25th anniversary of empty promises

 

This year sees the 25^th anniversary of the government’s ground breaking National Cycling Strategy launched in 1996. Ground breaking in that it had no funding!

Although robust campaigning has since forced government to throw a few £million at cycling,  it falls well short of the £5-7billions required which is still only a fraction of the transport budget.

The money needed to make the road safe for cycling is miniscule compared to the likes of current £27b earmarked for road building.

The fact that cycling has a major contribution to make in cutting carbon to slow climate change cuts no ice.

Poor funding has created a barrier to progressive cycle planning

Back in 1996  cycling accounted for 2 per cent of all journeys made. 25 years later there has been not much change.

The whole point of that so called strategy was to get people to switch from always driving to cycling some of those journeys. Over 70 per cent of all journeys made are of five miles and less.

And let's not overlook the many who do not drive and would cycle if the conditions were safer to do so. I'm thinking of Manchester in particular, where a great many people who don't drive have enthusiastically welcomed plans to build a city wide cycling and walking network.

It will cost £1billion! Which puts the government's meagre offering for the country as a whole into perspective.

As far as I know Manchester is still awaiting their £1bn, and doing what they can in the meantime.

It’s all very well to see more people taking up leisure cycling. But the major concern is to increase the numbers using the bike for work, to the shops and other utility trips. For this remains very low.

We know why.

Hostile traffic conditions and roads built to process fast traffic puts people off cycling on them. The few good cycling facilities that have been created are too few. No town has a half-decent cycling network worthy of the name.

Fast forward to 2021 and cycling still accounts for less than 2 per cent of all journeys made.

So what’s happened in those 25 years? Not much.

Just more hot air, more promises to make the roads safer and too little funding to make any difference.

According to the stand-up comic and fantasist Prime Minister Boris Johnson – he of the misleading statements some call lies – cycling in England has “risen by 46 per cent.”

Is that 46 per cent of sod all?

Compare the numbers cycling with other modes such as the car and cycling makes barely a blip on the radar.

The following figures on transport use in 2019 from Cycling UK provide the clear perspective we never get from Johnson.

It's not just him stone walling of course. It's every prime minister in the past 25 years and beyond who have never given cycling issues much thought. 

This from Cycling UK.

“Cycling made up only 1% of the mileage accumulated by all vehicular road traffic (cycles are vehicles). In comparison, cars and taxis accounted for just over 77%. Both figures are more or less the same as they were in 2018."

This summer the prime minister rabbited on and on about how his government was improving conditions for cyclists.

He says: “Hundreds of new schemes have created safe space for people to cycle and walk…. (Not counting the councils who have ripped out cycling lanes)

"Spending on active travel this year will significantly increase – from the £257 million announced at last November’s Spending Review to £338m, a rise of a third. (The reality is £billions are needed)

"We will use the money to invest in more low-traffic neighbourhoods and protected cycle lanes.”

(Not counting all those ripped out by, among other places, Liverpool and Shoreham among others)

 

Johnson you will recall promised 40 new hospitals when there was no funding to build them. He promised to get “Brexit done”, so ending free movement  and so scaring off thousands of foreign workers…. no one to pick fruit, no one to pick up animals for market, too few HGV drivers to deliver fuel to petrol stations, food and goods to shops and businesses….

Cycling?

It’s the least of our problems. The biggest problem at the moment is Johnson.

What’s to be done?