Biking

Safety tips

Check out the safety tips below to help keep yourself and others safe when you’re riding your bike or e-bike.

Learn the rules of the road by reading the Cyclist Code and keep left when it is safe to do so.
Use proper hand signals which can be found on Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency’s website.
You must wear a helmet when biking, including on an e-bike. If you have provided your own safety helmet and reflective clothing, check that they are fitted properly.
Make sure you can be seen – have working front and rear lights on your bike or device – and do a pre-ride check (check the chassis and tyres, and check that the brakes and lights work).
Watch for car doors opening, pedestrians, potholes and left-turning vehicles, as well as blind spots around parked cars and corners.
If you’re using an e-bike on the road, don’t exceed the posted speed limit.
If you’re biking in and around parks and river paths, be courteous around others and don’t exceed 15 km/h in these places.
Watch for people on scooters, skateboards or mobility scooters.
Use your bell to signal to others that you are approaching.
Be alert for any road surface, animal, road users or weather hazards that may affect your journey – see the Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency website for updated information.

As well as checking out the biking information below, you might like to visit our roads and transport pages too.

You’ll find a summary on who is responsible for looking after roads and transport in Hamilton and how this is being done. Plan your journey to work, school or around the city, and discover what road safety work is being done in Hamilton.

Find out about our Biking and Micro-mobility Programme which helps to inform Council's Long-Term Plan, Biking Connectivity Programme, Eastern Pathways and other projects and strategies.

Our biking training courses

Kids on Bikes – Learn to Ride

Kids on Bikes is a school-based programme for senior students in Years 5 to 8. This programme aims to get more students out riding, it gives kids of all biking abilities the skills and knowledge on how to ride a bike safely.

Kids on Bikes is a four-day long programme (one 45-minute session per class per day).

The first day is classroom/assembly-based, focusing on road safety. The next two days are skill based and the final day involves games and an obstacle course.

We can cater for up to five classes in one week. Kids on Bikes teaches students important skills that will last a lifetime.

Kids on Bikes – Off-Road Skills – (School holidays only)

Our two-hour ‘have-a-go’ off-road mountain bike sessions are specifically designed to provide tips and tricks and build confidence on your bike in off road areas. These sessions are aimed at nine to 12- year-olds who can ride a bike. The ride is led by qualified instructors who help the children gain confidence riding their bikes on these kinds of trails.

Adults on Bikes – Off-Road Skills

This two-hour 'have-a-go' mountain bike session is specifically designed to provide adult bike riders with some tips and tricks to build confidence on your riding on bike trails and connect with other riders. We'll finish the session with a coffee and chat at a local café.

The ride is led by qualified instructors who help adults gain confidence riding their bikes on these kinds of trails.

Neighbourhood Rides

This session is for adults who are confident in their biking ability but would like to increase their awareness and skills for riding on local roads. Each session will be led by a qualified instructor, and during the ride we’ll cover:

basic biking skills
riding on shared paths, cycleways and quiet roads
positioning, passing side roads and parked cars
intersections and roundabouts.

Park rides

These sessions are held in a park. They’re aimed at helping adults who want to gain confidence for biking around our city pathways, roads and trails. If you haven't been on a bike in a while, then this session is for you! Each session will be facilitated by a qualified instructor, and we’ll cover:

how to correctly check and fit your helmet
what to look for when doing a bike safety check
improving your balance on a bike
some braking techniques
how to use gears
how to correctly give hand signals.

Get more information and/or register

Please contact us to find out the latest information on our biking-related courses. Call 07 838 6699 during office hours, email us at info@hcc.govt.nz, cycling@hcc.govt.nz or use the Antenno App (available to download free on the App Store or Google Play).