#BikeIsBest Advocacy Digest - Edition No.64

#BikeIsBest Digest Edition No. 64 | Thursday 18th May 2023 | View in browser

Hello and welcome to this week’s newsletter where it’s Global Road Safety Week, while indications of cycling’s popularity continue to grow.
VELO-CITY BLUES
I’m just back from Leipzig and the annual Velo-City conference, where delegates from around the world gather each year to discuss the future of cycling. It was great to talk about the West Midlands and hear from colleagues in Denmark, Poland, Nigeria, Belgium and the US. We shared ideas and, of course, looked to Copenhagen for inspiration.
BIG STORIES FOR CYCLING ADVOCACY
BIKES MEAN VOTES
The New Statesman looks at how the ‘war on motorists’ narrative fails to match votes, with pro-active travel policies and measures resulting in re-election here and overseas. There’s always a lot of issues at the ballot box, and correlation isn’t causation, but it suggests things like cycle lanes and LTNs aren’t vote losers.
WHO CALLS FOR CYCLING INVESTMENT
For global road safety week the World Health Organisation has called for governments around the world to “increase investments in walking, cycling and public transport’, which it says are ‘inherently healthy and sustainable’. However, it warns, roads need to be safe for all who use them. Road traffic injuries are a leading cause of death worldwide, cutting 1.3 million lives short each year.
RIDE FOR THEIR LIVES
The weekend saw health professionals cycle the boundary of London’s forthcoming Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) to celebrate the forecast reduction in air pollution it will bring about. The 250 km ride is the third of its kind, raising awareness of the dire and lifelong health impacts of air pollution on all of us.
LEADING THE TRANSITION
This year’s Velo-City saw 1,500 people from 60 countries come together in Leipzig to discuss moving away from carbon-intensive to low-carbon travel, using the bicycle. Next year Ghent, the inspiration for Birmingham’s traffic circulation plan, will host.
SAFE SPACE FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS
Make Space for Girls is new guidance to help improve safety in parks. Women and girls use parks less than men, because they fear attacks or harassment, particularly at night. Lighting on cycle routes and good signage are part of the solution, and women and girls need including in parks and green space designs.
OTHER HEADLINES
HEAD COUNT
Road.cc’s Simon MacMichael has only gone around some of London’s popular cycle routes and done a head count of who he sees and what they’re riding. MacMichael acknowledges it’s a partial snapshot, but it’s interesting nonetheless. The high male to female ratio in some locations is a little startling, while the dominance of regular clothes seems positive.
INTERESTING GRAPH(IC) OF THE WEEK: LIFT-OFF!
Visual Utopian, Jan Kamensky, has transformed a car-dominated junction in Leipzig, using CGI, to a people-friendly plaza, complete with trees and benches, and bikes. Satisfying watching.

Watch the video here: Source
ACTIVE TRAVEL WORD OF THE WEEK: EQUITY
Different from equality, because not everyone has the same access to resources and opportunities. Equity recognises those differences and helps people in a way that achieves an equal outcome for all. This can be anything from local road safety issues that affect ethnic minority communities or older people particularly, to access to bikes for low-income households.
Until next time,

Founder, #BikeIsBest
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