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Mary Creagh (Image CC licensed by Flickr user Mary Creagh)Labour to prioritise safe cycling infrastructure in 2015 manifesto
Shadow transport minister Mary Creagh has prioritised better and safer road infrastructure for cyclists in her party’s 2015 manifesto.
Speaking to the Guardian’s Public Leaders Network, she said: “Getting a cycle safety audit into the mainstream of transport planning is very high on our agenda for the next manifesto so that cyclists and pedestrians are not added in as afterthoughts but planned in from the start.”
Ms Creagh's characterisation of current cycling provision as an afterthought is in line with much of the criticism of London's Cycle Superhighways.
Cycle Superhighway 2 has been a particular target for criticism after the deaths of several cyclists on or near it. The non-segregated bike lane's purpose was to allay some of the fears for cyclist safety in the capital, instead it has been a focal point for anger over recent cyclist deaths in the city.
Creagh believes that we are now paying the price for cutting 130,000 jobs in the construction sector and reducing the funding for our roads since the last general election.
“Those people [whose jobs were cut] could have been kept on, and infrastructure and maintenance could have been done over the last three years," she said. "We always said the government had cut too far too fast and a lot of that is being played out now in the degradation of our roads infrastructure.”
Creagh, who is a cyclist herself and cycled from London to Brighton for charity before the Labour Party conference in September, considers the poorly distributed cuts the reason for UK’s World Economic Forum rank of 28 in the infrastructure standings.
Referring to the poor ranking, Creagh said: "That's a bad place to be, our country is crying out for infrastructure spending."
Latest Comments
- john_smith 2 hours 38 min ago
Straight into the sun is perhaps an exaggeration, but at that time it would be about ESE, and there are bits of the road which head roughly SSE, so...
- john_smith 2 hours 47 min ago
7 October was just a bit of harmless fun until the "msm" ramped it up.
- hawkinspeter 2 hours 47 min ago
It's not censored if you just pirate it
- stonojnr 3 hours 52 min ago
an example of Kesgraves "best cycling infrastructure in the country" https://maps.app.goo.gl/GsCMbzDUTPdq59qS9
- ktache 3 hours 55 min ago
They are not going full gas at every point. They would destroy themselves. And tactics, they save themselves for when effort is really needed....
- wookey 4 hours 24 sec ago
It turns out that that is national police policy. We found out from this process that there is national 'secured by design' policy which causes...
- mtbtomo 4 hours 39 min ago
Been available for quite a while, full GRX mechanical 12 speed. Probably around the same time as 105 mechanical 12 speed if I were to guess.
- TheBillder 4 hours 45 min ago
Less harmful citrus degreaser is easy to find at £8 or less for 5 litres. Works ok for me, even diluted up to 4:1. Both paraffin and white spirit...
- Veganpotter 4 hours 51 min ago
Nope, it's to keep your straps down and quieter. Plus most sunglasses are polycarbonate and aren't going to shatter like glass anyway
- Steve K 5 hours 22 min ago
And, more seriously, where's the coverage of the closure of the cycle lane which forces you to cycle on the Totton bypass.
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16 comments
I think its so nice that some one is taking things so seriously? Everything is pink and fluffy and all issues will be resolved ever so soon.
YEAH RIGHT!!!!
How do you tell when a politician is lieing ? His/her lips are moving. Anyway an old joke but they're all the same whatever the political label. Bottom line for anyone using two wheels to get about
, this is approaching the time for maximum influence - get on to your mp, tell him/her what matters and why your vote depends on seeing action (even if it is a total lie - hey, it's not like those political whores don't lie to us so strike first). Tell them you want public proclamations of support and commitments - that way they'll all jump to outdo each other if they think there are critical marginal votes in it - seize the moment folks and squeeze them harder than they squeeze us ! 2015 is going to be a close election so don't let the opportunity pass
Liar liar chamois on fire.
So this is definitely something they have thought through carefully, and not some cheap vote-winner riding on the back of some unfortunate person's death...? ...right?
