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but the very fact of the local elections will lead to a hiatus when nothing will happen for quite some time.
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That depends.
All parties (in Edinburgh at least) have said positive things about cycling - some more than others of course.
A lot depends on how the people who bother to vote, put their (potential) numbers against candidates and how the PR system assigns and transfers the votes.
NO party can have an overall majority. I think it's unlikely that any two parties will be willing to work together to form a majority coalition (as currently exists with SNP and the LibDems) - I could be wrong.
It will then depend on which party has the largest number of seats (almost certainly Lab or SNP) and whether they are willing/able to lead a minority administration with or without an informal (or conceivably formal) agreement with one or more other parties.
It's also possible that one party could organise a coalition with individuals from other parties.
That would be very 'new politics' but I'm not sure if Edinburgh's politicians are ready for that.
Whatever happens, in terms of seats, I think it's likely that something will be sorted out over the weekend immediately after the election - ie pretty soon.
One thing that a lot of people (including some councillors) realise is that for a number of years council officials have, perhaps, been running things a bit more than their (theoretical) masters would care to admit.
So uncertainty about which parties/councillors are 'in charge' won't last long.
Whoever it is, there won't be a quantum leap in attitude changes or cycle provision 'on the ground'. Much of what happens over the next year or so has already been decided.
It's VERY unlikely that there will be a massive cutback on the money already promised or the idea of '5% of transport spending'.
But there are still many reasons for keeping the pressure on for 'more of the same' - and better.
I think one challenge is how to avoid appearing to 'only care about people who cycle'. Better maintained roads are in everyone's interest - except perhaps sellers of car suspension!
However much 'we' feel neglected/hard done by, the fact remains that pedestrians are even worse off. More dropped kerbs, shorter delay times on crossings, more enforcement of speed limits etc. would help children, older people, people with disabilities and - generally - cyclists, whether that's people who already cycle or future ones who consider that things have become 'safer'.
Of course there are still those who consider that this is all a 'war on the motorist' but that's pretty much a minority. There seems to be no great call for scrapping 20mph zones, or reducing parking restrictions etc.
'We' all want less traffic, better drivers, better infrastructure, better maintenance etc.
I don't think that's exactly an unrepresentative, minority, view.
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