"date":"2025-11-22T01:01:02","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T23:01:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/?p=17204"},"modified":"2026-10-24T15:03:12","modified_gmt":"2026-10-24T13:03:12","slug":"cyclists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zawia3.com\/en\/cyclists\/","title":{"rendered":"Cycling at Risk: Egypt\u2019s Riders Face Unsafe Roads and Inadequate Protection"},"content":{"rendered":"

On 3 September last, Marwa Okasha was preparing her bag to travel by bicycle from Cairo to Fayoum, packing what she needed for three days of camping: clothes and some of the snacks and crisps she loves. She was excited about her trip, which she was making to the same governorate for the fifth time; she did not know that she would be involved in a painful accident that would keep her in intensive care for two weeks, and that she would even need three months to recover from the injuries she sustained.<\/span><\/p>\n

Marwa does not remember the moment of the accident itself, but she does not forget when she began to regain consciousness after being taken to Fayoum General Hospital, calling for her late mother: “I was screaming and calling for Mama: where’s Mama, bring me Mama?” Her wound was deep, inside and out, as she suffered fractures in the metatarsals of her right foot, a crack in her left knee, bruises on her abdomen and back, a laceration to her scalp that resulted in a haematoma, severe fluid on the lung and other injuries, which required her to be put on an oxygen machine for more than a week.<\/span><\/p>\n

Marwa was given a new lease of life after surviving certain death, as her sister Hala, founder of the “Cairo Bike Forever” team, recounts to Zawia3; but Mohamed Mansour, 19, bid farewell to his bicycle forever after a horrific accident on the Ring Road in November 2024 that claimed his life, when he was on his way to take part in a cycling competition representing universities and institutes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Death on the road <\/b><\/h1>\n

His father, Mansour Mohamed, received the news of his son’s death from Facebook: “They said Mohamed had an accident on the Ring Road and they posted his picture.” The father rushed to Warraq Central Hospital to find his son a lifeless body. He took part in washing him, stressing that the impact his son suffered was not from behind but on the front wheel of his bicycle, which damaged the bicycle’s cables and broke his helmet. He suffered fractures in his hand and head and died instantly at the scene of the accident, according to what he told Zawia3.<\/span><\/p>\n

His father tells Zawia3 that his son was strongly attached to his bicycle: “He loved the bike so much that he used to put it on the bed beside him. He feared for it more than he feared for himself. I used to joke with him and say: Mohamed, let’s sell the bicycle, and he would reply: No, I might sell myself, but not the bicycle,” noting that Mohamed felt anxious and tense on the night of the race and went out early in the morning, at around five at dawn, to prepare for it; it was scheduled to take place in Mostakbal City: “He had great hopes of taking first place in the competition.” The late young man had previously achieved top rankings, coming second at the level of institutes and seventh nationwide. <\/span><\/p>\n

The father completed all the procedures, filed a police report on the incident and obtained his son’s death certificate, unable to believe that he had lost him forever: “Mohamed was kind, decent and loved by everyone, and that is what gives us patience over his loss.”<\/span><\/p>\n

The cyclists were not the only ones suffering; the suffering also extended to the <\/span>official website of the Egyptian Cycling Federation<\/span><\/a>, which has not been updated since June 2024; the speech of the former federation president, Wagih Azzam, still tops its homepage, in addition to news items that are years old, and besides that it takes a long time to load and contains none of the basic regulations governing the sport in Egypt.<\/span><\/p>\n

The same goes for the <\/span>Arab Cycling Federation<\/span><\/a>, whose website goes into updating as soon as one clicks to enter any page other than the homepage, and we were unable to access any regulations published on the two federations’ official websites to draw on as a reliable source.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the <\/span>Code of Ethics<\/span><\/a> of the International Cycling Union (UCI) highlights the responsibility of all its affiliated federations for protecting the physical and psychological safety of all participants in the world of cycling, and considers any violation that puts athletes at risk a breach of the principles of integrity and moral duty. The charter places the protection of cyclists’ lives at the heart of the obligations of federations and organisers, stressing that their duty is not limited to organising competitions but extends to providing a safe environment that protects against accidents, negligence and malpractice. <\/span><\/p>\n

