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Newsletter 77 (April/May 2008)

Cycling 2020: a visionary document for a historic city
Our 12-section proposal for Cambridge's cycling future will be launched at the National Cycling Conference in May

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Contents:

Co-ordinator's comment
Planning consultant needed
Cycle parking guide: can you help us produce this?
Creating a Cycling Culture: the National Cycling Conference, Cambridge May 10th
Ride to Reach: the Camcycle 20/50
Air pollution monitoring via mobile phones
Cambridge: A 'Cycling Demonstration Town'?
Cycling 2020: our vision for Cambridge's cycling future
Postcard from Assen
Study Tour to Holland: 13th-15th May 2008 – please sign up now!
Tesco's plans for more lorries on Mill Road thrown out
Grand Arcade Cycle Park: what the developers claim
Jesus Lane collision: bus driver guilty
Riverside: further improvements for cyclists revealed
Bicycle Points for £1000
'OK' for car to hit cyclist outside cycle lane
Car parking: a significant barrier to improving cycling?
Land's End to John O'Groats – via Cambridge
Mountain bike maintenance DVD review
Designers needed
Monthly meetings
Photomap this month: editor's pick
Your streets this month
Campaign Diary
About the Campaign
Elected Officers 2007-2008
Contacting the Campaign

Co-ordinator's comment

Cycling 2020 and the national conference in May

Welcome to our regular readers, as well as those getting copies at the national CCN conference that the Campaign has organised this year.

Our Cycling 2020 vision calls for improved design for cycling infrastructure including continental-standard best-practice designs like this crossing in Assen in the Netherlands.

May sees the launch of our Cycling 2020 vision document. All members will be posted a copy as soon as it comes off the press at the end of April. This has been a huge task, and it is great to see such a fantastic result.

We hope it will inspire decision-makers and indeed our members about what needs to be done for cycling in and around Cambridge, at this time of tremendous change with the transport and housing agendas in major focus.

Read more about Cycling 2020 later in this Newsletter.

New settlements starting to go through the planning system

The last few months have seen the first of a swathe of new developments start to go through the planning system.

Plans for Northstowe have now been drawn up, and we will report on the details as soon as we have them. The Trumpington Meadows proposal, which we sadly failed to find time to scrutinise in full detail, has been approved. Most recently, the Bell School application has been submitted, and we have lodged a formal and detailed Letter of Objection. .

Our New Developments paper, outlined last month, sets out in detail how we think cycling should be catered for in practice. Together with Cycling 2020 - which offers a broader view of cycling in Cambridge - we want to make clear to developers what we expect to see if the Campaign is to avoid objecting. Indeed, we would like to be in the position of actively approving the details of what is proposed (though obviously we have no view on the principle of housing development, which is beyond the scope of the Campaign). .

We have renewed our call for a consultant that the Campaign can contract to help pull out the relevant points in these vast planning applications, so that the Committee and Subgroups can formulate suitable responses. If you know anyone who works in the environmental consulting field, please do get in touch. See the full article in this Newsletter for more on this.

A formal status for the Campaign?

We are now looking more heavily into charitable and/or company status for the Campaign, following the kind offer of money for a Campaign employee as mentioned at the AGM in November 2007. Clearly, though, this would be a big step that would not go ahead without significant consultation with members. If you have expert knowledge in these areas, we would be extremely grateful to hear from you.

Martin Lucas-Smith, Co-ordinator

Planning consultant needed

Paid work researching planning applications for the new developments

At the moment there are a great many developments, some very large, being submitted for planning permission. Cambridge Cycling Campaign would like to study and comment upon them, in order to prevent the construction of yet more areas like Arbury Park where provision for cyclists is very poor. But this is an enormous workload.

We believe we now have funds, thanks to a generous donor, to engage a self-employed consultant for 1-3 days a week to do a lot of the legwork on planning applications.

We are pursuing this approach whilst at the same time pushing ahead with investigating incorporation of the Campaign as a charity/company. However, this would take some time to achieve, yet the need for scrutinising these massive planning applications - for what almost amounts to a new Cambridge around Cambridge - is urgent.

If you know of any environmental consultants who might be interested in this work, please ask them to get in touch.

Cycling 2020 (see later in this Newsletter) and our Position Paper on New Developments (see our website and Newsletter 76) are the key documents forming the Campaign's policy position on the subject of new developments, against which the consultant would need to be looking out for potential problems, or (hopefully) positive areas on which the Committee could then produce a formal position.

The main tasks would be:

Studying specific planning applications, as soon as they appear;
Preparing brief summaries of each planning application, for the Campaign;
Highlighting issues on which Cambridge Cycling Campaign might choose to comment;
Drafting and amending submissions;
Attending meetings on behalf of the Campaign and reporting back to the Committee;
Keeping track of the progress of planning applications and reporting to the Committee.

Would anyone one be interested in doing this work if we could raise the funds? Or does anyone know anyone who might be? They would need the following skills and experience.

Skills required:

Understanding of the planning system
Knowledge of, or willingness to learn, what is in existing key planning documents for Cambridgeshire (Local Development Framework, Structure Plan, Local Plans, Planning Policy Guidance etc.);
Knowledge of the context for planning and transportation in the region and of the Cambridge area;
Knowledge, and experience, of provision for cyclists, both locally and, preferably, elsewhere (so we can learn from successful planning in other places);
Good research skills, with the ability to understand complex planning documents and maps;
Excellent communication skills, with the ability to provide clear, concise and timely reports;
Good time management and the ability to work to, and meet, tight timelines.

We look forward to hearing from people who can help us in this way with careful scrutiny of planning applications and assist us in being much more proactive in engaging developers.

Martin Lucas-Smith

Cycle parking guide: can you help us produce this?

Cambridge Cycling Campaign has received a grant from the City Council's 'Safer City' Scheme to produce a Cycle Parking Guide. The grant is for a total of £3,500 (to include £1,000 for printed copies) and we are extremely grateful to the Safer City Scheme for this.

The intention is explicitly for a practical and Cambridge-specific guide that can give owners of existing buildings clear and simple guidance on how to create cycle parking. We get a lot of enquiries about how to 'do' cycle parking, and this guide is something we will be able to use to answer these enquiries, as well as pro-actively sending the guide to very many existing development owners, to encourage them to install new cycle parking.

Aims of the guide

To provide a simple c. 8-12 page guide suitable for developers and existing site owners about how to provide secure cycle parking, to encourage them to do so where there is no existing suitable cycle parking or to encourage them to upgrade inadequate and insecure cycle parking.

Developers of new buildings are failing to meet existing Cycle Parking Standards set by the City Council and the result is that poor quality, ill-thought-out cycle racks are provided. Furthermore, there remains a widespread legacy of poor or insufficient parking around Cambridge. Consequently, levels of theft remain extremely high.

Existing cycle parking guides are often over-complex and insufficiently Cambridge-specific. We want a guide which starts from the key issues of why cycle parking is a good thing, all the way through to who to contact to get it installed and how much it costs - i.e. all the necessary information in a single, concise short booklet.

We expect that the City and County Councils and police would be able to make use of this guide themselves and send it out to potential developers and others enquiring about cycle theft issues.

Call for Tenders

We are looking for consultants to assemble the material and to work up the material into visual format so it can be printed.

If you are interested in this work, please view our official Call for Tenders on our website.

Martin Lucas-Smith

Creating a Cycling Culture: the National Cycling Conference, Cambridge May 10th

We've now a better idea of our plans for this Conference for Cycling Campaigners that we will run in conjunction with CTC and Cycle Campaign Network. We even have a title that recognises the special nature of cycling in Cambridge: 'Creating a Cycling Culture'.

The conference will be held in the Department of Mathematical Sciences.

We are hoping that people from other groups will be able to display A1 posters they've designed around the large open area where tea and coffee will be served.

Following the keynote speaker, Matt Seaton, cycling columnist for The Guardian newspaper, we will launch our Cycling 2020 document, followed by speakers from London and one from the North.

During the lunch break (vegetarian food supplied locally) there will be further opportunities to see the poster displays and vote on them as the best will get a prize.

The afternoon will be taken up with a series of informal breakout groups, followed by a speaker from CTC with a roundup of the national picture.

As details firm up we will keep our website updated. Visit these webpages for the latest conference information.

What can members do?

We've already asked for volunteers to 'host' delegates and we now have a form on the website to assist in volunteering. We're keen to have more volunteers.

To reduce the cost of the catering we also need volunteers to help with tea and coffee on arrival, with drinks and food at lunch time, as well as with tea and coffee before departure. Please contact us if you're willing to give up much of Saturday May 10 for this purpose.

For people who stay over until the Sunday, there will be a longer ride organised by the local CTC group, and shorter informal rides around the city. We hope to offer a choice of rides, with route plan and description, but as we'd like to keep the groups small we're after volunteers to lead these rides of under five miles.

Of course campaign members are welcome to pay their money and come as delegates, and can even volunteer in breaks as well!

Jim Chisholm

Ride to Reach: the Camcycle 20/50

On Bank Holiday Monday 5th May 2008 join our big bike rides from Cambridge into the fenland countryside. There's a short ride (20 miles there and back) to the village of Reach, stopping for the village fair, or a longer ride through Wicken Fen to Ely. Both rides start together in Cambridge, departing promptly at 10 a.m. from outside the Fort St. George pub on Midsummer Common. They will go at a leisurely pace following National Cycle Network Route 11.

The ride takes place on the day of the historic country fair in the village of Reach at the end of Devil's Dyke, arriving in time to witness the opening of the fair by the Mayor of Cambridge at noon.

For those wanting a longer ride (50 miles there and back), the stop at Reach will be just enough for lunch. We shall then carry on expecting to arrive in Ely in the mid-afternoon, where there will be time to enjoy the sights and more refreshment, before getting back on our bikes and returning to Cambridge by the same route. Bring bike lights. Alternatively return by train, subject to limited availability of space for bikes.

