Women's Cycling - Brisbane
- your space

How many people that ride bikes are women? Brisbane cycling has a gender parity problem! Why is this?

Brisbane CBD and Brisbane South Bicycle User Groups undertook a cycling survey of Brisbane women and girls to find out why. This is a community space where you can access the results and support us in taking action.

email: womenscyclingspace@gmail.com

Our methodology

In early 2026 we surveyed using a Google Form which had a range of single and multiple choice questions with some free text fields. The focus was on the central and southern suburbs but we were fortunate to receive 432 responses from all over Brisbane. The majority of people who responded identified as women and most were regular or occasional bike riders. The results were downloaded into an Excel spreadsheet and graphs and charts were created directly from the results. AI was used to help to identify the key themes and locations where safety is an issue and key areas where improvements are needed.

Key findings

Safety is the leading concern: Women consistently rank protected infrastructure and lower traffic stress as essential to riding more often.
Network connectivity matters: Women are more likely to cycle when routes and intersections feel continuous, direct, and easy to navigate.
Lighting matters: Riding frequency increases when women feel physically comfortable and safe. Good lighting is critical, particularly on isolated bike or shared paths.
Security matters: Women are less likely to ride to locations where there is no secure bike parking and the risk of bike theft is high.
Practical everyday cycling is a strong driver: Transport-focused riding is increasingly important alongside recreation, with women wanting to ride to everyday destinations but often can't.
There is strong latent demand: Many women say they would cycle more if conditions felt safer and more convenient.

Quotes from women

"I ride 30 minutes out of my way just so that I won't die getting to work. Every time I'm unsafe due to poor walking and cycling infrastructure, I'm reminded how our city has failed women and girls like me."

"I have been spat at, chased, sexually harassed, cut off, hit, by drivers. It sucks. I'm a safe rider, I use protected bike lanes wherever available, but it can be rough out there, and there's a lot of aggression especially when I need to claim the lane (e.g. ahead of making a right turn). I cop a lot more abuse than my male partner and housemate."

Charts

The destinations where women are restricted from riding to because of the numerous barriers include: to shops, local businesses, friends and family, school/uni, events and entertainment precincts, and public transport stations.

The barriers to women cycling at all or more often are displayed here.

Unsafe locations

Click here for more data on locations.

Barriers to cycling

Click here to read women's stories about barriers to cycling.

Survey demographics

Click here to see a demographic summary of our survey participants.

Stay tuned!

We'll keep adding more details to this website over the coming weeks.