It also stresses the need to take all measures that prevent negligence, intimidation or excessive physical pressure on cyclists, especially minors. The code is thus an ethical document that obliges everyone working in the cycling system to assume their responsibilities in preventing risks on the roads and protecting athletes’ lives, reflecting the world federation’s commitment to sport being a means to a healthy and safe life, not a cause of death or harm.<\/span><\/p>\n

But the cycling community in Egypt has come to feel panic with every picture of a cyclist injured on the road or of another who lost his life, because of the accidents that have spread widely in recent years, and its members hope that the risks will be reduced so that they do not lose another colleague, especially after the news of Marwa’s accident. She was with her sister Hala, part of a team of about 40 cyclists, competing to collect points to enter a draw for performing Umrah, announced by the Mishwar cycling team under the name “Al-Haram Al-Makki Marathon”. Marwa did not know that the trip she was excited about would land her in hospital instead of the draw.<\/span><\/p>\n

Her colleague Hesham Bakry, who was beside her on the road at exactly two in the morning on Wednesday 4 September, tells Zawia3: “We were riding together, observing all the safety precautions, with rear lights and protective helmets. Suddenly I found myself falling to the ground, while the car hurled Dr Marwa forcefully so that she fell onto its windscreen and then onto the ground. I called her sister Hala, who was ahead of us, and asked for an ambulance to take her quickly after she was injured and lost consciousness.<\/span><\/p>\n

Marwa stresses: “I like to ride calmly, and even when I drive my car I don’t like speed.” Her helmet split in two and her bicycle was completely destroyed, while Hesham suffered minor bruises.<\/span><\/p>\n

Zawia3 conducted an online opinion survey, in which 320 cyclists of both sexes took part, to measure the scale of the risks to which cyclists in Egypt are exposed and the most prominent problems they suffer on the road.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Participation came from various governorates, led by Cairo and Giza, then Alexandria, as shown in the following chart:<\/p>\n

\"Survey<\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

The following chart indicates that 86% of cyclists in Egypt have had accidents while riding on the road, a percentage that reveals the absence of safety and of infrastructure dedicated to them.<\/p>\n

\"86.6%<\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

The following chart also shows that more than 70% of cyclists in Egypt feel unsafe while riding, which reflects the scale of the challenges they face on the roads.<\/p>\n

\"71.25%<\/figure>\n

Protecting cyclists… whose responsibility?<\/b><\/h1>\n

Ayman Salem, executive director of the Cycling Federation, points to amendments in the new regulations, which require all cyclists nationwide to be registered under the federation’s umbrella, with amateur teams registered under the “Cycling for All” initiative: “Each group appoints a leader, who obtains an official card, in order to notify the federation before every activity so that matters can be coordinated with the traffic police.” Failure to register will mean being barred from participating in the future, in the interest of security and safety.<\/span><\/p>\n

In his conversation with us, he notes that the Sports Law of 2025 and the federation’s basic regulations stipulate the federation’s full responsibility for organising everything related to cycling in Egypt, with the requirement to notify the federation of any trips organised for cyclists.<\/span><\/p>\n

He explains that the medical and precautionary instructions issued by the Ministry of Youth and Sports have been applied to all sports federations, stressing that all players must undergo a medical examination and obtain medical and physical clearance, and that before any race or championship the security agencies and the traffic police are notified in order to secure and close the roads, so that the competitors ride in lanes of their own, something that did not exist previously, as he describes it.<\/span><\/p>\n

Salem also points out that cycle lanes are part of the state’s plans and not a decision for the federation alone, as budgets are allocated in coordination with the relevant bodies, stressing that cycling involves risks and that the federation seeks to provide means of safety to reduce accidents. Awareness programmes and educational courses are also offered in cooperation with the Ministry of Youth and Sports, which plays its part in continuous awareness-raising.<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, about 85% of cyclists believe that the roads they ride on are unsafe, as shown in the following chart:<\/p>\n

