#BikeIsBest Advocacy Digest - Edition No.52
#BikeIsBest Digest Edition No. 52 | Friday 17th February 2023 | View in browser
Hello and welcome to your slower, safer active travel newsletter. The days are getting longer and we’ve got Olympians, safer roads and, hopefully, cleaner air for you.
SLOWER, SHINIER, CLEANER, BETTER
Faster speeds may be daft unless you’re a professional cyclist, or an international dance music artist, and now we have lots more proof. And a new Olympian on the team. Read on, dear #BikeIsBest-er. Also - it’s now a full year since we started the newsletter, which is something worth celebrating.
BIG STORIES FOR CYCLING ADVOCACY
HISTORICAL CHANGE TO ROADS POLICY
Wales’ new Roads Review requires all new road projects to pass four tests before the Senedd will commit to building. Those include that plans will reduce carbon emissions and support a shift to active travel and public transport, while improving safety. In its initial response to the review Cycling UK is calling this “the most significant change in UK roads building policy over the last 20 years”.
NEW ACTIVE TRAVEL COMMISSIONER
Ed Clancy is South Yorkshire’s new active travel commissioner. Retiring from professional cycling in 2021 after winning medals at three Olympic games, Clancy replaces Paralympian Dame Sarah Storey, who moved to Greater Manchester, who replaced former Olympian Chris Boardman, who moved to the national role. I wish my new fellow active travel commissioner all the best and look forward to working with him.
PARK IT
Councils are increasingly looking at parking charges to help rein in polluting vehicles. Both Bath and Lambeth in London are among a growing number of councils considering charging residents for parking based on vehicle emissions, the latter as part of its new kerbside strategy.
SLOW IT
Some positive news about slower speeds this week. Figures from Transport for London suggest 20mph speed limits in the capital have reduced collisions involving vulnerable road users by 36%, while deaths and serious injuries have dropped by a quarter.
SLOW IT AGAIN
Not only are 20mph streets safer, but they’re more fuel efficient. Modelling from Future Transport found vehicles use up to 30% less fuel, or up to 10p a mile, when drivers accelerate to just 20mph compared with 30mph. Because in urban environments drivers are often speeding up to get to the next traffic light, these efficiency benefits happen without journeys taking any longer.
OTHER HEADLINES
SIGN OF THE TIMES
The Times asked me to write a piece on rain gardens and active travel after a photo I tweeted, of Grangetown in Cardiff, piqued editors’ interest. The photo showed rain gardens built into a series of regular Victorian terraced streets, and the piece outlines why we need more measures like this, for the sake of people and for our climate.
INTERESTING GRAPH OF THE WEEK:
This new data from Urban Traffic Research shows speeds between 15-20 mph are the most efficient for CO2 emissions. The research showed similar patterns for harmful NOX emissions, and the amount of energy, and therefore fuel, expended. Source: https://futuretransport.info/urban-traffic-research/
ACTIVE TRAVEL WORD OF THE WEEK:
Net Zero. This effectively means cutting greenhouse gas emissions to as close to zero as possible - so the emissions we produce don’t exceed the amount absorbed from the atmosphere. Net Zero is among the imperatives driving Wales’ new Roads Review.
Until next time,
Founder, #BikeIsBest
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