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 Thailand Cycling Club (November 2015)

Background

Thailand Cycling Club (TCC) was found on March 16, 1991, when about 40 Thais who loved cycling and saw in common that use of cycle as an alternative mode of transport would help solve traffic, pollution, energy and health problems, came to campaign together on the streets of Bangkok to draw attention of the public and policy makers to this environmental friendly vehicle for the first time.  Since then TCC has been working continuously, drawing people from all walks of life to take part in our diverse activities, and become a community of bicycle users in Thai society.

Vision

Walking and cycling is popular in Thai society.

Mission

Advocate for policies, laws, systems and structures that promote, support and facilitate walking and cycling in daily life, while changing values and behaviours of people in Thailand to walk and cycle regularly.  This advocacy is to be driven by both knowledge and information from academic research and studies, on one hand, and social activities, on the other. Cooperation with political groups/parties, related government agencies, and the administration, particularly local administrative organizations, is also sought after.

Objectives

1.  To promote walking and cycling in daily life.

2.  To promote holistic good health through walking and cycling in daily life.

3.  To promote walking and cycling as a means to tackle pollution, global warming and climate change problems and for conservation of natural resources, environment and energy.

4.  To promote walking and cycling to solve traffic problems.

5.  To do activities for public interest. 

Activities

Pioneering Phase(1991-2010)

In the first decade, TCC’s main activity were to organize regular cycling trips  and campaigns in the countryside and Bangkok to promote cycling in general. TCC’s campaign for cycling as a means for physical exercise and a form of recreation was successful, significantly contributing to formation of many cycling clubs all over the country. 

Apart from organizing cycling trips for health and recreation, many of TCC’s activities at that time were innovative, or first ever done, in Thailand, including:

·     cycling trips to raise public awareness or support positive actions on various environmental, social and cultural issues, to raise funds for social welfare and environment conservation activities, and to promote cycling ecotourism;

·      ‘Bicycle Recycling Project’ of which TCC asked for donations of, and repaired, used bicycles to be given to poor children in rural areas to ride to school; more than 1,000 bicycles were passed to these children (although the activity was correctly to ‘reuse’ bicycles, the term ‘recycle’ attracted more donations and thus was adopted);

·     ‘Car Free Day’ event, initiated in Thailand in 2000;

·     street campaign to draw public attention to cycling and to demand rights of cycle users, and

·     petitioning government agencies and political parties, requesting them to promote and support cycling.

Advocacy Phase(2010-2015)

After two decades, cycling for health and recreation is now increasingly popular with unofficial number of cyclists in Thailand roughly tripled to about 300,000 in the past five years. TCC, however, realized that only small population can really exercise with bicycle, while cycling is also good for health as a physical activity that anyone can do daily together with walking, and that these two modes of mobility, as non-motorised transport, are suitable for any short-distance travel, good for the environment and the country’s economy, and important elements of Livable City and Sustainable Development.  While continuing with the original intention to commit ourselves to promote cycling in daily life, then walking promotion has been added to our work array, and TCC began to do advocacy works in 2010 with ‘Walking and Cycling in Daily Life Public Policy Advocacy Programme’.  

Through public consultation process, TCC successfully advocated for the 5th National Health Assembly to adopt a resolution, ‘Systems and Structures for Promotion of Walking and Cycling in Daily Life’, on 19^th December 2012, requiring at least ten ministries to take actions, such as amendments of laws, to promote walking and cycling. The resolution was subsequently adopted by the National Health Commission on 16^th August 2013, and acknowledged by the Government Cabinet on 19^th November 2013.  Walking and cycling thus became a national public policy for the first time in the history of Thailand.

With this public policy in place, TCC has turned its focus more on to make it materialized and thus  followed up with Walking and Cycling in Daily Life Public Policy Actualisation Programmesince then. 