The Ride

Last year's ride crosses Wicken Fen.

Come prepared for stunning views of open country, wild horses near Wicken Fen and changeable weather. Bring water, snacks and money to buy food. The pace will be leisurely, with the riding time to Ely expected to be four hours each way. These rides are organised by Cambridge Cycling Campaign and are run in association with Sustrans. They are open to everyone, and everyone is welcome to bring their roadworthy bike. This includes accompanied confident child cyclists who are strong enough to ride for around 20 miles (the return distance to Reach). Both rides will be accompanied by marshals who are able to help with simple bike problems. You are of course free to ride independently at your own risk. This is a ride just for fun, there is no charge and there is no sponsorship.

Full details including timings are on our website.

Marshals needed

How many people we get depends largely on the weather! But it could be between 50 and 100, mostly doing the shorter ride to Reach and back, so we will need plenty of marshals. Would anyone who might be prepared to offer their services as a marshal please contact the Campaign? Your help will be appreciated!

Simon Nuttall

Air pollution monitoring via mobile phones

Cambridge map showing sound level samples collected by Outspoken Delivery.

The CamMobSens project aims to monitor air pollution using mobile phones in a bid to create a "pollution map" of Cambridge. It promotes the social networking of the local community through the provision of a web portal that facilitates back end sharing of real-time and archived environmental data.

The technique is made possible by small wireless pollution sensors and custom software that allows the phones to report levels of air pollutants wherever they happen to be around town.*

Everybody in the area could become a pollution tracker.

Local cyclists are equipped with air-pollution sensors and GPS units that connect to their mobile phones via Bluetooth. So their phones are constantly reporting the levels of carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, nitrogen dioxide and noise in the area. And back in the lab, servers are updating GIS visualization tools for Internet users and regular mobile phone users. The sensors used for this project could also be fixed to a pedestrian's jacket, which means that everybody in the area could become a pollution tracker.

OutSpoken cyclist courier holding air-pollution sensor

The mobile sensing approach can be used to collect other data, for example, combining the system trialled so far with a separate device to measure lung function using a peak flow meter, (a device used to measure how well a person's asthma is under control), The CamMobSens team is working with doctors who are very interested in being able to correlate their patient's symptoms with the air pollution around them. Gathering such data from a large number of people over time could shed new light on the links between air pollution and asthma symptoms, perhaps allowing better preventive treatments.

Cyclists are becoming increasingly aware of the environmental implications of their travel decisions. The availability of timely and accurate environmental information relevant to specific journeys and locations could enable them to make more informed choices. We are hoping in the future to provide bicycle journey planners in Cambridge with information about the least polluted routes.

Dr Eiman Kanjo

*The system was developed with help from phone manufacturer Nokia and telecoms provider O2. The CamMobSens initiative (www.escience.cam.ac.uk/mobilesensing) is also one of the ideas explored by MESSAGE (short for "Mobile Environmental Sensing System Across Grid Environments"), a three-year research project which is funded jointly by the EPSRC and the Department for Transport.

Cambridge: A 'Cycling Demonstration Town'?

Many already think that Cambridge demonstrates the benefits of a 'Cycling Culture' but Cambridgeshire County Council will be submitting a case for Cambridge, with its 'necklace' villages, to be one of the next tranche of Cycling Demonstration Towns.

Three years ago six towns became the first cycling demonstration towns and received significant lumps of Government money to fund various improvements. Initial results from these towns, which include Aylesbury, Darlington and Brighton, have proved promising, and now a further £140 million is to be made available to six more towns. Although we gather that 60 towns have made initial enquiries, we hope that the special circumstances in Cambridge give us odds of better than 10:1.

Of course this steeplechase has many hurdles before the finish in June, but we'll be doing all we can to support the bid. If this bid is successful it could see another couple of million each year over three years, entirely for cycling. (That's about half the cost of the new multi-storey car park for a mere 1000 cars at Addenbrooke's.)

Jim Chisholm

Cycling 2020: our vision for Cambridge's cycling future

After several years in the making, we are pleased to announce that our vision for cycling in Cambridge, 'Cycling 2020' is being launched at the national CCN/CTC conference in May. Cycling 2020 has been funded with thanks to a donor who wishes to remain anonymous, but to whom we are extremely grateful for allowing us to proceed with this much-needed work.

Copies will be sent to members and decision-makers once it comes off the press. Delegates to the conference will also receive copies. Many of the issues apply to other areas of the country and so we hope its distribution in this way will help other cycling campaigns around the country in their own work.

Cycling 2020 is our visionary document for cycling in the city over the next 15 years. The brochure contains a series of achievable but challenging plans for the delivery of an attractive cycling infrastructure.

Cycling 2020 has been written by our consultant, Justin Coleman of Blue Grape. Several interviews were conducted with Committee members, and an online questionnaire was circulated to a number of our most active members in the Campaign in recent years. In addition, material has been drawn from the vast amount of material the Campaign has produced over the years. The text was edited into its final form by Martin Lucas-Smith and Monica Frisch on behalf of the Committee. The photography and design has been done by Geoff Muller of 2up Ltd. We are grateful to Justin and Geoff for their work, and others within the Campaign for their input.

Cycling 2020 is intended principally to:

Make a strong case for cycling, through presentation of a range of key policy strands;
Give decision-makers a clearer idea of positive things the Campaign actually wants;
Provide a 'pick-list' of schemes which could be carried out (e.g. the Chisholm Trail, local schemes, opening up of blocked routes, etc);
Outline a clear list of theme-based objectives for action (e.g. removal of obstructions, increasing cycle parking to meet demand);
Give a focus on getting improvements to existing infrastructure to meet the needs of cyclists (and walkers);
Make suggestions on broader non-physical measures such as driver/cyclist education and training as well as enforcement issues.

Our vision for cycling in 12 sections

Here is a quick overview of the 12 sections in Cycling 2020.

Foreword (by the Co-ordinator)

Cambridge is often known as a cycling city. Its vibrant cycling culture, with probably the highest rate of cycling in the country, is an asset to a city which would otherwise be even further choked with traffic. Through Cycling 2020, we invite readers to share the vision of a world-class cycling city that we set out in this brochure. A city which genuinely values cycling and the contribution it makes. A city which wants to see even higher levels of cycling, where cycling becomes a real alternative that even children and the infirm could safely use without the sort of dangers, or perceived dangers, that sometimes exist.

Why cycling?

Bicycles are just as much a legitimate form of transport as cars, buses, and motorbikes. Cyclists are just as much road users as those behind the wheel. We set out the numerous benefits of cycling.

Providing for cycling

Drivers will only be tempted out of cars if they see a better alternative. Cycling infrastructure that looks unsafe, is inappropriate, or appears slower than going by car will not encourage people to leave their cars at home and hop on a bike instead - only high-quality cycling conditions will tempt more people out of their cars. We outline aspects of good design which will facilitate this.

Bad infrastructure and the problems it causes

Cyclists suffer from badly designed infrastructure every day and this has a negative impact on encouraging more people out of their cars. Such infrastructure can be unsafe and inconvenient, and can encourage poor drivers to feel that cyclists have no right to use the roads. We want to see an end to substandard cycling provision, lessons must be learnt from past poor design and planners need to appreciate that poor cycling provision is worse than no cycling provision at all. We take a look at examples of bad infrastructure and explain the problems it causes.

Barriers to cycling

If cycling is to be encouraged, routes for cyclists need to be as direct as possible. There needs to be a positive benefit to them in terms of speed or convenience, preferably both. Just as with any other form of transport, anything which acts as a barrier is likely to deter them. Unfortunately, urban environments throw up all kinds of barriers to cycling. These can be mitigated through good street design, whilst bad design often creates new problems. We demonstrate this contrast.

Reallocation of road space

There is massive competition for road space in Cambridge. The way the city's road space is used can have a major impact on encouraging cycling and it can make our neighbourhoods safer and more pleasant places to live. We outline how councillors and council officials need to bite the bullet and look seriously and creatively at ways of reallocating road space to benefit cyclists and pedestrians.

Area-wide Solutions: Primary Cycle Routes

In this section, we showcase the Chisholm Trail, our proposal for a major new cycleway that would run roughly alongside the railway, joining Addenbrooke's to the Science Park and beyond. It would attract many new cyclists, and make many journeys that take perhaps 40 minutes by car cycleable in 10 minutes. We outline this and other schemes, and show the need for a cohesive, joined-up cycle network for the city.

Reducing, managing and taming traffic

Traffic is the single greatest danger to the cyclist, both in terms of its volume and speed. Cambridge is already heavily congested and many of its roads are not designed for such heavy car usage. Reducing traffic levels is probably the biggest challenge facing transport planners, but it must be achieved if we are to encourage greater cycle use. We summarise the possible solutions.

Legislation and its Enforcement

As traffic increases, road culture changes and the demands on our urban areas increase, the legislation encompassing road users needs to be looked at regularly and in depth, to ensure cyclists are being properly served by the law. There are several areas where changes in the law can make an important difference to cycling safety and, as a result, to cycling levels.

Cycle parking

Cycle parking is an essential tool in encouraging cycle use, reducing pavement obstructions and fighting the scourge of cycle theft. Cambridge is currently the worst city for bike theft in the UK outside London, a key problem needing urgent attention. We challenge the mindset that gives cyclists a much lower status in the provision of parking spaces compared to those for motorists, despite the positive role cycling plays in the city's transport system.

Good design in cycle crossings

The Campaign wants to see crossings for cyclists working to the same principles afforded to motorists. Never again must the Gonville Crossing debacle occur. But Cambridge must go further, and create crossings according to continental-standard, best-practice designs.

