Hackney’s Bike Around the Borough misses World Record by eight riders

Children on bicycles for as far as the eye could see was the spectacular sight as the borough’s fifth annual mass bike ride took to the roads.

Hundreds of young cyclists from more than a third of the borough’s schools complete a nine-mile circuit of Hackney for Bike Around the Borough.

It was the second-largest ‘bike bus’ in the world, with 873 school children, staff and parents cycling from Hackney Downs to Hackney Marshes via Clissold Park, and missed out on breaking the bike bus World Record by just eight riders.

Robin O’Brien, 10, from Queensbridge School, said: “It was exciting to be out on the streets with no cars. I love cycling because it’s good exercise, it doesn’t pollute and it’s good for the world.”

Cllr Feryal Demirci, cabinet member for neighbourhoods and sustainability, said: “Seeing so many Hackney students cycling in our streets en masse was a wonderful sight and I was delighted to see lots of residents out, cheering them on. As well as being a great day out, the event had some serious aims, including to increase and encourage future generations to cycle by showing them how fun, healthy and easy it is to get around the borough by bike.”

The event was organised by Hackney Council and the Met Police.