News / Transport
What can the new Green administration do to improve cycling in Bristol?
New segregated cycle routes across Bristol will be able to be built before the new administration’s first term comes to an end, according to the author of a new book on the state of cycling in the UK.
Transport improvements could be one of the major things that the Green Party will be able to achieve in Bristol now they have almost half of the city’s councillors.
It will be no hindrance that Ed Plowden, chair of the new transport committee, was previously head of local and sustainable transport at Bristol City Council as well as being director of the National Cycle Network improvement programme at Sustrans.
is needed now More than ever
For cycling expert Laura Laker, the author of new book Potholes and Pavements, “people need to be given options in terms of how they travel”.
Some oft-quoted facts are that Bristol is the second most congested city in the UK after London, that most car journeys are under five miles and that most of those cars only have one person in them.
“That’s no good,” Laker told Bristol24/7. “It’s just going to result in congestion, which is what’s happening in Bristol and cities around the UK. So it’s a case of prioritising the alternatives.”
This could involve giving buses more priority across the city, with Laker stressing that bus travel is “really important for people on low incomes, who often can’t afford to own a car and run a car”.
In terms of cycling, “you can easily create a network by filtering residential streets”, said Laker.
“Now, this has been an issue around the country because it’s got caught up with the culture wars.
“But we know that where communities have been consulted properly on and they understand that it’s a conversation about how their neighbourhoods are used, then they’re much likely more likely to be successful.
“And we know that once they’re in, that they’re popular, and the stories about displacing traffic on boundary roads are largely unfounded.
“Over time, we know that traffic comes to an equilibrium because it’s a product of human choice.
“And if you make that choice harder and make other choices easier, people will naturally choose the easier option. And given so many of our journeys are short, you know that’s a great option.”
Bike hangars can store six bikes in the space for just one car – photo: Martin Booth
Other objectives according to Laker are helping people on low incomes access bikes and helping everyone access electric bikes, which could include subsidies or long term loans “to help people get back into work and so that’s a great social measure as well as an environmental and transport one”.
Safe and secure bike parking at places of work and on residential streets is also crucial, as well as being the fabled low-hanging fruit of transport policy.
More difficult to implement quickly are cycle routes on main roads, but they can be done.
“You can deliver routes within a single political term,” Laker said. “But it takes funding and commitment and leadership…
“This stuff is difficult but we know that it’s popular once it’s done.
“I think if a city leadership is serious about tackling the climate crisis, tackling transport inequality, it is a case of showing leadership making those difficult decisions and having that conversation with people about why those decisions being made and that they’re beneficial for the community and for the city as a whole.”
We have got the previous Labour adminstration to thank for the segregated cycle lane across Bristol Bridge – photo: Martin Booth
Laker added: “The huge swing towards the Green Party shows that Bristolians support this environmental agenda.
“People want a clean green environment. And that starts on your front door, it starts in the place where you live.
“With most people living in cities, cities really need to be tackling this. Bristol is showing a huge support for change and for a move away from the status quo.
“Historically, it’s always been an environmentally-leaning city. So I think if it can happen anywhere, it can happen in Bristol.”
Laura Laker will be talking about her new book, Potholes and Pavements, with Xavier Brice, the CEO of Sustrans, at Stanfords on Corn Street on Thursday at 6.30pm. For tickets and more information, visit bristol.stanfords.co.uk/2024/03/15/laura-laker-potholes-and-pavements
Main photo: Martin Booth
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