New Developments Around Cambridge

Cambridge and the surrounding area will soon come under immense pressure from several new residential developments which are either being planned or built. From the Southern Fringe in the south to Arbury Park in the north, Marshall's Airport site in the east and Northstowe in the west, the next few decades will see a major increase in housing, people and traffic. With new developments there is a clean sheet and the transport authorities and developers need to use this opportunity to get things right from the very beginning. Dovetailing with our Position Paper on New Developments, we make the case that it is essential to design high levels of cycle use into new developments and help encourage the kind of cycling culture which makes Cambridge such a unique city.

Martin Lucas-Smith

Postcard from Assen

David Hembrow, former Committee member, sends some views from the Netherlands, where he and his family now live.

In August 2007 my family left Cambridge and moved to the Netherlands. As Jim Chisholm pointed out in Newsletter 75, nearly 30% of all journeys in the Netherlands are cycle journeys. Driving is in third place. The stand-out rate of cycling in the Netherlands vs. all other countries is due to the first-rate provision for cyclists here. It should be no surprise that this has led to the world's highest rate of cycling.

Despite many visits, it was only after moving here that we appreciated how much the Dutch cycle. Virtually everyone cycles, from primary school age to pensioners. All our neighbours cycle to work, shops and school - including the over-80s. Most households have cars, but cycling is the natural way to travel. The infrastructure invites you to join in.

Assen

Assen, the city we now live in, was picked after quite a bit of research. It is the capital of Drenthe province - known as the "Fietsprovincie" ("Cycling province"). Assen is just under 30 km south of Groningen - visited by the Campaign ten years ago. Provision for cyclists here is first class.

Assen has two-thirds the population of Cambridge at 63,000 people. On average they make 70,000 cycle journeys per day. This is not considered to be a particularly high figure, and even if it were, there is no resting on laurels. Arterial routes to the city centre, in particular, are being improved. One expensive-looking new bike path of a few km in length required two large bridges (one carrying a dual carriageway) and a few small ones crossing the canal - which is being reworked over a length of several kilometres.

Cycling in the City

This 5 km-wide city is a delight to cycle in, with over 200 km of segregated bike path. Generally, we ride to the city centre without having to stop at all and can leave our bike directly outside the shops. If we were to drive, we'd have several sets of traffic lights and a roundabout to deal with, and we'd have to park outside the centre. Cycling is much more convenient.

You don't have to go out of your way to find cycle paths, but have a choice of routes to most locations.

You don't have to go out of your way to find cycle paths, but have a choice of routes to most locations. Wherever you share residential streets with cars, the speed limit is 30 km/h. I've yet to have the slightest hassle from a driver. They don't block cycle paths and they stay respectfully out of the way when you're crossing side roads, at which cyclists nearly always have priority.

City centre bicycle parking.

There are an enormous number of bike racks conveniently located in the centre. Extra cycle parking is provided for big events.

I've had a few visits to the dentist recently. It's about 2.5 km away and a slightly complex journey as I have to pass the ring road and a motorway junction to get there. However, there are three bike path routes of more or less equal distance to choose from. I ride on about 150 m of 30 km/h residential road at this end and about the same distance of 30 km/h industrial estate access road at the other end. Apart from that it's bike path all the way and every bit is suitable for riding absolutely flat out. Despite the major roads, one route requires me to stop for traffic at just one set of lights and the worst route has four sets (two of which default to green for bikes so you don't normally have to stop). By car there is just one viable route involving six sets of traffic lights.

Cattle on a country cycle path.

Riding in the countryside

We've taken many joyrides out into the countryside since we've been here. It's much easier to find a pleasant route here as you can simply follow signs and never end up on an unpleasantly busy road. If you try to follow main roads, you find yourself on good-quality bike paths separated by several metres of greenery, sometimes on the other side of a canal. I was used to studying piles of Landranger maps before rides so still have a tendency to try to over-plan routes.

Most households have cars, but cycling is the natural way to travel thanks to the first-rate infrastructure. Signs remind you that your journey is shorter if you cycle (top left), and cyclists are excepted in one-way streets (top right) and a cycle path runs alongside a 30 km/h road.

Several different types of sign have been put in by different organisations and the signage works very well for both scenic detours and direct routes. Direct routes are usually shorter than those indicated for drivers. Dutch cycle path signage has a long history, the paddestoel (mushroom) shaped signs being first installed in 1919.

The paths are designed to accommodate very high cycling speeds and are used by racing cyclists, recumbents, velomobiles etc. A few days ago I rode to Groningen with a bit of a tail wind and passed the "Welcome to Groningen" sign just 48 minutes after leaving home, having covered 25 km. That's an average of very nearly 20 mph, on my slower touring bike. Bike paths here really don't limit your speed in any meaningful way. In fact, I average higher speeds here.

Compulsory cycle paths

I first heard about Dutch cycle paths being compulsory (in the sense that cyclists are not allowed to use the roads, where a cycle facility exists) some years ago and it made me feel sorry for Dutch cyclists. I was wrong. I had made the mistake of assuming that off-road cycling provision in the UK was representative of that in the Netherlands. It is not close in any way. The Dutch have an almost completely separate network of bicycle roads which are better designed for cyclists than Britain's car-oriented roads.

Dutch cycle paths are wide, smooth, direct, well sign-posted, well maintained and provide for safe and direct journeys in any direction. Britain's roads, with their rough surfaces, potholes, cycle-unfriendly attempts at traffic calming and traffic are not attractive by comparison. Our cycle journeys here are faster, safer and more convenient than they would be in the UK.

Dutch cycle paths are wide, smooth, direct, well sign-posted and provide for safe and direct journeys in any direction.

Some English-language commentators give the erroneous impression that the bike paths are not popular. Actually, Dutch cycle campaigners have little interest in riding on roads. The cycle path network is ideally suited for cycling. They do campaign for ever better cycle paths, though, and they're getting them.

Seen from here, British cyclists seem bizarrely obsessed with cycling on roads designed for cars. It's so alien that one keen local racing cyclist who read about the Daniel Cadden case asked me to explain why there was a desire to be on the road. Increasing segregation is the norm here. Roads are being narrowed as the remaining "hybrid" provision is removed and replaced by high-quality segregated paths.

I've come to see that compulsory cycle paths are a very good thing for cyclists. Drivers can be forced to suffer such indignities as low speed limits, narrow gaps, sharp corner radii, lots of traffic lights, giving way to bike paths etc. while cyclists make ever more safe, direct, easy and convenient journeys away from motorists' frustrations.

Cycling in the UK is a minority activity and will continue to be so while Britain's cyclists insist on cycling on roads. It keeps the conditions for cyclists bad and the rate of cycling low. What cyclists everywhere need is good provision for cycling. We don't like sharing with pedestrians so why should we like sharing with drivers?

Children / schools

Virtually all children here cycle to school. School trips are by bike, too. A week after starting school my primary-age daughter's class made a trip in to the city with a total of two parents and one teacher in charge. The children were all obviously quite experienced cyclists and efficiently made their way to the city centre. A few weeks later they cycled together from the city to a forest. Before the end of their last year in primary school children are taken on a cycle-camping trip.

Virtually all children here cycle to school with school trips by bike, too.

The primary school does not have a car park. The teachers also cycle to school. The deputy head told me that she'd never learnt to drive as there was no point. She brought up her three children on bikes. This is not unusual.

Primary schools tend to be very small and near to homes. However, there are far fewer secondary schools. At my elder daughter's secondary school, some children travel 20 km each way by bike. Children are just as able to ride unaccompanied to friends, sport clubs etc. I've yet to see an obese child. Children have a lot of freedom while parents who have no fear for their children's lives spend less time ferrying them about.

"This bike is OK!" sticker on Alice's bike after police inspection at school.

Once children are big enough to be out of child seats, they ride their own bikes. You rarely see tandems or trailerbikes here, but you do see bakfietsen and child trailers for very young children.

Cycling as a family group (including grandparents) is a very popular leisure activity.

Housing developments

Kloosterveen is a new housing development at the edge of Assen which is positioned similarly to some of the new estates around Cambridge. The standard of the cycling provision is astonishing. This new estate has wonderful bike paths which provide direct routes through the estate past the schools and all the way to the centre of the city several kilometres away. All roads in residential areas, both new and old, have a 30 km/h speed limit.

In Kloosterveen the standard of the cycling provision is astonishing, with wonderful paths providing direct routes past the schools and all the way to the city centre.

Road works avoid blocking cycle paths. When they have to, cyclists are given redirection signs.

The few road junctions with lights for cyclists always have detectors backed up by buttons to press. Cyclists always get enough time to cross and can always cross the entire road in one go. This applies even when there are six or more lanes of traffic to be crossed. There are no central islands with barriers to zig-zag around. Some such junctions default to green for bikes.

Inner tube vending machine.

Providing for bikes

Provision for cyclists doesn't only mean bike paths. There is an enormous amount of cycle parking, including at the railway station and in the city centre. Shops, restaurants and cafes each provide a little extra parking for cyclists, who make up an important part of their business. You may see inner tube vending machines on the outside of bike shops and chests of tools for cyclists at restaurants. There are also several national franchise businesses which do well out of providing mobile cycle maintenance.

Shops, restaurants and cafes each provide a little extra parking for cyclists, who make up an important part of their business.

Before Christmas the temperature was between -4 °C and -6 °C for several days. It's been below freezing again several times since. However, there has been no dangerous ice on the cycle paths. The council's four bike-path-specific de-icing vehicles have repeatedly covered all the bike paths since October. They also have machines for clearing leaves and litter.

There is less broken glass on paths, part of which I put down to the frequency of sweeping and part to glass bottles being returnable for a deposit (washed and re-used, not smashed and re-cycled).