\"85%<\/figure>\n

Hamza Osama, a former member of Egypt’s national cycling and triathlon (running, cycling, swimming) teams, used to have an accident every two weeks, as he describes it, stressing that accidents had become part of his daily routine as a cyclist, reflecting the culture of recklessness that cyclists face. He says: “There are minor accidents that keep recurring, such as a driver suddenly opening his car door, or the mirror of a speeding microbus hitting me,” noting that in most of these cases the driver continued on his way without caring, and if he did stop, he would often blame the cyclist for riding on the road.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2019, the 25-year-old had a horrific accident near the Citadel area, an accident that changed the course of his life for a year and a half, when a speeding car hit him hard, breaking his helmet and causing him serious injuries to the head and body.<\/span><\/p>\n

He began a long and arduous course of treatment that lasted nearly a year and three months, during which he underwent five delicate surgical operations, including three brain operations. He adds: “I had a tube fitted to drain excess fluid from the brain, then another operation to lengthen it, and an appendectomy as a result of infections that spread from the implanted tube, and a fourth brain operation after pus in the brain and abdomen caused a swelling and a high fever, and the tube was removed: “After the tube was removed, I fell into a short coma and suffered temporary memory loss, and I do not remember any details of the accident up to the moment I woke up in hospital,” according to Hamza, speaking to Zawia3.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hamza’s ordeal did not end there; because of the multiple surgical operations and the general anaesthesia, his immunity collapsed completely, leaving him vulnerable to a severe coronavirus infection, which required him to be kept in hospital for an additional two weeks.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to the survey we conducted, 154 cyclists of both sexes stopped riding for a long period because of the accidents they had, some of them for two weeks, others for 3 months and even a year or more. This is despite about 84.8% of the 320 cyclists who took part in the survey wearing protective gear while riding, such as helmets and others.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Marwa also suffered from the fitting of a chest tube, which hurt her badly when it was inserted and removed. Her lung condition gradually improved, the excess fluid was drawn from it, and so was the oxygen: “The more the fluid on the lung receded, the better I began to breathe.” She now faces major challenges, from difficulty moving to pain in her rib cage: “Sometimes the painkillers don’t help, and I have begun to sense God’s many blessings, like being able to perform ablution on my own, for example.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Human and material losses<\/b><\/h1>\n

Recalling the first accident he had, Bigad Sherif, 21, recounts, speaking to Zawia3, that it was in late 2019; he was skilled and was riding fast on the Mokattam road, which had not yet been renovated. As he came down from the road and went up the Sayeda Zeinab bridge, the bicycle’s thin tyre got caught between the widely spaced iron of the bridge, while he was riding at 50 km\/h with cars behind him: “At that time I suffered a crack in the shoulder and bruises along the whole right side of my body, and despite that I chose not to go to hospital,” according to Bigad, speaking to Zawia3.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bigad began cycling professionally in 2019, after practising it as a hobby since childhood; he loved it but stopped for a while because of his family’s fears. Later, with encouragement from his friends, he bought a bicycle of his own, and over time he kept raising his level and changing his bicycle to suit his needs until he entered official races. His first championship was in 2020, and he has won many international, Arab and local championships.<\/span><\/p>\n

He says he has had multiple accidents, including one in Heliopolis near Al-Nasr Club in 2022, when a car that suddenly changed direction hit him, causing him and his friends to fall, but he was the only one injured, with multiple bruises. In Suez in 2022, he fell because of a large speed bump on a highway, damaging his bicycle and his shoes, which he had bought for EGP 12,000, and his phone was smashed too.<\/span><\/p>\n

In Maadi, while returning from the Sokhna road, he collided with a taxi at a speed bump near a mall, which left him with scratches. In another accident, also in Maadi, he suffered a cracked knee and wounds after falling into a broken section of the road as buses and a motorcycle suddenly passed.<\/span><\/p>\n

He explains that his latest accident was about a month and a half ago, on the Badya road in October City, when he hit a brick in the middle of the road during a solo training session and the bicycle flipped over, resulting in injuries, bruises and damage to his equipment.<\/span><\/p>\n

