Cycling - and cycle lanes - for all? #177

Routes, riders and road safety rising

This week, we’re celebrating some accessibility gains after a town centre cycling ban became a bit more specific about behaviours, rather than a mode of transport it sought to outlaw. Meanwhile, bike lanes could be getting busier, cyclists slower and why more traffic speeds must come down too.

BIG STORIES FOR CYCLING ADVOCACY

PROGRESSIVE CYCLING BAN? Disabled cycling charity, Wheels for Wellbeing, is celebrating changes to a ‘discriminatory’ cycling ban in Bedford town centre. Bedford council’s cycling ban, made under a Public Space Protection Order (PSPO), prevented cycling in some pedestrianised areas, in a bid to crack down on ‘anti-social behaviour’. Such cycling bans can effectively ban disabled people who use cycles as mobility aids and, thankfully, Bedford Council has revised its PSPO to prohibit only ‘dangerous or aggressive’ cycling in those areas.

MORE LANE USERS, LESS PROBLEMS? With the government reframing what micromobility means, this US-based piece is timely. Cycles come in all shapes and sizes, particularly for disabled users, and cycling infrastructure can be a lifeline for disabled cyclists. US-specific elements aside, the Momentum article’s idea of who cycle lanes could be for - i.e. e-scooters, e-bikes, adaptive cycles and mobility scooters, skateboards and handcycles - is universal. Here, legislation looking to legalise new micromobility (say e-scooters, new last-mile delivery vehicles, delivery robots) could well mean more cycle lane users - with implications for anyone using those lanes. Watch this space.

IN PRAISE OF SLOW CYCLING. A second Momentum piece this week, which celebrates cycling at a more leisurely pace. Arguably, the more advanced a cycling culture, the more ‘slow cyclists’ you’ll see. More than a speed though, slow cycling is being posited here as a kind of meditation, a mindfulness to improve mental health and, even if you’re pedalling slowly, you’ll reap health benefits - particularly if you weren’t doing much exercise before.

VERDICT: 20MPH SAVES LIVES WITHOUT SLOWING DRIVERS. That’s Sadiq Khan’s message in this Guardian piece. He says “it’s easy to get distracted by bluff and bluster,” while losing sight of the 1,600 deaths on our roads a year, and our power to reduce them. Following London’s 20mph implementation, people killed and seriously injured on borough roads has dropped by 34%. The number of children killed, meanwhile, dropped by 75%, from four to one. Meanwhile, the predicted negative impact on drivers’ time has failed to materialise; they are impacted more by junction delays than top speed. Khan’s message: implement more 20mph.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT NEEDS ACTIVE TRAVEL. For more people to use the bus or train, they need to easily get to the stations. Obvious, perhaps, but something that’s too often overlooked. This piece, summarising findings from a workshop, points out 90% of public transport users walk to stations and stops, and safe, pleasant routes would help greater numbers to take the bus or train. Connecting cycle routes, too, can expand the catchment area of stations by 16 times [pdf download] - or more for e-cycle users.

OTHER HEADLINES

SWAPPING PARKING FOR PARKS. Driven by summer heatwaves and the recognition of the role of trees and plants for health, a global parklets movement is growing. These mini-parks replace car parking spaces with plants and trees, with anything from space for seating, to play equipment to integrated bike parking. Recognising the need to challenge the dominance of asphalt, citizens of Vienna have introduced 100 of them in the last decade, and residents can apply for grants to build them locally.

INTERESTING GRAPH OF THE WEEK:

Denmark’s cycling levels are the envy of the world. Well, Copenhagen’s specifically. New infographics from the Danish knowledge centre for cycling shows us what that looks like. Source: https://api.vejdirektoratet.dk/sites/default/files/2025-05/cykelfremme_A3_2025_V_ENG.pdf Heard through

ACTIVE TRAVEL WORD OF THE WEEK:

LZEV (lightweight zero emission electric vehicle): The term that could be used to legalise e-scooters and other micromobility devices. This, Wheels for Wellbeing, says, “will ensure policy, design and provision are inclusive and accessible to all e.g. including seated vehicles, vehicles with three (or more) wheels and which allow for more than one person to be carried at a time”.

Until next time,

Adam

Adam Tranter

CEO, Fusion & Founder, #BikeIsBest

This newsletter is brought to you by Fusion, the agency for movers, specialising in communications and public affairs for active travel and mobility.