Kebab shop cycle parking.

Path maintenance

While this area has many forests, including within the city, it is very rare that you find damage such as tree roots growing through paths.

Other Opinions

I asked my family for their opinions of cycling here relative to Cambridge:

Judy: "Cycling here is safer for the children and for myself. I feel sad that Britain is not the same. There is no comparison in the quality of cycling provision."

Eliza (14): "I like being able to cycle easily to school and to friends in the city and in villages. You can go fast because the paths are smooth. It's fun to ride to the city centre with friends and chat on the way."

Alice (11): "School trips by bike are fun!"

No-one had any negative comments...

David Hembrow

Study Tour to Holland: 13th-15th May 2008 – please sign up now!

Our study trip to Assen will explore all aspects of that city's cycling culture, including the move away from hybrid paths (above) to high-quality segregated 'bicycle roads'.

Back in 2006 we organised a Study Tour to the Netherlands. This year we are organising another, thanks to David. This time we have a fixed base in Assen.

David Hembrow's article outlines the amazing conditions for cycling over there.

We have no specific distance to cover each day so we will be able to spend more time simply watching. We'll see the rush hour, children on the school run, new developments, old housing estates and the city centre. We'll see recreational areas, forest, canals, the railway station and travel a short distance out of the city to see countryside paths. David knows this area and can lead participants directly to places of interest.

The tour will take place over three days midweek from the 13th to the 15th of May 2008.

The cost of the tour is €400 (approx: £300) per participant to include four nights in bed and breakfast accommodation.

We are particularly keen that councillors and officers should come with us, to inspire them as to what could be done in Cambridge, particularly given the potential for £50m of new money as a result of the congestion charge proposals.

For more information about the 2008 Study Tour see the website or contact us via any of our usual contact details.

Bookings can be made directly via the link on the website.

We really hope you can come!

Martin Lucas-Smith

Tesco's plans for more lorries on Mill Road thrown out

As many people may be aware, there has been a large campaign against plans by Tesco to open a fourteenth Tesco-owned store in Cambridge on Mill Road. Those objections have been focussed on grounds of viability and vitality of local shops. Obviously that issue is not of relevance to the Campaign and we take no view on that.

Lorries unloading on Mill Road already cause danger and delays and create a serious obstruction in Romsey's narrow streets. Would it have been sensible to allow a store that would exacerbate this problem further?

However, upon our scrutiny of the planning applications, it quickly emerged that the plans for delivery to the store were totally inadequate, and would exacerbate an already problematic safety situation in Mill Road. The Committee submitted an objection and a representative of the Campaign spoke at the packed public meeting of the East Area Committee on 6th March, to great applause.

Planners should be ashamed for suggesting that allowing lorries delivering 30 times per week, for perhaps 40 minutes at a time, from Mill Road itself, would be practical. Such a suggestion is not even remotely sensible.

The store is that previously owned by Wilco, who we understand used small vans to deliver non-perishable goods to the back of the site. We understand that there were only a small number of deliveries per week. By contrast, Tesco's planning application for an extension were submitted to facilitate a store which would have 30 lorry deliveries per week, taking up to 30 minutes at a time.

At the East Area Committee meeting, the head planner from the City Council stated his view that 40-45 minutes was more likely. And another objector revealed research from monitoring of the Cherry Hinton Tesco Express store, which suggested that some 45 deliveries per week was more likely.

The lease on the site is currently owned by Tesco, and it previously had planning permission for operation as a shop. Three applications were submitted, the key one being to increase by 36% the size of the premises. (The other two were for a sign and an ATM.)

A photo gallery of the area can be found at our photomap.

Mill Road

Mill Road is a heavily congested area, as most members will be aware. The two halves of Mill Road are 3rd and 4th on the County Council's accident cluster sites list. As a result, Mill Road is now second highest in the County Council's 'October List' of 185 areas needing safety attention. The collision map for the area demonstrates how most collisions are already taking place at junctions.

Mill Road is a busy and relatively narrow shopping street, and existing levels of delivery vehicles already cause congestion, inconvenience and danger. More large delivery vehicles would make things even worse. Anyone cycling in the area will be familiar with the existing problems.

Lorry deliveries

Tesco originally planned to have deliveries from the pavement at the front. This would block the public highway and cause danger, and so this proposal was rightly thrown out by officers.

Tesco's formal application proposed deliveries to the back of the store from Sedgwick Street. But this would require lorries going through that street, which is narrow with half-pavement parking on both sides. This is clearly totally impractical. The only other way for their lorries to reach the delivery area would be to have such lorries reversing into what is a one-way street. Clearly this too would objectively cause a lot of disruption and present a considerable safety hazard for people cycling and walking.

The officer report therefore acknowledged that the only remaining option was for unloading on Mill Road itself. This, our Formal Objection made clear, would be unacceptable on safety grounds (especially given the existing high collision rate). It would obviously also worsen the existing traffic congestion in the area.

Amazingly, the officer report stated that the store should receive approval despite this obviously unacceptable delivery situation. Councillors took notice of common sense and threw out the plans unanimously.

Cycle parking

We also objected that the cycle parking proposed was not in accordance with the Cycle Parking Standards, a requirement clearly stated in the Local Plan. We received a revised drawing, at late notice just a few days before the meeting (many months after the submission of the planning application) that showed revised details of the cycle parking which meet the mandatory requirements of the Standards Local Plan.

What happens next?

At the time of writing it is not clear what Tesco's next moves will be. They will find it hard to operate a store without having their lorries blocking Mill Road several times a day. This was the key aspect of our objection and one of two key aspects for refusal officially cited by councillors in their rejection of the Planning Application.

Tesco may choose to appeal the applications. But in our view there is no practicable way to service this particular site with the sort of multiple daily deliveries that a food store 10m2 smaller than a supermarket would require.

Tesco claim to listen to local communities. We hope they will do so and withdraw their plans. Perhaps at the same time, they could also fix the problems that remain around their Newmarket Road store, where chicanes cause real inconvenience to cyclists with shopping bags.

Martin Lucas-Smith

Grand Arcade Cycle Park: what the developers claim

Bicycles outside the Grand Arcade's unopened cycle park.

Numerous members of the public and of the Campaign have contacted us to forward an e-mail (see below) they received from the Grand Arcade developers, whose lethargy in getting the Grand Arcade Cycle Park fitted out correctly has rightly caused a lot of anger and bad press for John Lewis.

We are aware there has been some frustration over the delay in opening the Grand Arcade cycle park. We apologise for any inconvenience this has caused but it was important for us to ensure the management strategy for running the park enables the best possible service.

Services which the cycle park will provide include valet parking, bike hire facilities and a high quality shop amongst other plans. The valet parking area of the scheme will be manned by the cycle shop operator. This facility will have an operating charge, which is currently being finalised with the operator. The legal arrangements for this service are in their final stages and we hope to announce further detail well ahead of the centre opening on Thursday 27 March.

In the meantime, work on the cycle park is being carried out, in line with the city council planners and operators requirements, including widening of the stands and minor work on the public access area to the park. This work will enable the public parking area, which is free of charge includes cycle racks, and is covered by the centre's CCTV, to be up and running by the centre opening.

The cycle park has always been an important part of the Grand Arcade scheme and we have been working hard to get it right. The Grand Arcade cycle park will be one of the biggest in the country offering excellent facilities to Cambridge cyclists far above anything currently available.

We issued a formal notification to the City Council Planning Department that we expect to see the planning conditions enforced if the development is to open on time. A day or two later, members reported that changes to fix the spacing between the stands seem to be being made.

Martin Lucas-Smith

Jesus Lane collision: bus driver guilty

I was knocked off my bike by a bus last April and the case finally came to court on the day after Valentine's Day. The fact that it came to court at all was entirely down to the witness, who not only followed the bus and flagged down the driver on the day, but took the trouble to appear in court nearly one year later, despite being pregnant. Thanks Yvette.

The bus was travelling at some speed down Jesus Lane on its way to Drummer Street and I was cycling in the same direction. It was a lovely spring day (no adverse weather conditions to deal with there) and I was on my way to the bank for an appointment about getting life insurance. The bus pulled out to overtake me but it then pulled in again almost immediately and there was a loud noise as the side of the bus clouted my right handlebar. I lost balance straight away and fell towards a van parked on the side of the road, but as I still had forward momentum, the bike and I slid along the side of the van before falling in a heap in the gap between the van and the next parked car. The bus had disappeared off and I just had an impression of a blue wall of metal.

Yvette had been driving the other way on Jesus Lane and she saw the whole thing. The road was clear and she saw the people in the car behind the bus had stopped to help me, so she did a three-point turn in the road and went after the bus, catching it up opposite Christ's Pieces. The bus driver denied he had caused an accident, But said he would be back round when he had picked up his next passengers and Yvette had to be content with that.

When the bus came back down Jesus Lane, it slowed and the driver wound down the window and looked at me 'sitting in the road bleeding' as Yvette put it. He said he couldn't stop as he had a schedule to keep and drove off. Then the ambulance and the police arrived.

In court, the driver defended himself, insisting he had not had an accident and that I was lying. However the magistrates felt that Yvette and myself were credible witnesses, and he was convicted of both charges: careless driving and failure to stop after an accident. He already had six points on his licence (he had not passed his probation with the bus company), and was banned from driving for six months on each charge. For failing to stop he was fined £250 and had to pay costs of £65. The solicitor for the prosecution advised me to claim compensation from the bus company, and I will follow this up as I have permanently lost some of the movement in my thumb.

