Did you know that the City of Melbourne has more than 135 kilometres of on and off-road routes in its cycling network, and more than 2,700 parking hoops located across the municipality? It's clear that cycling is a favourite pastime and mode of transport for Melburnians, and if you're a pedestrian or drive a car, you're likely to be sharing the road and pathways with at least a handful of cyclists at any given time. In recognition of our city's love of two wheels, CNN ranked Melbourne in fifth place on its list of the top ten bicycle cities in the world.
We share the list with famed bike-friendly cities like Copenhagen in Denmark, where around 70 per cent of residents own a bike and 45 per cent of commutes are by bike, and Antwerp in Belgium, which came in third place on the latest Global Bicycle Cities Index. Other cities on the list include Bern in Switzerland, Leipzig in Germany, Montreal in Canada, San Francisco in the USA, Strasbourg in France, Tel Aviv in Israel and Utrecht in the Netherlands.
If you're a two-wheel fanatic, you're probably already familiar with the cycling routes that make our city so special, but for those who aren't, here are some wheely great spots in our city to explore by bike. CNN highlights the Capital City Trail, a 29-kilometre path that circles the inner city and passes through some eastern and northern suburbs. If you want to bike by water, the Maribyrnong River Trail is good for beginners and will also take you past landmarks like the Flemington Racecourse, and the Main Yarra River Trail offers 33 kilometres of river views.