CityCyclingEdinburgh was launched on the 27th of October 2009 as "an experiment".
IT’S TRUE!
CCE is 16years old!
Well done to ALL posters
It soon became useful and entertaining. There are regular posters, people who add useful info occasionally and plenty more who drop by to watch. That's fine. If you want to add news/comments it's easy to register and become a member.
RULES No personal insults. No swearing.
"
Transport Minister Keith Brown paid tribute to the success of Chris Hoy and said he was keen to speak to him directly in order to find out more about what he thinks should be done to boost bike use in Scotland.
"
I laughed - but not with joy.
Will he talk to Ben Ainslie about inter-island ferry options?
Who is briefing Chris Hoy? Seriously.
It is being reported on the radio that the (Scottish) female half of the couple who won £148 million on the lottery made a familiar choice when it came to spending their winnings.
"The first thing I thought of buying when I knew we had won was a new car."
There we have it: the problem in a nutshell. Give an ordinary person lots of money, and the very first thing that enters their head is a new car.
Okay, we can all give up and go home now. Forget about bicycles, start saving your pennies for a new car everyone. ;-)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-19254228
(if you ask me though, Mr. Bayford could do with getting on a bike to lose a bit of weight or he won't be around long enough to fully enjoy his winnings)
You never know - he may have some ideas that merit listening to. Don't discount him straight off the bat...
Back on topic, it may be no bad thing for Keith Brown to listen to what Chris Hoy has to say:
"he may have some ideas that merit listening to"
He would/will/does - it's the listening part that's the problem.
Wasn't he listening when 100s of cyclists turned up outside the government building...
...or when 1000s turned up outside parliament?
I wonder who he thought we were?
[edit: What's the obsession with being hydrated during the ride - how far are these kids having to cycle?!]
'Brought to you by Highland Spring'.
I wouldn't have thought for most kids enjoying a 10 minute cycle to school that 'hydration' would have been a problem?
Mind you, suppose it's better than 'Brought to you by Pepsi Co'.
EDIT: SNAP ;)
it's the listening part that's the problem.
Don't forget though - Big Eck says we are "pushing at an open door here."
So they are listening. They've even left the door open for us to push against. What is behind the open door though?
Am I alone in seeing the open door as the one in the 1948 film Kidnapped? Our hero David is sent upstairs to his room at uncle Ebenezer's house. He flings open the door at the top of the steps, nearly falling to his death as there is no room, just a cavernous drop!
Make sure ye grab the door handle firmly when pushing at open doors: wha kens fit lies beyond?
Wasn't he listening when 100s of cyclists turned up outside the government building...
...or when 1000s turned up outside parliament?
Oh yes, he was listening.
It's just that he doesn't plan to do anything else. Just listen.
It's part of the Scottish government's free healthcare policy: therapy for cycling nutters. Listen to them, humour them, make vaguely reassuring noises. But whatever you do, don't give in to their heretical and delusional demands! This will only worsen their condition. In time, the 'cyclists' will come to see their bizarre fantasies for what they are: impossible, utopian dreams. When reality dawns, they will be cured. Then normal, decent, law abiding, motoring families will be able to go about their business untroubled by the anti-social behaviour of the 'cyclists' .
ha! Thanks for the chuckle Crowriver. When we went to talk to KB it was exactly like that. Fortunately they'd taken @magnatom's knife* off him at security so we remained harmless nutters.
*It was in his bike repair kit
The fact is that Keith Brown is talking with Chris Hoy. Hoy is inside the building and we were all outside.
If it's a stunt where Sir Chris is wheeled in to say things and Keith nods sagely but intends to do nothing then the worst that can happen is that Sir Chris says important things about how to increase cycling and the importance of infrastructure,which are then reported in the press.
If it's a genuine meeting with someone Keith Brown thinks knows more about increasing cycling than any number of cyclists outside buildings, the important thing is that Sir Chris says things about how to increase cycling and the importance of infrastructure.
Who is Chris Hoy's agent / PR?
Dunno but there's a choice of contacts at http://www.chrishoy.com/ - take your pick which it might be!
What Insto said.
It's like charities getting celebs on board. It gets them publicity. If the government wasn't speaking to Hoy then it wouldn't be speaking to anyone - or certainly wouldn't be speaking to anyone that it would issue press releases about and give the issue more media airtime than it would otherwise get.
Hoy does actually speak a lot of sense about general cycling (ref. the Wiggins 'debate' a couple of weeks back) so in that sense it's a good thing. Hoy also seems above criticism (won't stop the EEN trolls, I know) so what he says gets reported, not as opinion, but as fact.
Publicity. Saying we need more cycle facilities and funding. Being discussed, and reported on at the highest level in the land. With one of the most famous people the country has produced. What's not to like?