Meg Clarke

Riverside: further improvements for cyclists revealed

First a stylish bridge and now an almost traffic-free promenade in prospect

Base map derived from OpenStreetMap.org, licensed CCbySA

Just too late for the last Newsletter came the excellent news that Councillors decided to make permanent the closure of Riverside to motor traffic alongside the new bridge. At the same meeting, they decided to allocate about a quarter of a million pounds to improvements for cyclists and walkers at the Midsummer Common end of Riverside.

Because half the road width has been allocated to the bridge ramp, there would only have been one lane through which to put traffic had the road been re-opened. We know from our members' survey a couple of years ago that the river corridor has one of the highest levels of cycling of any route in the city. It is of course also part of National Cycle Network routes 11 and 51. The case was very strong for the closure.

About three-quarters of those who replied favoured the Riverside closure.

The case was also helped by a good measure of support among residents - about three-quarters of respondents to the consultation were in favour. It had its critics too (when is there consensus on anything to do with transport in Cambridge?!), primarily people on the out-of-town end who didn't like the prospect of turning out from Stanley Road into Newmarket Road in a car. A large-ish local petition supported the closure: congratulations to Ms M Symonds for organising it.

The closure should mean less motor traffic on Riverside overall (not that it is all that busy now). We will see the details of how the closure point is to be managed before long. However, the problem of the blind corner where Abbey Road meets Riverside remains. Plans are now being developed to address this.

If these go ahead as planned, the river corridor, and especially the route from Chesterton to the city centre via the new bridge, will be one of the most appealing cycle routes in the city.

With a complete closure to motor traffic, the new cycle bridge and improvements at Abbey Road, the river corridor will be one of the most appealing routes in the city.

The idea is to close Abbey Road at the sharp corner onto Riverside so both streets become dead ends. The hundred metres or so between Priory Road and the corner would become a kind of promenade along the river, with new tree planting in the road and a narrow carriageway for cyclists and the few residents' cars that need to use it. This would end at a small turning loop joining to the existing cycle track under Elizabeth Way Bridge and also with a short cycle link to Abbey Road.

Abbey Road would end after the sharp left turn under the bridge. This provides access to the Walnut Tree Avenue cul-de-sac at the back of Cambridge Regional College. Here lies one fly in this otherwise rather pleasant ointment. The College is planning to shut up shop here. This would mean the valuable site would be redeveloped for housing (good) but with 160 underground parking spaces. The chances are all the vehicles accessing these will be directed to the rather tortuous route through the Abbey area, down Abbey Road, under the bridge and up the other side.

While being clear of the Riverside changes, cyclists using Abbey Road (which is an excellent route given that it is closed to cars at the Elizabeth Way roundabout) and the Abbey area in general would face this increased traffic. We would prefer direct access as at present from Newmarket Road, but we have been told that the County Council transport people object to this because it is too close to the roundabout. We expect to see a planning application for this development before long.

David Earl

Bicycle Points for £1000

Reflecting on the cost of cars and children cycling to school

Many children are not allowed to cycle to school and are chauffeured by their parents instead. My two (11 and 14 years old) would prefer the comfort of a people carrier, too. However, for every approx. 10 km (6 miles) of car use they help to avoid they get one point (£1) credit, which is used to buy special things (like a PC or a hamster) to show how saving on car use or petrol can translate into tangible assets. For example a round trip to the two schools is 13.1 km, each child gets £1 for avoiding the car use (cycling or car share) on a trip (two children and two school trips can be £4 a day for avoiding 26.2 km and almost two hours of inner-city car travel). About once a week I add the 'new miles' to a spread sheet, which also helps to keep track of the money spent. In less than two years the total balance reached £1000.

In February I was proud to write to my children:

"Congratulations - you have accumulated £1000 in bicycle points. This translated into a desktop PC, a 19" flat screen, a top of the range graphics card, a hamster, extra memory (1 GB SDRAM), a Cherub Shirt and your current balance of £232.90. At £1 per 10 km (inner-city) traffic (avoiding about 6000 car-miles), the bottom line saving for the family will well exceed £1000. Saving involves making choices everyday - well done!"

In actual terms, the cost of a 50 minute 13.1 km inner-city car journey passing 42 traffic lights will well exceed the £2 credit to our children. The aim of the exercise is not accurate accounting but reconnecting the individual little and avoidable car journey to the about £45 it takes to fill the tank with petrol and over time the bigger things like computers we often find dear. The same principles apply to saving in general or other issues like switching off the lights, the tap, a coffee to go, avoiding plastic bags, etc...

Hopefully our teenagers learn that the gadgets they are playing on could have literally gone up in smoke.

Klaas Brumann

'OK' for car to hit cyclist outside cycle lane

For nearly a year I've been struggling with the consequences of an incident. I've had sleepless nights, not because of the consequences for me, but for the consequences for the many thousands of pedestrians and cyclists in Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, and throughout the country, who believe that as vulnerable users the law gives them protection from careless or inconsiderate motorists.

I've not reported this formally within the Campaign, or written anything for the Newsletter lest publicity should prejudice anything, but I've now decided to commit my experience to paper and damn any consequences, especially as I'm not identifying the driver concerned or naming any other individuals, and traffic offences cannot be prosecuted unless 'notice of intent' is issued within six months.

In mid March last year, whilst cycling down Regent Street, I was hit by a motor vehicle that was overtaking me. I didn't go flying over the bonnet, but the mirror caught my handlebar and I was thrown to the ground. I had grazes and bruises but despite my 60 years I was able to bounce up, although I certainly suffered in the few days that followed. My bike suffered less than I did.

Avid readers might guess where this was, especially when I say that this was just days before the bollard lane bypass for cyclists was closed. It wasn't at the exit from the lane where we thought a crash was likely, as I was taking the advice an Officer in the County Council gave, and was published in a previous newsletter: "many cyclists might prefer to use the traffic lane". (For those who don't know the area please refer to the diagram on the right.)

I was hit approaching the entry to the 3.1m section, and was sure the incident would be captured on the CCTV. I had no doubt that the driver had either been extremely careless, or that he had deliberately intimidated me, even if it was not his intention to actually hit me. I certainly didn't think I could be to blame for being hit by a vehicle attempting to overtake me.

Many drivers still seem to think that if cycle facilities are provided cyclists must use them and have no right to be on the road. Of course they are wrong, and it is only in exceptional cases that cycles are not permitted to use normal traffic lanes. The latest edition of the Highway Code makes this clear saying: "Use of cycle lanes is not compulsory and will depend on your experience and skills, but they can make your journey safer". But even if such drivers have never read the Highway Code, and it seems likely that this is the case, it gives them no right to use their vehicle as a weapon, or to intimidate cyclists.

I got up and chased the driver, who I thought at first was not even going to stop, whilst a friend dialed '999'. He did stop, but never bothered to get out of his car simply saying "You should have been in the cycle lane".

The police arrived promptly and efficiently, taking brief statements from the driver and myself, as well as taking the names and addresses of a couple of witnesses.

I later received a form to fill in, and patiently awaited a response from the police. Imagine my surprise when five weeks later I received a letter from the police Collision Enquiry Unit saying "no further action is being taken by the Police against any person involved". I immediately rang them, and was told: "No action, cyclist not in cycle lane".

I then took some advice, and it was suggested that my next steps should be to view and possibly get copies of any CCTV footage, and also get a copy of the Collision Enquiry Unit report. Getting the CCTV footage was easy, although I did have to sign to say it wouldn't be used for "Entertainment" so you won't see it on 'Police, Camera, Inaction'. I was concerned that the footage might show some unreasonable change of direction on my part, so I was accompanied by another experienced cyclist, as an arbiter. We both considered my actions and positioning were reasonable; hence I was very surprised to get an email from the Head of the CCTV Unit saying:

"It also shows that you are over a metre outside the cycle lane towards the centre of the road and that the vehicle is quite clearly driving in a straight line towards the vehicle bollards lane.

Because of your position on the road, you have effectively hemmed in the taxi which cannot take evasive action without crashing into the side bollards marking out the vehicle lane.

I think from the CCTV images I have seen, they would appear to show that the fault for this incident rests with the cyclist."

This statement seems to support the view that if you don't think someone has a right on the road, it confers on you, the right to hit them with your motor vehicle.

I don't see how a CCTV operator who will have had no training in Road Traffic Collision Investigation should be making such an opinionated statement, and I was concerned that, if such a statement had been made to a naïve police officer viewing the footage, it might have biased his or her view.

Stills from the CCTV footage of the incident

The CCTV footage (see stills left) did show that I didn't swerve out suddenly but continued on past the vehicle in the loading bay keeping parallel to the kerb occupying the 'primary' position as suggested for such locations in the National Cycling Guidance.

My attempts to get a copy of the Collision Enquiry Unit report were long and difficult. Letters go astray, Freedom of Information doesn't work for things that were previously chargeable, and such reports can only be released to a solicitor, and of course no one explains the steps required, just rebuffs the requests as they arrive.

As I still hadn't got the report, and I was concerned that time was running out to take action against the driver, I wrote directly to the Chief Constable. I explained my concerns stating (for example) "I'm concerned that the officer who investigated this incident failed to understand both the right of a cyclist not to use a cycle facility, and the responsibility of the driver to leave adequate space for vulnerable road users as clearly stated in the Highway Code".

I also asked to meet informally with a senior officer to see if we could have a satisfactory closure of this incident. No such luck… The reply I received, at the same time as the long awaited Collision Enquiry Report, was dismissive, stating: "{cyclist} is further out towards the centre of the road. A position I believe to be unnecessary and showing no consideration for following traffic" and "As the {vehicle} was passing, the cyclist is clearly seen to move further to his offside. There was no apparent reason for this deviation… The cyclist makes contact with the {vehicle}… In my opinion the cyclist is the more blameworthy".

We were at the end of September, and I'd hoped for a closure, and some admission that the first decisions was based on incorrect knowledge of the Highway Code, but no, so I'm still stressed and suffering some almost sleepless nights, as I still can't see how a cyclist going in a straight line can be hit from behind and be 'more blameworthy'.