Labour to jump on every bandwagon going for 2015 manifesto.
Fixed that for you.
+1
Would second that, the above hits it perfectly. What confuses me is the number of licences the DVLA revoked based on poor eyesight to prevent the chance of that motorist causing death. Quite right too.
In contrast, when a motorist with supposedly good vision actually does kill someone they keep their licence, albeit with a very brief stay on the naughty step. Fail.
Anyone explain that?
As for the political aspect I'd also be highly suspicious.
I believe them...they wouldn't just be saying it to get votes would they, they say it because they love and care about us.
They had 13 years previously... next?
Oh my giddy aunt. Is that supposed to impress us and make us all vote Labour?
I didn't see significant infrastructure for cyclists being added to or improved between 1997 and 2008 when the country was having a boom and now all of a sudden that same party thinks it will find the money in more austere times.
This isn't a Party political issue and as far as London is concerned (I live outside London) it won't actually wash. At least Boris cycles his bike in London. Labour's previous Mayor said he planned compulsory helmets for cyclists and famously claimed he had never actually ridden a bike (or couldn't I can't remember which now).
Let's be careful of back of the fag paper cycling safety initiatives from politicians. They will do cheap stuff that doesn't affect their vote. They will be making cyclists conform to an agenda about helmets, hi-viz, insurance, training whilst not upsetting motorists ( I am both and so are most adult cyclists).
Now all of that with the exception of helmets (useless but wear one if you like) might be useful. But you can bet your last 10 bob that your high spec Gore or other high viz/ reflective won't count unless you are wearing some committee approved XXXL tabbard. It won't matter that you have a 300 lumen back light on your saddle bag if it isn't attached to the frame of the bag and you don't have a little orange reflector on your nice pedals.
I cite this week when even Boris (thought he knew better) started going on about headphones. Now don't get me wrong I'd never wear headphones cycling and would say to people that I saw doing it that i disapproved. But the point is that it was too easy. Cyclist get killed generally because a motor vehicle hit them. Generally not because they hit stationary vehicles or anything else.
The elephant in the room is the poor standard of driving in the UK (test not a course + experience) and an awful car/driving culture.
Only yesterday a spokesman from the AA came on telly to oppose adding 3 secs to the green man light on pedestrian crossing for old and disabled people to be able to cross. The old standard was from a different age of politeness and brought in when people didn't live so long. The AAs objection was that this would slow down traffic and frustrate drivers.
Now if you get frustrated by allowing an old person an extra 3 secs to cross a road so you can catch up with the back of the traffic then perhaps you aren't psychologically suited to be in charge of a motor vehicle. Why didn't the Beeb interviewer ask whether that was a problem with some motorists?
Your post completely nails the issue.
Reality check.
Congestion charging came in under Livingstone.
Johnson cancelled it's extension, despite C London pollution exceeding limits.
The 'Boris Bikes' scheme could arguably be referred to as 'Ken bikes', since that's when the scheme was initiated:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_sharing_system#United_Kingdom
Whilst Livingstone may have made some ill-advised statements, he's been outdone in spades by Johnson.
The problem with Johnson is partly that he cycles - the 'I know better' effect. Livingston may well have been more willing to listen to advice precisely because he doesn't cycle, and may well have had the courage to ban hgvs at peak times - Johnson won't.
True..but cycling's undergone a huge increase in the last few years. Which particular party in which paticular decade would you like cite for ignoring cycling? Apart from a few individuals, they've all done it in the past, whoever takes up the baton, good luck to them.
But we've seen from the recent all-parliamentary committee that Cameron does no more than make noises, and the current government will do nothing.
True nothing, they had their chance - all aboard the next bandwagon.
How much of the transport budget are they going to give to cycling. Until we see that number then it is just hollow promises.
I'm from Glasgow - we've learned to our cost exactly how far to believe Labour promises - up here we call them the Lie-bor Party
Its ok, we'll be safe north of the border. Its 2015....the year after independence