Put it another way, organising PoP there was huge excitement when we got messages from Hoy and Obree that could be used. Interestingly there weren't many blogposts/press releases saying 'John Smith, who cycles to work every day in Edinburgh, has pledged his support'. Didn't mean John Smith was less important, but who are the press going to be more interested in?
For our part, we've just got to keep on pushing, keep on riding, keep on writing, and keep on telling them when they've promised something that hasn't been delivered.
If I was someone important from PoP, I would send something along the following lines to Chris Hoy's management. Cribbed from the PoP manifesto.
Dear Sir / Madam
I see from press reports that Keith Brown MSP, minister for housing and transport, will be meeting with Sir Chris to find out more about what he thinks should be done to boost bike use in Scotland.
This is a critical time for cycling in Scotland. There is a relatively short time in which to capitalise on the enormous success of Sir Chris and the other TeamGB cyclists at the Olympics. This year's successes have given huge prominence to cycling and it is important that the Government sees boosting cycling as a transport issue. Children's love of cycling is built on using bikes for play and transport and safety is a critical concern of parents.
Sir Chris gave his support to Pedal on Parliament on 28 April 2012 and I know that he is well aware of the issues around cycling in Scotland but below I have summarised some of the key points from the Pedal on Parliament manifesto which might be useful as talking points in the discussion. I would be happy to provide further details on any of these points if that would be helpful.
1) Proper funding for cycling. The Scottish Government spends only 1p of every pound spend on transport on cycling. Boosting cycling needs investment in the type of infrastructure that will make people feel safe cycling. We recommend that the Scottish Government commits 5% of its transport budget on cycling and urges all Scottish councils to do the same.
2) Design cycling into Scotland’s roads. Most collisions between vehicles and bikes take place at junctions. Improved provision for cycling must include a commitment to transforming Scotland’s roads and junctions. The existing design guidelines, Cycling by Design,[13] should be revised in line with best practice internationally – particularly drawing on the experience of the Netherlands where 25% of trips are by bike.
3) Safer speeds where people live, work and play There are significant road safety benefits to a 20 mph speed limit.[16] In residential areas, the presumption should be that roads authorities should apply 20mph speed limits as the norm in these areas.
4) Integrate cycling into local transport strategies Each local authority should be required produce its own local cycling action plan with clear targets to increase cycling levels in line with the national target of 10%, using the existing cycling levels as a guideline. Funding to support this should be ring-fenced and councils required to report against their progress every year.
5) Sensible road traffic law and enforcement Traffic law must do more to protect the most vulnerable road users such as cyclists, pedestrians, children and older people. Enforcing speed limits, creating and enforcing parking restrictions in cycle lanes are essential to creating a safe environment for cycling.
6) Reduce the risk of HGVs to cyclists and pedestrians Heavy lorries are associated with a disproportionately high risk of death or very serious injury to cyclists and pedestrians. Despite being just 6% of road traffic, lorries are involved in around 20% of all cyclists’ fatalities.[17] CAPS already has targets for reducing cycling casualties but the onus must not just be on the cyclists to keep themselves safe. The Scottish government should engage with the UK Department of Transport with a view to developing a comprehensive package of measures to reduce the risk to cyclists and pedestrians, based on up to date evidence of what works.
7) A strategic and joined-up programme of road user training Bikeability is not fully funded, and Cycling Scotland is dependent on volunteers to carry out vital training in schools. All Scottish residents should have access to affordable cycle training, whether children, adult returning cyclists, and those in later life. The training of HGV drivers, bus drivers and other professional drivers should include awareness of the needs of both pedestrians and cyclists, and the Scottish government should press the UK government to introduce these measures.
8) Solid research on cycling to support policy-making Data on cycling is very poor at the national level and inconsistent at the local level. This makes it difficult to monitor what is happening and which interventions have greatest impact. Where possible electronic counters with public displays should be used, as in Copenhagen and other cities, which count the number of cyclists passing through certain areas as these can provide both feedback and encouragement.
have passed that on.
I would add that (in fairness to the government) we (PoP) were invited to meet Keith Brown and we did meet him and he did listen but he didn't particularly agree & he certainly hasn't acted. Perhaps if Chris Hoy makes the same points he might think it's a movement (or even better 'common sense') and things might change. It's always worth a shot
I don't agree with it but I think that for a politician to accede to the "demands" of protestors is weak and a failure. To meet with and take advice from a successful sports ambassador is statesmanlike.
It is a crying shame that he fails to understand that getting more kids to cycle to school has nothing to do with helmets and Hi-viz (if that were the case then Cycling Scotland would have already succeeded) and every thing to do with making the roads safer, it ain't rocket science, just look across the North Sea.
You must log in to post.
Cycling in Edinburgh Flickr group
Video embedded using Easy Video Embed plugin
posts