I decide to contact the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), but also to ask John Franklin, the leading Expert Witness in the field, author of Cyclecraft, and a member of the group that developed the National Cycle Training scheme, for his advice.

He's produced a 14-page report and in his conclusions says: "The…. driver drove without proper consideration for the safety of cyclist 2 from the time of first encounter. In his haste, he passed the cyclist leaving insufficient space under any circumstance and thus increased the possibility of conflict no matter how the cyclist subsequently rode" and "The collision enquiry report displays a lack of understanding of basic cycling safety issues and of established guidance on how to cycle safely. There is an undercurrent of bias against the cyclists and a failure to distinguish between actions that threaten the safety of others and actions that delay motorists".

Both he and the solicitor involved have done this work without charge 'Pro Bono' (In the Public Good).

What of the IPCC? I heard just before Christmas that my complaint was being referred for 'Local Resolution' and met with a Superintendent on February 12th.

That officer clearly had never seen a copy of Cyclecraft and still didn't think the case should have been taken to court, although he didn't suggest I was to blame for the crash. He claims the 'evidence of witnesses would make it difficult' as the passenger in the vehicle and a delivery vehicle driver at the kerb both stated I wasn't in the cycle lane. This means that the superintendent, despite having a copy of John Franklin's report in advance of the meeting, STILL either believes that a cyclist is at fault if he rides outside a cycle lane, or that witnesses' interpretation of the law must be correct. In addition one of the reasons for considering a charge of careless or inconsiderate driving by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is: "Driving inappropriately close to another vehicle". Surely, if you are hit by an overtaking vehicle they MUST have been too close?

A friend took notes at the meeting, and these have been sent to the officer complete with some action points. At the time of going to press I've not had any confirmation that these are agreed, and reading down the provisional list, I wonder why even I seem to be lumbered with some actions?

Many drivers (and even the police) still seem to think that if cycle facilities are provided, cyclists must use them and have no rights on the road.

So do I think the police are incompetent?

No, but I do think there is a lack of resources, a lack of education, and a strong tendency, as with most large organisations, to think they are always right, and to live in a blinkered past. Hopefully, if the police carry out any of the suggested actions, at least someone in the Collision Enquiry Unit and the CPS will now see a copy of Cyclecraft. We may even see someone in the Collision Enquiry Unit trained to 'level 3' of the National Cycle Training Standard.

I wonder how many ex-cyclists there are in Cambridge who thought they should ride for the benefit of their health, their pocket, and the health of the planet, but who gave up after suffering incidents of inconsiderate driving that should have been dealt with by the police?

I don't give up easily, but this little incident has caused me to drop or delay other things on my 'to-do' list as well as still interrupting my sleep. I still believe that the cause of the crash was the driving of the other vehicle which fell far below what would be expected of a normal driver.

If you feel you've good reason to see either the full CCTV footage or a copy of the 'Expert Witness' report, please contact me via the Campaign.

Jim Chisholm

Car parking: a significant barrier to improving cycling?

Gilbert Road is just one of many areas where on-street car parking creates unpleasant and unsafe conditions for cyclists.

I wish to present a hypothesis to provoke discussion: that public car parking represents one of the most significant barriers to improving cycling. Problems arise in two key areas:

Car parking on key strategic roads like the ring road, or streets like Gilbert Road, results in cyclists having to veer out into the traffic, which is unpleasant and unsafe. This is a major deterrent to increasing cycling.
High levels of car parking in residential areas like Romsey result in no space for cycle parking or two-way cycling, and space is sometimes even taken from pedestrian pavements.

There is, of course, a valid need for car parking, and the vast majority of members of the Campaign own cars, according to our own survey of members a few years ago. But the question is where the balance should lie between the current domination of space by cars and the opportunity for other road users to make use of the space instead.

Car parking on strategic roads

It seems ludicrous that key strategic roads in the city, where the free flow of traffic is of paramount importance, sometimes have allocated car parking spaces in even the most congested spots.

Key areas that we have focussed on in the past are the inner ring road, such as East Road and Lensfield Road, and places like Gilbert Road and outside the Botanic Gardens.

Compare the difficulty of cycling in these locations because of the need to dodge parked vehicles, with the relative ease of cycling on Huntingdon Road or Hills Road, for instance.

In these and many other problem areas, either:

people have to be sufficiently fast and confident to cycle in the middle of the traffic stream; or
people have to cycle too close to vehicles, resulting in the risk of being 'doored' by a car door opening; or
people are put off from cycling altogether.

It is clear that the source of the problem is the car parking, and the only real way to solve these problems is removing the car parking. Pushing cyclists onto the pavement would certainly not be a solution.

Residential areas

The levels of car parking in places like Romsey, the sort of area ideally suited for many to adopt car-free living, comes at the price of making the area unpleasant for walking and cycling. People end up having to walk in the road, and two-way cycling is frowned upon, a crazy state of affairs. In Romsey, cyclists and particularly pedestrians are treated as the lowest of the low.

In Romsey, cyclists and particularly pedestrians are treated as the lowest of the low.

Small but selective spot reductions, year by year, would gradually free up space for cycle parking and pedestrians, without causing too much difficulty for existing residents. People would think more carefully about car ownership when moving into the area. But this would need cross-party support and leadership.

The City Council send out their Rangers to clear the pavements of black bins. Where is the same passion by councillors to get cars (and bikes!) off the pavements too?

Cycle parking in residential areas

Ring-road car parking makes cycling very difficult, and causes delays.

At meeting after meeting of the Transport Area Joint Committee (AJC), debates about car parking in residential areas take place, with residents and Councillors vociferous about ensuring that car parking is never reduced. The "right" to have a car parking space directly outside one's front door seems never to be questioned, even in places like Gilbert Road where cycling conditions are terrible and dangerous yet virtually every house has its own parking. (Huntingdon Road is an almost identical situation, yet people seem to cope there.)

Yet where is the same passion about providing cycle parking? Few Councillors seem interested, and even the most environmentally-minded Councillors have failed to push for cycle parking to be routine throughout Cambridge. This seems nothing short of discrimination.

An ideal way of providing public cycle parking is as demonstrated outside St Catharine's College - which came at the loss of only a small number of car parking spaces. In residential areas, however, spaces need to be covered, as is common on the Continent. Car clubs, if they take off, could help facilitate freeing up space for cycle parking.

Home Zones: rethinking the urban environment

"For much of the twentieth century, streets were designed by engineers who were charged only with ensuring traffic flow, but it has become apparent that streets have many social and recreational functions which are severely impaired by fast car traffic. The living street is an attempt to design for all the functions of streets."

Wikipedia

A Home Zone is a residential area where no mode of transport has priority over any other and motor vehicle speeds are managed so that they do not, under normal conditions, exceed 10 mph. Keeping speeds naturally low results in the area becoming a 'place' for living rather than as a conduit for cars. The amount of car parking is also lower, reflecting the desire for a more people-friendly environment where children can safely play, for instance. Over 6500 such Home Zones have been introduced in the Netherlands since the 1960s, and so it is disappointing that the UK has barely started, 40 years later.

A few years ago, councillors, to their credit, unanimously supported the creation of a Home Zone proposed by developers of the former Simoco site in East Chesterton, though we have heard nothing more of the idea since.

The cycle racks outside St Catharine's College came at the loss of only a small number of car parking spaces.

Even without formal designation of a street as a Home Zone, the most recent planning guidance for new developments, specifically the Manual For Streets, and the Cambridgeshire Design Guide, includes many of the same principles of slower speeds and good cycle permeability. The problems in the existing areas will remain, however.

Car parking already a means of managing roadspace demand

In London, the lack of car parking is a key contributory factor to relatively low levels of car usage. Together with reasonably accessible public transport and the congestion charge, people will not drive in for the simple reason that there is often nowhere to park, or that they will pay high car parking charges.

Spot reductions in car parking are needed gradually over 10 years to reduce parking in dense, terraced areas to more appropriate levels.

Of course, in Cambridge, there is more space available than in highly dense London, but this same principle does already apply: car parking charges are already used as a form of demand management.

With the possibility of a congestion charge, and the ever-increasing need to manage traffic in the city, councillors need to think ever-more seriously about making space for cycling and walking on our streets, at the expense of the widespread car parking that currently exists.

Martin Lucas-Smith

Land's End to John O'Groats – via Cambridge

Campaign member Peter Davison is riding the End to End the long way round. He explains why.

Peter Davison is currently in training for his long ride. You can support him and his cause by donating on his website, cycling with him on part of the route or simply joining him for a cup of tea!

The problem

In July 2005, I had an epileptic seizure - the first and so far the last I've had - while I was driving a car. The first I knew of it was when I woke up in hospital, having crashed into a roundabout. The doctors told me a brain tumour had caused the seizure. Since then I have had surgery, radio- and chemotherapy.

The treatment has been successful. I didn't die that year, and I'm still here a couple of years later. The chances are, the tumour will come back one day…and then be operable … and then it'll come back again. I will probably die twenty years earlier than a man of my genetic make-up, habits and environment would normally expect to.

I've had to adjust my lifestyle a bit. I had to sell my racing bike, which I used to use in mass-start triathlons. My balance is not good enough for those any more.

The ride

But I can still ride a touring bike, and I'm doing that in May on the classic British route, the 'End to End'. I'm popping in en route to visit the hospitals that have so far treated me, and those that daily treat my fellow sufferers. So instead of turning north at Bristol, I'll be riding through southern England to Portsmouth General before visiting central London (National Hospital for Neurosurgery) and then Cambridge (Addenbrooke's). I'm hoping that will draw quite a lot of attention:

I'm no longer as young as I once was.
It's an unusual route.
I have the scars to prove that I'm doing this ride against fairly long odds!

