This is not a cycle path..... but is it a long term plan?

Reading a recent blog post by David Hembrow 'This is not a Cycle Path' highlighted for me the need for Greater Manchester to get its act together on both the short term measures and longer term planning that will be needed to help encourage more people to choose walking and cycling for everyday journeys.    

A recent post on this blog (What would mass cycling in Greater Manchester look like?) looked at the low levels of people in Greater Manchester who reported that they travelled to work by bicycle (2001 census data) and highlighted a great video from the Netherlands that shows what can be achieved when planning to increase cycling levels is coherent and continuous over a long period.

David Hembrow writes about a 75km cycle trip he made where he lives in the Netherlands.  David describes how "most of the first half of the route between here and Hoogeveen is on roads, not cycle paths. However, these are not roads as you probably know them. Yes, in theory they are "shared" with cars, but in practice you only very rarely see a car using them. There is a parallel road with a higher speed limit which takes the through traffic, and the only cars which use the minor road are those which are accessing properties along it."

Proposals for cycling infrastructure often highlights the two polar opposite positions that can divide the cycling communities - from the "roads are the cycle network, all cycling infrastructure is unecessary" to the "people will not cycle until there is a totally segregated cycle network".  On top of this faultline is the shockingly poor quality of much of the cycling infrastructure that is installed on Greater Manchesters roads.  From my experience, the cycling communities in the UK often seem to spend more time arguing amongst themselves and campaigning against things, rather than working towards developing the (longer term) measures that are essential for normalising cycling.

David Hembrow argues that: "What cyclists need to fight for is better conditions for cycling, which result in more cycling. Spending time in defending a position of being allowed to use roads which the majority of the population find unpleasant may slow the decline of cycling, but it will never grow it. The best defence is a good offence. In the case of cycling, growth comes by fighting for cycling conditions with a level of subjective safety such that everyone will want to cycle, and direct routes which make cycling efficient. The Dutch have done this for a while now, with great success relative to other countries." This reflects a recent article on the I Bike London blog which considers what the cycling communities can learn from the gay rights movement as well as the debates surrounding the setting up of the Cycling Embassy of Great Britain.

I don't agree totally with David Hembrow and think that we need to get much better at being able to focus on delivering short-term (here and now) measures as well as developing and implementing the longer-term (where do we want to get to) measures.  After all, the Dutch and Danes have been implementing their pro-cycling policies for over 60 years....

So... looking forward and recognising that a network of traffic-free cycle routes, or cycles routes on quiet roads is one of the most commonly stated factors that people (who do not currently cycle) highlight as a factor that could encourage them to start cycling.


One of the objectives in the draft Greater Manchester Local Transport Plan (LTP3) is to:  "further develop a ‘core cycle network’, that will be implemented locally, on which people will be able to cycle with ease, convenience and safety. This will involve not only the creation of cycle lanes, but improvements at large junctions, roundabouts or pinch points that create barriers for cyclists. We see the completion of a ‘core cycle network’, over the long term, as the key intervention needed in order to create a pro-cycling culture in Greater Manchester." (Section 4.4.2.1)


To achieve such a core cycle network - the soon-to-be formed Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) and local councils will need to implement more "road space re-allocation" to help encourage active travel (walking and cycling) and other forms of sustainable transport.

The Greater Manchester Local Transport Plan (LTP2) included the following Short term Measure (2002 – 2005): "Road Space Reallocation to more sustainable modes and improved traffic management" as well as this Medium term measure (2006-2011) " Continued road space reallocation and further development of pedestrian and cycle initiatives."  We will need to continue lobbying to ensure that the new Local Transport Plan (LTP3) actually implements these measures.


To ensure that any core cycle network provides coherent, consistent and continuous routes will require long-term planning and constant oversight. The unfortunate siting of a major supermarket slap bang in the middle of the Fallowfield Loop highlights the need to ensure that any future plans for cycling infrastructure are embedded into the long-term planning frameworks across Greater Manchester.

 
One route to acheive this will be to lobby for core cycling infrastructure provision to be incorporated into the GM Spatial Framework  which should be open for consultation in June 2011. For all those that have not yet had the delights of encountering this concept the following description may help: "The GM Spatial Framework is not a fully comprehensive plan for Greater Manchester, but focuses on key agreed opportunities. The Framework will be a concise and selective guide to inform investment decisions by public and private sector partners, drawing from district core strategies and other local strategies and concentrating on issues and proposals which are important for the conurbation as a whole and may require a joint commitment, for example to secure necessary supporting infrastructure." (Page 2).

This might all sound very dull and not as much fun as cycling but if we want to develop levels of cycling similar to the Netherlands and Denmark we need to work together with a range of local government agencies, businesses and community groups to embed pro-cycling policies at all levels in Greater Manchester. Together we are stronger.....