Monthly Archives: October 2020

Myth: “Cycleways will cause more congestion.”

Congestion is already here and will get worse, especially after Covid-19. There is no space to increase road capacity for motor vehicles, which are an extremely inefficient use of space anyway. The only way to deal with the problem is … Continue reading

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Myth: “But … hills!”

Whilst it is true that the existence of steep hills can reduce the likelihood of people cycling, the effect is gradual. For the most part, Bolton is not too hilly for the majority of people to cycle, especially if decent … Continue reading

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Myth: “But hardly anyone cycles!”

Yes, that is precisely the point; I’m glad you agree. It’s not about people who cycle now; they already cycle. The reason only few people are prepared to cycle is precisely because we don’t have decent protected cycle infrastructure. This … Continue reading

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Myth: “Cyclists (will) just ignore cycleways anyway.”

It’s true that a lot of the cycle lanes that exist right now across the borough do not get used by cyclists. That is because they are almost all of very poor quality and tend to put cyclists in danger … Continue reading

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Myth: “But cyclists (will still) ride on the pavement.”

Cyclists who ride on the pavement (footway) usually do so because they are afraid to ride on roads that are filled with motor vehicles often driven by aggressive or careless drivers. Once there is decent cycle infrastructure, separated from motor … Continue reading

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Myth: “Waste of Council money, should be spent on …”

Councils are rarely, if ever, funding active travel (walking and cycling) schemes themselves. In Greater Manchester, schemes tend to be funded by central Government. The schemes in Bolton are mostly funded through specific funds such as the Growth Deal, the … Continue reading

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Myth: “Cyclists should have insurance.”

In fact, most people who live in a house that is insured probably are covered by personal liability insurance, which includes damage caused whilst cycling. Such insurance is extremely cheap because cycling is an extremely low-risk activity. For example, the … Continue reading

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Myth: “Motorists pay road tax.”

Road tax was something that existed in the UK briefly at the beginning of the 20th century, but was abolished in 1937. This was partly because it might give people driving motor vehicles a misplaced and dangerous sense of entitlement … Continue reading

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Mr Shapps, “-ing”, not “-ist” makes all the difference.

The Transport Minister Grant Shapps wrote a letter to all highways authorities last week. I won’t go into a full discussion of the letter here, because Carlton Reid has already done an excellent article on it. Instead I just want … Continue reading

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