The cause

Assuming I manage to get some attention, what will I be saying? I'll be pointing out that while focusing healthcare and research spending on high-incidence and high-mortality conditions looks sensible, there are additional factors that need to be taken into consideration. One of these is ALLY - Average Lost Life Years.

"I'm doing the classic British 'End to End' route, popping en route to visit the hospitals that treated me after a brain tumour, and those that daily treat my fellow sufferers."

Brain tumours are like leukaemia and cervical cancer. They catch people and kill them as kids and in young middle age. Unlike many of the more common cancers, brain tumours take away DECADES of a patient's life. They place an incredible burden on the life of the person with the disease, on their partner or carer, and on society in general. So I'll be dropping in not only at Addenbrooke's to see my doctors, but at the House of Commons to see my (our) MP and get my message across.

How Cambridge Cycling Campaign members can help

Of course I want to raise more than just awareness. Money lubricates everything. I'm collecting for Brain Tumour UK, for Addenbrooke's and for the newly re-sited Cambridge Cancer Help Centre at Scotsdales in Great Shelford.

Peter Davison will be arriving in Cambridge on 22 May, coming in through Shelford and across the fields to Addenbrooke's.

Wherever I go I'll be highly visible (which matters, if you're on a bike) and if cyclists, tumour patients, doctors or the media want to talk to me, I'll try to muster more than just a grunt in return. If companies want to sponsor me they can have their name on my cycling shorts, cap, back, chest, panniers… you name it, just not a tattoo.

To the cycling community in particular: please do come out for a cup of tea, or to drop a fiver in one of my panniers; or donate or check out my itinerary at www.justgiving.com/peterdavison1000 and ride in front of or behind me en route.

I'll be arriving in Cambridge late on 22 May, coming in through Shelford and across the fields to Addenbrooke's, where I'm expecting a bit of a reception at Oncology, before the long ride north.

Peter Davison

Mountain bike maintenance DVD review

The latest DVD from drivenandridden.com covers maintenance and repair for mountain bikes.

Drivenandridden.com have produced a new DVD on maintenance, aimed at mountain bikes this time. Subjects run from removing and replacing tyre and tube to wheel-building and bottom-bracket replacement, so this is even more broadly based than the previous offering. Strangely, though puncture repair is not covered, the section on 'repairing a flat on the trail' simply replaced the old tube with a new one. The terminology gives one clue, and the stern warning from the F.B.I. about $250,000 fines for piracy is another, that this was not produced in the UK.

A range of bikes are used for demonstration, all well-used but spotlessly clean, and the idea that any repair should start by cleaning the area of work first is not mentioned, even when bleeding hydraulic brakes is shown. On this topic there is some bad advice too, the complicated syringe kit used for bleeding Avid brakes is said to be cleaned with water afterwards, but Avid use conventional car brake fluid and contaminating it with water is bad news if the brakes get very hot.

For a demonstration video it has to be accepted that nuts and screws have been loosened beforehand, but the presenter, Jeff Dustin, shows a lackadaisical attitude towards tightening them afterwards, such that anyone using this DVD as their only reference for repair work is set dangerous examples. Quick-release levers are flipped open and shut with minimal effort, well below the force that it should take to operate them (described by one large bike manufacturer as "If you can fully close the quick release without wrapping your fingers around the fork blade for leverage, and the lever does not leave a clear imprint on the palm of your hand, the tension is insufficient."). When replacing the cranks after replacing the bottom bracket one securing bolt is described as "snug" and the other as "very tight". The actual torque recommended is 40-55 Nm or 30-40 lb-ft, which is definitely very tight using a normal size spanner, so could we have them both "very tight" please, Jeff.

The sections on replacing brake pads could be useful for those with reasonable skill, but for beginners there are some dangerously misleading examples

As with the first DVD the viewer is told that getting the correct spoke-key is important, but not how to find out which one is needed. Presta and Shraeder valves are mentioned, but no mention of which is which for the inexperienced.

For someone with reasonable skill the sections on replacing brake pads in various makes of disk brakes could be useful, but much of the rest is too basic, and for the unskilled there are too many advanced topics and dangerously misleading examples shown. This DVD is only available as a complete package, and at £12.99 from Drivenandridden.com is not good value.

Mike Causer

Designers needed

From time to time, we produce various briefings and documents for use in our campaigning. This year will be no exception - we have plans for a series of short, few-page briefings on the congestion charge proposals, new developments and other items.

For this we could really do with a pool of designers who are able to donate their time to lay out the material in an attractive format suitable for the public. We cannot offer to pay (except for grant-funded projects, for which a formal tender would be involved) but we are happy to credit work appropriately, and your work would help further the aims of the Campaign in a very visible way.

If you are able to offer your time to help with this (or indeed the Newsletter!), please get in touch via our usual contact details.

Monthly meetings

Open meetings, which everyone is welcome to attend, are held every month. The diary section of this Newsletter and our website have the dates of forthcoming meetings, which are normally held on the first Tuesday of each month at 7.30 pm for 8 pm at the Friends' Meeting House, Jesus Lane. Tea and coffee are served from around 7.30 pm.

Local issues and concerns: Tuesday 1st April 2008

After a series of special meetings and speaker events, we're taking a breather this month, to give more time to catch up on local issues, particularly those which members wish to raise.

Cycling 2020 and New Developments paper: Tuesday 6th May 2008

Cycling 2020 is our new vision document, reviewed elsewhere in this Newsletter. It is set to be launched at the national CCN/CTC conference in Cambridge on the weekend after this meeting. Come and discuss Cycling 2020 and also see our New Developments paper, postponed from a previous month.

Further ahead: 3rd June and 1st July 2008

Do put the dates in your diary. We hope to arrange speakers or presentations for these meetings. If you have any suggestions for speakers, we'd love to hear from you.

Photomap this month: editor's pick

#12935: New cycle stands on King's Parade

New cycle stands on King's Parade were in heavy use immediately after installation.

For the first time, public cycle parking has been provided on King's Parade. Four very welcome new stands, for eight cycles, have been installed. This was a direct result of an objection by the Cycling Campaign to a traffic scheme. As we predicted, the stands were being used solidly, with no space remaining, within a day of their installation.

There is plenty of space available for more stands, including the sections where no loading or parking is permitted. There remain many cycles left insecurely against lighting columns, in the way of pedestrians.

We call on the Council to provide many more stands further along King's Parade as soon as possible.

For more cycling-related photos of Cambridge or to add your own, visit the photomap

Your streets this month

Hell's Road Bridge

Work begins in May on an underpass beneath Hills Road bridge for buses, cyclists and pedestrians, but its construction is likely to create a temporary traffic hell.

Hills Road bridge will be Hell for 30 weeks from some time in May whilst the underpass for buses, cyclists and pedestrians is constructed beneath.

But first, we now know some of the gains after the pains. The new route for cyclists alongside the guided busway from Trumpington to the rail station will open in 2009, and we've had confirmation of the arrangements UNDER Hills Road bridge. On the unguided section there will be a speed limit of 15 mph for buses, and a flush kerb at the end of the maintenance track/cycleway/footpath, will enable cyclists to join this short section to get through to the station. There will also be a footway under the bridge.

So what about the pain? Some 4,500 cyclists and 550 buses use the route OVER Hills Road bridge in 12 hours on a typical day, and during the works roughly one third of the width will be obstructed at any one time. Although a footway will be maintained on both sides (at times 'suspended' over the works beneath), only a single lane in each direction will be available for vehicles, and that includes cyclists.

The proposal is for a single 3.0 m lane in each direction, which is same as existing width of a carriageway, with at times a 'weave' from one carriageway to the other. Large concrete blocks will be required to protect the construction site from straying motor vehicles. We've asked that every extra inch possible be added to this width, especially at 'weaves'.

To increase the GREEN time at the lights at either end of the bridge some turning movements will be banned. Specifically these are right out of Brooklands Avenue and right from Hills Road into Cherry Hinton Road. Some modifications are proposed to make it easier for cyclist to use adjacent crossings as an alternative to these turns.

Much longer queues on the approaches are inevitable, and some temporary bus and cycle lanes will be introduced on the Hills Road approaches. We've asked that these are made as wide as possible with other lanes for motor vehicles reduced to 3.0 m, but a 'squeeze' by the two-stage crossing outside the Sixth Form College looks inevitable.

This work does not include any widening of the bridge or reinforcement of the footways or parapets, as was discussed a couple of years ago. Maybe if road user charging arrives, either traffic flows will reduce or a pot of money will be found to do such work in the future.

All these arrangements will be done using temporary Traffic Regulation Orders so there is no requirement for formal consultations.

Just be glad you're on a bike and not in a car!

Wicken Vision cycle route

There's good news that work on the first new bridge on the Wicken Vision cycle route, over Swaffham Bulbeck Lode, started in mid-January, and is on schedule for completion by May. Sadly this is slightly too late to re-route the Camcycle 20/50 ride that way, but it will be useable for the summer. Funding for this came through a government Growth Areas Fund grant, and requests for the money needed for refurbishment of three existing bridges to complete the route have been made recently.

Thanks to all the supporters of the Sustrans Connect2 scheme in the recent Lottery competition, the Wicken Vision cycle route will benefit with an amount sufficient to build the second of the new bridges needed.

Improved path from West Cambridge?

As part of planning permissions for the University's West Cambridge Site, it was agreed that an alternative route to Burrell's Walk and Garret Hostel Lane for cyclists would be provided as developments progressed. Now investigations are under way into an improved route to West Road, with a direct signalled crossing over Queen's Rd linking to an upgraded path over Queens' Green, similar to that across Coe Fen.

