This summer, families in and around Zwevegem have a new
reason to get on their bikes and look more closely at the landscape around
them. The Bijenfietsroute, or Bee Cycle Route, is a family-friendly
cycling route through Zwevegem, Moen and Sint-Denijs. Along the way,
participants discover attractive “bee spots”, learn about wild bees and can
take part in a quiz.
A new family-friendly Bee Cycle Route
(Bijenfietsroute ) in Zwevegem invites residents and visitors to discover
wild bees, pollinator habitats and local nature in an active and playful way.
One of the stops is linked to a PolliConnect pilot site, showing how local
awareness and larger cooperation can meet on the ground.
The route 22 kilometres long is designed for young and old. It starts and ends near the Otegemstraat in Zwevegem. Cyclists can follow the route through the local cycling-node network, with additional signposting using bee symbols. The regional landscape organisation describes the route as a ride past some of the most beautiful bee locations in Zwevegem, with facts and questions that help families understand why different bees and pollinators matter.
PolliConnect is proud to be part of this initiative. One of the stops on the route is connected to one of our pilot sites, and is mentioned in one of the quiz questions. This is exactly the kind of connection the project wants to stimulate: bringing pollinator restoration out of technical reports and into places where people live, cycle, learn and spend time together.
Wild pollinators are essential for healthy ecosystems, resilient landscapes and food production. Yet their decline is often invisible to the public because it happens gradually, across fields, roadsides, parks and small green spaces. A cycling route like this makes the issue tangible. It helps families see that pollinator habitats are not abstract ecological concepts, but real places in their own municipality.
For PolliConnect, awareness-raising among families, citizens and local communities is an important part of long-term change. Restoring pollinator biodiversity requires more than scientific monitoring and ecological management. It also requires people to recognise the value of wild bees, understand the pressures they face, and support practical measures that improve their habitats. The Bee Cycle Route contributes to this by combining recreation, education and local engagement in a simple and accessible way.
The initiative is a collaboration between the municipality of Zwevegem, Regionaal Landschap Leie & Schelde and the Province of West Flanders, and is linked to the West-Flemish Cross-Pollinator Plan. Participants who answer the quiz questions correctly can enter a competition, with prizes including the Suske & Wiske comic “De Hippe Hommels”.
By connecting a PolliConnect pilot site to this public route, the project becomes visible to a wider audience. Families, schools, local residents, tourists and nature lovers can all encounter the project in an informal setting to build bridges between ecological knowledge, local stakeholders and public awareness.
So, take your bike, follow the bees and discover how local landscapes can become better connected for pollinators and become part of a larger network for biodiversity.
More information about the Bee Cycle Route is available from Regionaal Landschap Leie & Schelde and the municipality of Zwevegem.
https://www.regionalelandschappen.be/agenda/bijenfietsroute (regional landscape organisation)
https://www.zwevegem.be/bijenfietsroute (municipality)