#BikeIsBest Advocacy Digest No. 104

Hello and where has February gone? I for one am enjoying the longer days - hope you are too.

ROAD SPACE REALLOCATION

It shouldn’t be a dirty word; we know the way we’ve designed our streets in recent decades is choking our towns and cities, costing us too much money and impacting our health and the planet. There is a better way, and you know what, it involves bikes. And Shanks’s Pony. Hop on board, here we go.

BIG STORIES FOR CYCLING ADVOCACY

ASTRONOMICAL BENEFITS OF WALKING AND CYCLING. A new longitudinal study, investigating the impact of six years of ‘mini-Holland’ interventions in London, estimates 20-year health benefits of £1bn for an initial £1m programme cost (up to 200:1 returns on investment). Living in an area with Low Traffic Neighbourhoods and safe cycle lanes consistently brought about increases in cycling and walking, it found. The closer those things, the bigger the benefits.

HUMAN BOLLARDS PROTECT KIDS. A group of residents and campaigners in Exeter have taken it upon themselves to protect a bus gate, which they say isn’t being enforced. According to reports, around 70-80 drivers were turned back from Ladysmith and Whipton Lane by the group. They say kids cycling, walking and scooting to school need the bus gate to stay safe, and they want the bus gate properly enforced.

DUBLIN FOLLOWS GHENT. This year Dublin will be a no-through traffic city, joining other European pioneers in a bid to improve air quality, public realm and active travel. A new plan to cut motor traffic by 60% will be achieved via two bus gates across the River Liffey, and by reconfiguring a few city centre streets, CityLab reports. The measures have enjoyed majority public support, with more than 80% of 3,500 consultation respondents backing the new zone. 

READERS SUPPORT PAVEMENT PARKING BAN. Independent readers have overwhelmingly supported a pavement parking ban in a newspaper poll. This follows last week’s news story in which local authorities backed the extension of powers to ban pavement parking, which currently only exists in London and now Scotland. Independent readers called the practice selfish, ignorant and annoying. 

HAMMERSMITH BRIDGE REOPENS. Just for cycling. After four years, Hammersmith Bridge is officially reopened for cycling. The Chiswick Calendar reports Jeremy Vine cut a ribbon to the new painted cycle lane crossing the bridge, and local riders came out to celebrate. Work to repair the bridge, whose structure was too weak for motor traffic, was stalled when a boat carrying football supporters damaged a girder. You can see riders crossing it here.

OTHER HEADLINES

JUST A NICE STORY ABOUT RIDING OUTDOORS. Road.cc’s VecchioJo, aka Jo Burt, has written a rather beguiling ode to cycling outdoors. You don’t need to be as committed to cycling as Jo to know part of the wonder of getting out on a bike is the mental, not just the physical health benefits. It’s about cycling, and why an indoor turbo session isn’t quite the same. ‘It’s doing all of this with the elements buffeting my face and air billowing around my grey matter that matters the most,’ he says.

INTERESTING GRAPH OF THE WEEK: From that study, the impact on transport modes of ‘mini-Holland interventions’ in London. High-dose means living within a mini-Holland (i.e. in LTNs or near high-quality cycle routes), or near enough (within 1km) to impact their travel choices. Source: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214140524000173  

ACTIVE TRAVEL WORD OF THE WEEK:

Longitudinal study: Behaviour change can take time, and one way of understanding the impact of cycling and walking interventions is to study behaviour over time. What’s more, cycling and walking improvements keep on realising benefits for decades, in health, access to jobs and education, socialising and decongestion. 

Until next time,

Adam Tranter

Founder, #BikeIsBest