95% of the cyclists who took part in the survey confirmed the absence of dedicated cycle lanes, which threatens their lives and safety, as shown in the following chart:<\/p>\n

\"95%<\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

As for the types of accidents the cyclists have had, collisions with cars topped the survey, followed by falls caused by the condition of the road, then collisions with a bicycle or a motorcycle, in addition to other causes.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Types<\/figure>\n

“We are not deprived of anything”… In a couple of words, Nourhan Nagy, 28, sums up her relationship with her bicycle, despite having had two serious accidents. The first was in the autumn of 2023 on the Suez road, and she describes it as “human error”. She recalls: “I was at the end of a small group of six cyclists when a car came out of a side road and hit the edge of my bicycle from behind. It was a small knock, but it was enough to send me flying off the bicycle.” Despite suffering bruises and inflammation of the knee joint, Nourhan returned to her bicycle within two weeks.<\/span><\/p>\n

The second accident was harsher and reveals a danger of another kind: the neglect of infrastructure. It happened on the Mehwar road during her journey from her home in Ramses to her work in 6th of October. Nourhan says: “I was riding at a speed of about 55 km\/h, and suddenly I found myself facing a deep pothole that could not be avoided. It was either falling into the pothole, swerving towards the speeding cars, or crashing into a car parked on the right.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Nourhan chose the pothole, falling hard and suffering a deep wound to her knee that required stitches and left a permanent scar. This time, there was no driver to blame; rather, “the road” was the culprit.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hamza believes that responsibility for the accidents is shared. On the one hand, there is the recklessness of drivers and the absence of a culture that respects the cyclist as a partner on the road. On the other hand, he admits that professional cyclists are sometimes forced to take the risk of training in places not designated for bicycles, such as the Ring Road, for lack of suitable alternatives.<\/span><\/p>\n

He explains that the problem lies in the fact that cycle lanes, where they exist, are designed for amateurs and not for professionals, who need open spaces and high speeds. Regarding the accident of the October team, all of whose members were injured, he points out that it was caused by a drunk driver, which led to serious injuries to a number of his colleagues, most notably “Maram”, who still suffers from hemiplegia and is undergoing treatment: “Some of them are players I train, and their psychological and physical condition is bad.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Bigad also points out that he lost a friend in an accident on the Suez road, while another was seriously injured on the same road. He himself also went through an incident that angered him, when a Suzuki driver hit him in the lane dedicated to bicycles in Downtown and then got into an argument with him, blaming him for riding in his own dedicated lane, which the other man had turned into a garage to park his car, as he describes it.<\/span><\/p>\n

Bigad stresses that the biggest problem lies in the lack of awareness: “Sometimes people ask me to ride on the pavement even though I am wearing the national team kit and training officially. Some drivers deliberately harass us, stressing that these accidents have cost him nearly EGP 300,000 in equipment, whether rims and tyres or sportswear that tears with every accident: “In just one month I broke five bicycles.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, 91% of the cyclists who took part in the survey confirmed that they are harassed on the road while riding, as shown.<\/p>\n

\"91%<\/figure>\n

Captain Ehab Hafez, founder of the Mishwar team, tells Zawia3 that accidents are part of the game, saying: “I don’t say that because I am happy about them, but they are part of the game because our sport is very gruelling, whether it is touring or practising cycling professionally,” pointing out that other countries, unlike Egypt, have much higher awareness: “We have been working in the field of touring for about ten years; at the beginning, no one even knew what a bicycle was; drivers do not know about the bicycle and do not care about it.<\/span><\/p>\n

He adds: “The problem is not riding on the road; rather, it is about raising people’s awareness. Accidents exist, they will happen and they will not end, but we reduce them as much as possible: “I find myself watching the driver, his eyes meeting mine in the mirror, as he stops in front of me as if nothing were wrong”.<\/span><\/p>\n

The founder of the Mishwar team calls on the state to widen the roads and to build a cycle lane on all of Egypt’s roads, or on most of Egypt’s highways: “Before a road dedicated to bicycles was built in Ain Sokhna, accidents on it were very frequent. Now, all the road’s users know that this road is dedicated to bicycles”,<\/span><\/p>\n

