Rwanda National Police

Rwanda National Police (RNP) has cautioned cyclists against deadly practices of holding onto rear of trucks on hilly roads in which some of them have lost lives.

RNP spokesperson, Commissioner of Police (CP) John Bosco Kabera said operations against this risky human behaviour started on July 28, and so far a total of 486 cyclists have been intercepted and fined accordingly, across the country.

"This life-threatening practice by cyclists has been going on for a while where they hold on to trucks to pull them while cycling uphill, and in some circumstances some of them lose lives," CP Kabera said.

In these operations, the majority 125 were intercepted in the Southern Province, 117 in the Northern Province, 109 in the Eastern Province, 74 in the Western while 61 were intercepted on roads in City of Kigali.

CP Kabera said: "On many occasions, Police have engaged cyclists in different parts of the country to educate them on safer road usage, including desisting from such life-threatening practice of holding onto trucks.

This inappropriate behaviour that put lives at high risk will not be tolerated, and operations will continue to ensure compliance and to save lives."

In Kigali, this practice is common along Nyabugogo-Giti K'inyoni-Shyorongi or Ruliba, Nyabugogo-Kimisagara; Nyabugogo-Karuruma-Nyacyonga; Kabuga, Jali, and along Kicukiro-Bugesera road.

Any cyclists intercepted in these operations is handed administrative penalties amounting to Frw10,000.