BIKE FESTIVAL. Iloilo City Executive Assistant for Special Projects Leny Ledesma presents the activities for the 12th Bike Festival in a press conference on Wednesday afternoon (May 20, 2026). Close to 3,000 bike enthusiasts are expected to join the month-long series of activities that will kick off on June 3, in time for the celebration of World Bicycle Day. (PNA photo by Perla Lena)
ILOILO CITY – This highly urbanized city is gearing up for its 12th Bike Festival, gathering close to 3,000 enthusiasts for the month-long series of activities that will kick off on June 3, in time for the celebration of World Bicycle Day.
Bike Festival codirector Jay Treñas in a press conference on Wednesday afternoon said the festival is a strong testament of what can be achieved through public-private collaboration, making it a blueprint for other cities across the country.
“Now there are more cyclists. Now we see people actually using our bike lanes,” he noted.
The launch on June 3 will have an active mobility conference that will serve as a platform to highlight the transformative role of sustainable transport initiatives in shaping modern urban life, and a mobility count in 11 bike stations across the city.
The conference will have Metro Manila Development Authority General Manager Nicolas Torre III as the keynote speaker, who will also join the Bike to Work Day on June 5.
Treñas said the event is open to both private and government workers.
“We can promote this not just on a bike fest month, but hopefully, once every month. We are encouraging everyone to bike to work on that day. We will be strengthening our enforcement, we will partner with our traffic (office) to properly zone our bike to work,” he said.
He added that given the high cost of fuel, it is also the perfect time to promote cycling.
Iloilo City Executive Assistant for Special Projects Leny Ledesma said the Bike to Work Day is more of a movement to show the active biking culture in Iloilo.
Other events include the Bike Food Crawl, Mega Criterium Race, Push Bike, Iloilo Duathlon, Grand Fun Ride, Battle of the Bands and an Electric Car Show to also showcase a non-fuel transportation alternative.
The majority of the events will be held at the Iloilo Business Park (IBP) in the Mandurriao district.
Megaworld Visayas first vice president Jennifer Palmares-Fong said they remained committed to partnering with the city government as they aim to help position IBP as the Bike Capital of the country.
“IBP will continue to invest in creating a safe and bike-friendly environment through dedicated bike lanes, bike racks and one of the widest road networks within a private development here in Iloilo. These efforts encouraged more Ilonggos and visitors to embrace cycling as part of everyday life,” she said.
For this year, the Bike Festival, which was recognized as a Galing Pook Awardee, is themed “FLOW CITY: Iloilo Always on the Move!” (PNA)