Cycling needs to be made safer to encourage more people to get on their bike says a national charity
Sustrans wants to encourage more people to get on their bikes to help reduce congestion - Credit: Archant
Cycling should be encouraged in East Cambridgeshire by setting aside £20 a head to create safe areas including 20mph urban zones, according to a charity.
Encouragingly, the area ranks as 47 out of 326 in the country of people who cycle once or more a month.
But in a table of people who cycle five or more times a week that figure drops to 223.
Matt Barber, head of partnerships for Sustrans national network of cycle routes, said: “With an expanding population we need to embrace active travel even more.
“The key to this is to invest more in cycling infrastructure and make cycling safer.
“This can be done by designing innovative infrastructure and reducing the speed limit in urban areas.
“Making active travel safer and more accessible must be a priority for the new Mayor so that people can choose healthier, cleaner and cheaper journeys.”
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Sustrans is a national charity that enables people to travel by foot, bike or public transport and has set out its priorities for the incoming Cambridgeshire and Peterborough mayor.
The group has asked each candidate to include these in their manifesto ahead of the election in May.
The Combined Authority area of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough is one of the fastest growing areas in the UK.
Evidence, says Sustrans, that the mayor needs to embrace active travel if traffic congestion is to be avoided in the future by:
•.Investing £20 per head on cycling infrastructure across the area.
• Creating safer spaces for cyclists and pedestrians by reducing the default speed limit across all urban areas to 20 mph.
Mr Barber said that safety is the key to changing attitudes to cycling.
In 2012 the charity found that 56 per cent of people felt cycling on roads in built up areas was not safe.
Sustrans figures show:
Percentage of population cycling once or more a month:
Cambridge – 1st
South Cambs – 6th
Peterborough – 15th
East Cambs – 47th
Huntingdonshire – 120th
Fenland – 169th
Percentage of population making five or more utility trips per week
Cambridge – 1st
South Cambs – 13th
Peterborough –38th
Huntingdonshire – 92nd
East Cambs – 223rd
Fenland –226nd