Later we can expect to see a more direct link from the west end of West Road to the West Cambridge Site. Much of the cost of this route will come from University funds as part of the planning permissions.

Campaign Diary

Please note: the most up-to-date version of the diary of events is always in the events section of the website.

April 2008
Tue 1 8.00 pm	Monthly General Meeting: Friends' Meeting House, Jesus Lane (with tea and coffee from 7.30 pm, and a chance to chat, and for us to introduce ourselves to new members).
Thu 3 7.30 pm	West/Central Area Committee, Cripps Court, Magdalene College, 1-3 Chesterton Road. Campaign members may be interested to attend City Council Area Committee meetings, which often cover walking/cycling/planning issues.
Fri 4 8.30 am	Newsletter 77 review and planning for Newsletter 78 over breakfast at Tatties, 40 Hills Road, CB2 1LA.
Fri 4 12.30 pm	Friday ride (weather permitting): A lunchtime ride of varying speed and length, usually involving a stop at a pub on the way, leaving from the Stourbridge Common side of Green Dragon Bridge. Open to all who like to ride and talk about bicycles. Join the ride at your own risk.
Fri 11 12.30 pm	Friday ride (weather permitting): Lunchtime ride, open to all. See 4 April for description.
Sat 12/ Sun 13	Meeting to draft our communications to councillorsof the Cambridge Traffic Management Area Joint Committee (AJC) will be held over this weekend. For further details, please contact us.
Wed 16 10.00 am	Joint Development Control Committee, location to be confirmed. Campaign members may be interested to attend Joint Development Control Committee meetings, which are determining the Planning Applications relating to major housing development proposals for the Cambridge Sub-region.
Thu 17 7.30 pm	East Area Committee, Cherry Trees Day Centre, St Matthews Street. See 3 April for details on Area meetings.
Thu 17 7.30 pm	North Area Committee, Manor Community College, Arbury Road. See 3 April for details on Area meetings.
Fri 18 12.30 pm	Friday ride (weather permitting): Lunchtime ride, open to all. See 4 April for description.
Mon 21 2.00 pm	Cambridge Traffic Management Area Joint Committee (AJC) meeting, Kreis Viersen Room, Shire Hall, Castle Hill. Campaign members may be interested to attend AJC meetings, which cover walking, cycling and transport issues.
Mon 21 7.00 pm	Social meeting: Join us for a social gathering at CB2 café, 5-7 Norfolk Street.
Fri 25 12.30 pm	Friday ride (weather permitting): Lunchtime ride, open to all. See 4 April for description.
May 2008
Fri 2 12.30 pm	Friday ride (weather permitting): Lunchtime ride, open to all. See 4 April for description.
Mon 5 10.00 am	Bank Holiday Monday: Camcycle 20/50. Ride with us to Reach Fair and back, or all the way to Ely.
Tue 6 8.00 pm	Monthly General Meeting: Friends' Meeting House, Jesus Lane. See 1 April for details. Cycling 2020 will finally be launched to members at this meeting in advance of the public launch at the conference on 10 May.
Thu 8 7.30 pm	South Area Committee, Cambridge Professional Development Centre, Foster Road, Trumpington. See 3 April for details on Area meetings.
Fri 9 12.30 pm	Friday ride (weather permitting): Lunchtime ride, open to all. See 4 April for description.
Sat 10	Deadline for articles for Newsletter 78. Please send copy to Monica Frisch: mfrisch@phonecoop.coop. Members are warmly invited to write articles and are invited to contact the Editor in the first instance.
Sat 10 – Sun 11	Cycle Campaign Network Conference: Centre for Mathematical Studies, Cambridge (see article). A great opportunity to take part in the national debate about cycling in cities and show off some of the things that make Cambridge is a great place for cycling. There will be rides on the Sunday and networking. We welcome offers of host families to accommodate delegates. Our Cycling 2020 initiative (see article)will also be launched here.
Sun 11	Suffolk Sunrise 100: Sponsored bike ride organised by leading charity Action Medical Research, with a choice of 50 or 100 mile routes exploring the beautiful peaceful Suffolk coast and countryside. Riders will be supported with refreshment stops and other facilities. Both routes start and finish at Woodbridge Town Football Club. For details visit www.action.org.uk/sunrise or email sunrise@action.org.uk or call 01767 640207.
Mon 12 – Fri 16	Fact-Finding Cycling Study Visit to Assen, Netherlands to see the high-quality provision for cycling in the Netherlands (see article). For more details see our website.
Wed 14 10.00 am	Joint Development Control Committee,location to be confirmed. See 16 April for details.
Fri 16 12.30 pm	Friday ride (weather permitting): Lunchtime ride, open to all. See 4 April for description.
Fri 23 12.30 pm	Friday ride (weather permitting): Lunchtime ride, open to all. See 4 April for description.
Thu 29 7.30 pm	Newsletter stuffingat the Baby Milk Action office, 34 Trumpington Street. Help very much welcomed.
Fri 30 12.30 pm	Friday ride (weather permitting): Lunchtime ride, open to all. See 4 April for description.
June 2008
Tue 3 8.00 pm	Monthly General Meeting: Friends' Meeting House, Jesus Lane. See 1 April for details.
Fri 6 8.30 am	Newsletter 78 review and planning for Newsletter 79 over breakfast at Tatties, 40 Hills Road, CB2 1LA.

About the Campaign

Please note: the most up-to-date general information about the Campaign is always in the about the Campaign section of the website.

Add your voice to those of our 900 members by joining the Campaign.

Membership costs are low: £7.50 individual, £3.50 unwaged, £12 household. For this, you get six newsletters a year, discounts at a large number of bike shops, and you will be supporting our work. Join now on-line at our membership page. Please get in touch if you want to hear more.

Cambridge Cycling Campaign was set up in 1995 to voice the concerns of cyclists. We are not a cycling club but an organisation for lobbying and campaigning for the rights of cyclists, and for promoting cycling in and around Cambridge.

Don't forget our meetings, open to all, are on the first Tuesday of each month, 7.30 for 8.00pm at the Friends' Meeting House, Jesus Lane, Cambridge.

Elected Officers 2007-2008

Please note: the most up-to-date Committee list is always in the Committee list section of the website.

Co-ordinator – Martin Lucas-Smith

Liaison Officer – Jim Chisholm

Membership Secretary – David Earl

Newsletter Editor – Monica Frisch

Treasurer – Clare Macrae

Events Officer – vacant

Recruitment Officer – vacant

Press Officer – vacant

Officers without portfolio – Mike Causer, Mark Irving, Vanessa Kelly, Bev Nicolson, Simon Nuttall, Paul Robison and James Woodburn.

Contacting the Campaign

Please note: the most up-to-date contact details for the Campaign are always in the contacts section of the website, which includes an online feedback form.

In particular, note that our fax number is now separate from the phone number.

Cambridge Cycling Campaign
PO Box 204
Cambridge CB4 3FN

Telephone and fax (01223) 690718
www.camcycle.org.uk
E-mail contact@camcycle.org.uk

Newsletter 77 (April/May 2008)

Cycling 2020: a visionary document for a historic cityOur 12-section proposal for Cambridge's cycling future will be launched at the National Cycling Conference in May

Co-ordinator's comment

Cycling 2020 and the national conference in May

New settlements starting to go through the planning system

A formal status for the Campaign?

Planning consultant needed

Paid work researching planning applications for the new developments

Cycle parking guide: can you help us produce this?

Aims of the guide

Call for Tenders

Creating a Cycling Culture: the National Cycling Conference, Cambridge May 10th

What can members do?

Ride to Reach: the Camcycle 20/50

The Ride

Marshals needed

Air pollution monitoring via mobile phones

Cambridge: A 'Cycling Demonstration Town'?

Cycling 2020: our vision for Cambridge's cycling future

Our vision for cycling in 12 sections

Foreword (by the Co-ordinator)

Why cycling?

Providing for cycling

Bad infrastructure and the problems it causes

Barriers to cycling

Reallocation of road space

Area-wide Solutions: Primary Cycle Routes

Reducing, managing and taming traffic

Legislation and its Enforcement

Cycle parking

Good design in cycle crossings

New Developments Around Cambridge

Postcard from Assen

Assen

Cycling in the City

Riding in the countryside

Compulsory cycle paths

Children / schools

Housing developments

Providing for bikes

Path maintenance

Other Opinions

Study Tour to Holland: 13th-15th May 2008 – please sign up now!

Tesco's plans for more lorries on Mill Road thrown out

Mill Road

Lorry deliveries

Cycle parking

What happens next?

Grand Arcade Cycle Park: what the developers claim

Jesus Lane collision: bus driver guilty

Riverside: further improvements for cyclists revealed

First a stylish bridge and now an almost traffic-free promenade in prospect

Bicycle Points for £1000

Reflecting on the cost of cars and children cycling to school

'OK' for car to hit cyclist outside cycle lane

Car parking: a significant barrier to improving cycling?

Car parking on strategic roads

Residential areas

Cycle parking in residential areas

Home Zones: rethinking the urban environment

Car parking already a means of managing roadspace demand

Land's End to John O'Groats – via Cambridge

The problem

The ride

The cause

How Cambridge Cycling Campaign members can help

Mountain bike maintenance DVD review

Designers needed

Monthly meetings

Local issues and concerns: Tuesday 1st April 2008

Cycling 2020 and New Developments paper: Tuesday 6th May 2008

Further ahead: 3rd June and 1st July 2008

Photomap this month: editor's pick

#12935: New cycle stands on King's Parade

Your streets this month

Hell's Road Bridge

Wicken Vision cycle route

Improved path from West Cambridge?

Campaign Diary

About the Campaign

Cycling 2020: a visionary document for a historic city
Our 12-section proposal for Cambridge's cycling future will be launched at the National Cycling Conference in May