Robert Fleming. Photo: Geoff Sloan
Spending five days in hospital after being hit by a car was the catalyst cyclist Robert Fleming needed to dedicate his spare time to making Christchurch streets safer for cyclists.
“It was just the usual broken ribs and stuff, but it did linger for quite a while,” he said.
The enforced downtime in 2013 gave him space to think.
“I thought I think the city’s got to be a little bit better for riding a bike than it is at the moment.”
The drive to make a change saw Fleming, 72, attend a Spokes Canterbury meeting as soon as he was able to.
“I sat quietly for the first year and learned a lot,” he said.
Over the last 12 years, he has contributed to the volunteer cycling advocacy group’s submissions and made his own deputations to community boards.
He later became treasurer and organised Spokes’ annual Biketober event for five years.
“The thing I can do is soft touch, subtle advocacy – getting people to see what it’s about,” Fleming said.
After retiring as a pharmacist last year, Fleming began volunteering for Medical Aid Abroad, helping sort and analyse unused medication.
The charity, with has bases in Auckland and Christchurch, sends surplus in-date medicine and supplies to developing countries in the Pacific for possible re-use.
However, Fleming’s real passion is coordinating the Wednesday Wheelies.
Every Wednesday at 9am, cyclists, mostly aged between 60 and 80, meet at the St Albans Community Centre.
Groups of up to 12, each led by an experienced rider, take on a different route each week.
In the past year, the average number of riders each week has gone from 42 to 56, Fleming said.
“The highest number of riders we ever had was 75.”
Fleming said the group’s popularity was helpful when advocating for better cycling infrastructure in the city.
His volunteer work with Wednesday Wheelies earned him a civic award last year for services to cycling.
The citation described him as “a quiet enabler who, through his good nature, strong people and organisational skills, and sheer hard work has made Christchurch a better place to live.”
“It was nice that my work is appreciated,” he said.
Fleming continues to advocate for his fellow riders and make cycling safer for all.
Cycleways, he says, have always been a contentious issue, but they remain key to change, encouraging and giving more cyclists the confidence to ride on the city’s roads.
“I think Christchurch drivers are 10 times better than they were, and that’s purely because there are not many roads these days where you don’t come across a cyclist on your travels.”
As cycling becomes increasingly popular in Christchurch, Fleming says he will be part of it for as long as he can.
“I’ll carry on doing what I’m doing, as long as I can get out of bed in the morning.”
The city council’s cycle counters back up his optimism.
In 2024, a record 4.08 million counts were logged across 31 locations – up from 3.8m in 2023 and 3.6m in 2022.
Since the first counters were installed in 2016, cycleway use has increased by more than 30% across the network.