Activities during 2011 to 2015 included:

·     supporting local governments and civil society/citizen groups to build ‘Cycling Community’; no less than 110 communities and local areas all over the country have been supported through 38 projects;

·     supporting no less than 10 schools to develop walking and cycling promotion activities including ‘Walk To School’ and ‘Bike To School’ schemes;

·     supporting networks of walkers and bicycle users groupsat provincial and national levels; no less than 20 provincial networks have been supported;

·     research/studieson matters related to walking and cycling in daily life in terms of law and policy, attitude and behaviour, system and connection, infrastructure, health and society, and baseline data; a total of 88 research/studies were sponsored;

·     Thailand Bike and Walk Forum, an annual symposium on walking and cycling in Thailand, initiated in 2013, where findings from research and case studies on walking and cycling related issues, and best practices and lessons learned from field works to promote walking and cycling were presented; a total of 44 papers by researchers from 33 institutes/organisations were presented in three forum taken place;

·     advocacy: influencing walking and cycling issues being integrated into policies and action plans of national bodies, and into national or master plans, such as the National Health Assembly, Master Plan on Sustainable Transport, and Master Plan on Climate Change;

·     design and photo contestson cycle systems, desirable pedestrian ways and bike outfits;

·     seminar and roundtable discussionson issues of specific interests: standards of equipment for mobility of persons with disability, legal matters related to bicycle rack installed on motorized vehicles, promotion of local cycling-related industry, standards of bicycle parking facilities, road accident risk assessment, and mobility in the Rattanakosin Area of Bangkok;

·     cycling promotion events: Walk-Run-Bike Against Corruption, Bike for families on the National Mother Day and National Father Day;

·     cycling promotion activities: Bicycle Donations for Children of Soldiers Stationed in the Southern Borders Provinces, ‘Clean’ (no tobacco, no alcohol, environmental friendly) Cycling Trips, cycling trips to raise funds for donations to Buddhist temples, bicycle repair for communities by volunteers;

·     cooperation with government agencies to take actions related to walking and cycling;

·     international networking and advocacy: TCC sent representatives to attend Velo-cityand Velo-city Globalconferences organized by the European Cyclists’ Federation(ECF), the world’s largest network of national organizations working to advocate cycling.  After inviting ECF Secretary General to a workshop in Thailand in October 2012, TCC applied and became a new Associate Member of ECF, in June 2013, its first ever member from Asia.  TCC joined with other cycling organisations to establish the ECF-initiated World Cycling Alliance(WCA) as a co-founder in Adelaide, Australia, in 2014.  TCC also has initiated discussions to form Asian Cycling Federation(ACF).  In August 2013, TCC made a presence, presenting research findings related to cycling and health benefits, at the 21^st Global Conference of the International Union for Health Promotion and Education(IUHPE) in Pattaya, Thailand;

·     public relations and education: website, social media (Facebook and Line Groups), video clips and documentaries, publications (free magazine, leaflets, posters) and other materials (T-shirts, exhibition sets, banners) to promote walking and cycling with no less than 150 items have been produced; taking part in bike fairs organized by private sector and events organized by government agencies; giving lectures, presentations and opinions in meetings, seminar, workshops and conference.

Committee

Mr. Jate Tonavanik, Ph. D.                                            Advisor          

Professor Emeritus Thongchai Panswad, Ph.D.        President and Founder 

Mr. Jamroon Tangpaisarnkit                                        Vice President

Mr. Kittisark Intaravisit                                                 Acting Secretary General

Mr. Suksaeng Kookanok, Ph.D.                                   Independent Committee Member

Mr. Vijarn Simachaya, Ph.D.                                        Committee Member

Mr. Gawin Chutima                                                       Committee Member

Asst. Prof. Panit Pujinda, Ph.D.                                   Committee Member

Mr. Prapatpong Upala, Ph.D.                                        Committee Member

Dr. Chainarong Somchart, MD                                     Committee Member

Mrs. Amporn Leeamnuaychoke                                   Committee Member

Ms. Chutima Piboonbun                                               Committee Member

Contact

Office and mailing address:

Rajanakarn 3 Building, 4^th Floor

15 Soi Pradipat 17, Pradipat Road, Samsennai, Phyathai,

Bangkok 10400, Thailand

Tel: (66) 2618 4434, (66) 2618 5990; Fax: (66) 2618 4430

Email: tcc@thaicyclingclub.org

Website: www.thaicyclingclub.org

Facebook: www.facebook.com/thaicycling

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