Wheels of Change: Bicycles and the Changing City
Tracing Tamale’s cycling culture from colonial roads to modern streets, where bikes remain vital for daily life and trade.
Y Junction (2024) by Gideon AsmahOriginal Source: Gideon Asmah
Tamale on two wheels
In Tamale, bicycles have long been more than just transport. They’re woven into the city’s social fabric — vital for trade, travel, and connection. On any given day, streets are filled with students, traders, farmers, and families, all relying on two wheels to move through life.
Woman chief: Tampion Kpatu-Naa, Maata Sulemana (2024) by Eric GyamfiOriginal Source: Eric Gyamfi
Early riders
Bicycles first arrived in the Gold Coast in the 1890s, ridden by colonial administrators and missionaries. Locals soon saw their value. Traders and farmers adopted them to transport goods, turning bicycles from elite tools into everyday vehicles for the working class.
Portrait of Idrissa (2024) by Gideon AsmahOriginal Source: Gideon Asmah
The great north road
The 1920s saw Tamale grow as a major trade center after the British expanded north. The Great North Road linked markets and towns. Bikes became essential for carrying produce, kola nuts, salt, and firewood, helping people navigate long distances quickly and affordably.
Tamale Central Mosque (2024) by Gideon AsmahOriginal Source: Gideon Asmah
City on the move
Modern Tamale is a vibrant patchwork of dense city streets and open rural edges. Cyclists must navigate chaotic roads filled with motorcycles, cars, and tricycles. Despite challenges, bicycles remain a practical, low-cost, and reliable means of transport for many.
Ramane with his bicycle (2024) by Gideon AsmahOriginal Source: Gideon Asmah
Farmers on Wheels
As Tamale expands, bicycles help farmers bridge the gap between urban and rural life. They transport crops, firewood, and tools into town, supporting both trade and family life. In a city growing fast, bikes offer flexibility and resilience where cars can't reach.
Teaming up around a bicycle (2024) by Gideon AsmahOriginal Source: Gideon Asmah
Students and traders
Markets bustle with bicycle traders selling goods. Schools fill with students pedaling from villages and neighborhoods. The bicycle is more than transport, it’s a bridge to education, business, and community, creating mobility for people of all ages.
Education Ridge (2024) by Gideon AsmahOriginal Source: Gideon Asmah
The future of cycling
Bicycles Forever celebrates this living culture while raising critical questions about road safety, infrastructure, and how Tamale can remain a city where bicycles thrive. It’s a call to honor old roads while building space for future cyclists in urban planning
Gideon Asmah, Nii Obodai, Annemarie de Wildt, Ruth Oldenziel, Michael Keith, Sabine Luning
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