Barcelona Kids Are Taking the “Bike Bus” to School

n Spain, children and their families are riding bikes to school together in large groups.

The program is called “bicibús” or bike bus. In Barcelona, the program started recently with only five children and grew quickly to hundreds of riders.

This fall, children in the Eixample area of Barcelona have a new way to get to school on Fridays – they ride their bikes. In September, a group of five children began biking to school with their parents on Fridays. Soon the group grew to 150 or more.

The Eixample bike bus begins around 8:25 every Friday morning. The path it will follow is always posted ahead of time, so everyone knows where to join. The bicibús starts off with just a few students and parents, with more and more joining as it travels along.

Most kids ride their bikes, but others ride scooters or use skates. Instead of riding in bike lanes or on sidewalks, the bicibús takes over the entire street. With music playing and bike bells ringing, the bicibús feels like a party.



Being able to ride with a bunch of kids is a big part of the fun. Nine-year-old María Pitarch says, “The best part of the bicibús is that we ride along and pick up my friends and we ride together.”

The Eixample bicibús goes to several schools. When students reach their school, they leave the bus and park their bikes. Some parents have made the bicibús the way they get to work on Friday.


Parents are hoping that the bicibús will help change ideas about how people can get around in the city. They want the city to create wider, kid-friendly bike lanes that are separate from car traffic. They point out that the bicibús also helps cut down on pollution.

Recently, pictures and videos of the Eixample bicibús got a lot of attention when they were posted on the social media site Twitter. Many people pointed out what a simple idea it is, and how easy it is to get started.