On the precautionary measures that should be followed, he says: “The only thing we can say is that we, as cyclists, should take safety precautions as much as possible, and that the state should try to raise awareness or build roads or lanes dedicated to bicycles, such as cameras that catch anyone who crosses into or enters them. Because unfortunately, as a people, we only respond to firmness; if someone gets a fine, has his licence suspended or goes to prison, we will find that everyone starts to fear and respect cyclists,” stressing that the radical solution to limiting the risks of the roads lies in the decisions of the official bodies.<\/span><\/p>\n

He explains that recent years have witnessed many accidents involving cyclists on the road, in which some have died and others have been injured: “The accidents are countless, but in the end the sport is an addiction. Whoever truly loves it cannot stop; he gets broken, gets patched up and gets back up to ride again.”<\/span><\/p>\n

He also recalls some of the accidents that cyclists have faced, including the accident of the rider “Anas” years ago, when he collided with a car while trying to shelter from the wind, which caused him to fall into a large “manhole” and almost cost him his life, before he recovered, noting that the infrastructure in Egypt represents a particular challenge for cyclists.<\/span><\/p>\n

For his part, Magdy Salah El-Din, professor of road engineering and a member of the advisory committee of the “Egyptian Road Code”, stresses that the technical specifications for building safe, separate lanes for bicycles already exist and are documented in the code, but they are not applied on the ground because attention is focused on car lanes, explaining that the current road network is not designed efficiently enough to create bike lanes and stressing that the safe solution lies in having separate lanes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Lanes with execution suspended<\/b><\/h1>\n

In his conversation with us, the professor of road engineering stresses that the current disregard for cycle lanes is not merely a shortcoming but a kind of insufficient attention, stressing that the technical specifications for these lanes already exist but have not been applied, and he explains that the problem lies not in the absence of plans but in implementation.<\/span><\/p>\n

He points to some successful models in Europe, especially in the Netherlands, adding: “Even at the Arab level, we find that in Dubai matters have developed in terms of laws and traffic compliance. He calls for a return to the standards that are followed, by referring to the Egyptian specifications in this field and respecting these specifications in the new cities, for example. He calls for immediate decisions to be taken to improve the situation.<\/span><\/p>\n

The non-application of laws topped the survey results on the causes of accidents, followed by drivers’ lack of awareness and of a culture of cycling, the absence of urban planning and the poor condition of the roads.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

When we contacted Mohamed Ezz, the official spokesperson for the Ministry of Transport, for a response regarding the investigation, he told us to refer to the State Information Service, as we are a foreign website; on calling Diaa Rashwan, we have not received a response so far, despite repeated calls and contact via WhatsApp. <\/span><\/p>\n

Cyclists: safe lanes and laws for protection <\/b><\/h1>\n

The answers of the 320 male and female cyclists from various governorates who took part in the opinion survey conducted for this investigation reveal a shocking reality lived by bicycle users in Egypt. The participants stressed that accidents have become a recurring part of their daily experience on the roads, and that negligence and the lack of traffic awareness are the most prominent causes of those disasters. Many also pointed out that the behaviour of reckless drivers of cars, tuk-tuks and motorcycles represents the greatest danger, alongside dilapidated roads, poor lighting and the absence of safe lanes. <\/span><\/p>\n

A number of cyclists recount horrific accidents in which their colleagues lost their lives or suffered serious injuries, such as the 6th of October team accident and the accident of Dr Marwa Okasha, stressing that \u201ccycling in Egypt has become an adventure that may end in death\u201d. They called for safe lanes to be allocated to bicycles, for tighter traffic enforcement and for laws to be enacted to protect cyclists, alongside spreading a culture of respect for the road among all its users.. <\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Editorial correction: The first version of this report included, after the paragraph on the causes of accidents, a chart on military spending in the Middle East in 2017 that was inserted by mistake. That position concerns the results of Zawia3’s survey on the causes of accidents, so the chart has been removed.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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