Spoke in the wheel

Date: 02/10/1997

So much for the Commission's new bicycle-friendly policies.

Peddle-pushers who imagine that they will be welcomed with open arms by staff at the institution's Breydel headquarters in Brussels are in for a surprise.

Reports have reached Entre Nous that any effort to secure bikes to chains outside is sharply repulsed by security guards. “It gets in the way of the cars,” explained one.

Even if cyclists are careful to choose a spot away from the cars, they will still encounter the forces of officialdom.

One recent visitor to the Breydel who took just such a precaution was told to get back on his bike. We are just obeying orders, he was told when he asked why. “We have been told to remove all the bicycles,” said the guard.

Challenged to explain the reasons behind the move, the guard replied bluntly: “Just get rid of it.”

Coming at a time when the Commission is urging everyone to abandon four wheels for two, this seems to be a classic case of “do as we say, not as we do”.