The Village Bicycle Project is not just a way to off load your old bicycle. It’s a vehicle of opportunity for the people who receive these bikes in Sierra Leone and Ghana.

The group will hold its fourth annual Spring Bike Drive on Saturday, May 18, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Park City Mountain Resort Canyons Village parking area (Cabriolet). Bicycles of all sizes for children and adults and cycling-related gear such as tires, tubes, water bottles and apparel are welcome.

The enhanced mobility from having a bicycle in one of these countries leads to increased productivity, opening doors to employment and education, organizers said, to go along with environmental sustainability and physical well-being.

Last year, the Village Bicycle Project collected 125 bicycles during the annual bike donation drive.

“Regardless of how much money we raise, we need bikes. They are the star of the show,” said James May, a member of the Village Bicycle board. “When we get 125 or more bikes from Park City, that is a quarter of a shipping container, which is pretty awesome. Park City is comprised of people all over the country so we have a global mindset and a giving community spirit.”

As of 2023, the Village Bicycle Project has:

  • Shipped 142,000 bikes to Ghana and Sierra Leone
  • Trained 23,500 people in repair
  • 4,200 women and girls learned to ride
  • Distributed 61,500 tools to keep bikes tolling

With the help of donors and volunteers, the Village Bicycle Project ships 20 storage containers of bikes each year to Sierra Leone and Ghana. The Village Bicycle Project also conducts hands-on maintenance training, particularly for women and girls.

“We concentrate our bike efforts on that day [May 18] because it is administratively easy, but we collect stuff all year round,” said May. “People can contact me, and we would be happy to take bikes whenever people have them. We will take old and beat up stuff.”

We are looking for any bike in roughly usable condition, kids or adult models, even if old (mountain bikes are best).

To assist with shipping and training costs, the group seeks a donation of $25 and a bicycle. They said they also will take used parts, tires, tubes and any cycling clothing in decent shape. They view donated bicycles as a means to education, work, and a better life for those in remote areas of Sierra Leone and Ghana.

Village Bicycle Project was founded in 1999 in Seattle by David Peckham, a bicycle activist and former Peace Corps volunteer.