#BikeIsBest Advocacy Digest - Edition No. 116

Hello and welcome to this week’s #BikeIsBest newsletter in which it’s a bit of an end of an era for me, and it seems like silly season has started early in some quarters.

SCHOOL RUN TRAFFIC, BYPASSING REASON AND MEASURING CAR BRAIN.

This week I stepped down as West Midlands’ Cycling & Walking Commissioner, after two and a half years. It’s been a great privilege to do the job, and I’m grateful to Andy Street for backing me. I plan of course to keep on pedalling, and walking, and there’s plenty of other news for us to enjoy (and puzzle at) this week.

BIG STORIES FOR CYCLING ADVOCACY

BYPASSING REASON? This week the government considered banning cycle bus stop bypasses – to consternation from campaigners. There aren’t any cities on earth with safe cycling infrastructure that do not routinely use bus stop bypasses. Without them, cycling levels will drop and more people will be injured or killed in conflict with buses. Alternatives were tried – bus stops shared with cyclists – and they are dangerous.

BYPASSING ROAD SAFETY PRIORITIES? It didn’t end there, as Transport Secretary Mark Harper announced new dangerous cycling laws. While this sounds reasonable, it is an incredibly strange use of Government time and resource given how rarely it’ll be used. Every death is tragic but in perspective, on average each year, more pedestrians are killed by cows than by cyclists. Publishing a road safety strategy, laws for hit and run offenders, publishing its pavement parking review or starting a long-announced road crash investigation bureau are among many possible better uses of time. 

MEASURING CARBRAIN. Professor Ian Walker and urbanist Marco te Brommelstroet are crowdfunding to investigate a curious phenomenon. Carbrain is a term Professor Walker coined with earlier research, finding people “were much less tolerant of negative behaviours in general situations than in car traffic”, now he wants to unpack why we think bad behaviour is OK behind the steering wheel. 

ROADPEACE CHALLENGE RIDES AGAIN. RoadPeace’s annual challenge, in which participants walk, wheel, cycle or ride a horse to remember those killed and seriously injured on our roads, hit its milestone early this year. The charity has seen more than 2,500 miles covered in its first couple of days, with events taking place nationwide this week to raise awareness of road danger. You can still get involved here.

STEPPING DOWN. I’ve stepped down as West Midlands’ Cycling & Walking Commissioner. It has been a tremendous privilege and a real opportunity to help make streets safer and better for walking and cycling. The job was only possible because of the vision, courage and collaboration shown by politicians across the region, from parties of all colours, and I trust it will continue to be a priority for them.

OTHER HEADLINES

HAVERS OUTING. In a bizarre on-air outing last week, actor Nigel Havers rolled out the anti-cycling bingo card for Jeremy Vine’s Radio 2 listeners’ entertainment. Meanwhile, journalist Laura Laker managed to keep her cool. Data beats irrational argument, it seems. 

SCHOOL RUN CRUNCHER. School run traffic makes up a quarter of morning rush hour traffic by one estimate, and a new tool seeks to estimate at specific schools. The School Run Cruncher is a collaboration between Possible and Solve the School Run, and it requires you to fill in details by school location, and term times among other things. So if you have those details, have a go.

INTERESTING GRAPH OF THE WEEK:

Cycle infrastructure makes cycling safer. Source: Transport for London’s latest report on bus stop bypasses. Source: TFL.gov.uk

ACTIVE TRAVEL WORD OF THE WEEK:

Carbrain. According to its author, Prof Ian Walker, it’s “The cultural blind spot that makes people apply double standards when they think about driving” (rather than the neighbourhood in Cumbernauld, Lancs).

Until next time,

Adam

Adam Tranter

#BikeIsBest