| Topic: | Re:Re:Re:Cyclists and support for local shops | |
| Posted by: | Al Webber | |
| Date/Time: | 26/03/19 12:20:00 |
| Charlotte, you are very selective about the figures you quote. You talk about "2% of the travelling public", but if you look at the stats on the Cycling UK website, there are a lot more people cycling than that. In the borough of Hackney, 18.5% of adults cycle at least 3 times a week. More local to here, and probably more relevant, are Hammersmith and Fulham with 13.5% and Richmond with 10.4%. If you look at the reasons why people don't cycle, I believe perceived danger is the biggest single reason. These segregated lanes are an attempt to fix that. I'm not convinced they are the best use of money though. I've repeated this over and over on here but, per mile travelled, you are more likely to be killed as a pedestrian than as a cyclist. Cycling is a safe activity. When you add in the health benefits of cycling, a cyclist is actually likely to live longer due to the fitness benefits. Cycling is being marketed incredibly badly. All the clamour by groups like the London Cycling Campaign for segregated lanes is harping on the supposed dangers and actively discouraging people from cycling. However, we have to get people cycling to cut pollution. The biggest source of particulate pollution is actually tyre and brake wear, not exhausts. We have to get people out of cars - especially with the way the population of London is increasing. If people carry on driving at the current rate, we will have total gridlock. For all your talk about mass transit, cycling will remain the quickest way to move around in London for the majority of people. I don't know if you remember the Top Gear race across London several years back. Richard Hammond won that on a bike (and he didn't even take the fastest route). |