Press Release: Britain should build Dutch-style cycle tracks says new cycling campaign - Cycling Embassy of Great Britain launches in London‏

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Britain should build Dutch-style cycle tracks says new cycling campaign
Cycling Embassy of Great Britain launches in London

A new national campaign will launch on SATURDAY 3rd SEPTEMBER in London, which seeks to create conditions that will bring about mass cycling in the UK.

The Cycling Embassy of Great Britain has been founded by campaigners wishing to share the first-hand experience and practises of the Netherlands and Denmark, which have achieved mass cycling through the design and implementation of high quality cycling infrastructure which separates cyclists from dense and fast-moving traffic.

Cyclists will gather by the south side of Lambeth Bridge for a press call and photo opportunity at midday on Saturday 3rd September in view of the Houses of Parliament, followed by a short ride across the bridge on what the campaign has dubbed “London’s worst cycle lane” to demonstrate the limitations of existing cycling infrastructure commonly found in Britain.

Cycling Embassy of Great Britain founder and Chair, Jim Davis, says:

“We’ve all seen some of the terrible cycle lanes around the UK; they cost us all money but few people are prepared to use them because they’re often dangerous and poorly conceived. No one in their right mind would let their children cycle to school on the worse of them! The Cycling Embassy of Great Britain looks to countries that are successfully building a cycling culture, and wants to use their knowledge here in the UK to ensure only high quality and safe spaces for people on bicycles are built from now on. British people are sick of paying through the nose for public transport, or fuming in traffic congestion. They’d love an alternative means of transport but aren’t prepared to consider riding a bike because they are afraid; not of the act of actually riding but of riding on the conditions the UK’s roads currently present. We need only look across the North Sea for great examples of how to design streets for people with safe – and if necessary separate – cycling infrastructure which will lead to a much higher cycling rate than we currently have.”

Modal share for journeys by bicycle in the UK is currently just 2% whereas in the Netherlands 37% of all journeys are made by bike. In Copenhagen, Denmark, the city is aiming for 50% of all residents to commute to school or work by bike by 2015.

The Cycling Embassy has launched a website containing latest news and a forum, and is developing a comprehensive online library of bicycle infrastructure design guidance from around the world which campaigners, councils and designers can access for free to ensure their cycling facilities are of the best standard.

Members of the Cycling Embassy will be coming to London from across the UK for the launch on the 3rd, and will take part in the Mayor of London’s Sky Ride on Sunday 4th September.

Chair of the Cycling Embassy, Jim Davis, says:

“During the Mayor of London’s Sky Ride some 100,000 people will take to two wheels to enjoy the best sights of the city on a circuit of roads closed to motor traffic. The appetite for space to ride apart from traffic is clearly demonstrable, it’s about time our town planners woke up to the 21st century and started providing it. Riding a bike shouldn’t just be for the fast and the brave; mums, dads, grans and kids on bicycles should be allowed to feel safe, comfortable and confident too. So long as the government is not investing in building a proper network which invites people to cycle in our towns and cities they are failing in their commitment to one of the best forms of sustainable transport, and denying people the right to ride a bicycle from A to B happily, just as we used to.”

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Launch Schedule – Saturday 3rd September

11.30AM
Cyclists gather by south side of Lambeth Bridge at 11.30AM
Expect children, mums, dads and grandparents on bicycles

12 midday
Press call / photo opportunity
Photos with the Houses of Parliament in the background. Speech by Jim Davis, Chair and founder of Cycling Embassy of Great Britain. CEoGB declared officially ‘open for business’

12.20
Depart for Victoria Tower Gardens for (short) cross-river bike ride on “London’s worst bike lane” across Lambeth Bridge (approx. 500 metres). Further press photos of cyclists using ‘crap’ cycling infrastructure on bridges.

12.50 onwards Celebratory picnic in Victoria Tower Gardens.
Press and guests welcome to join cycle campaigners in Victoria Tower Gardens for further interviews, photos, networking and launch celebration.

Please find attached an invitation to this Saturday’s launch, and a full press release including quotes and contact details.