Support road.cc

Like this site? Help us to make it better.

£114m boost as winners of second wave of Cycle City Ambition funding announced

Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Bristol, Newcastle, Norwich, Oxford & Cambridge to get more cash for cycling

Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester will each receive £22 million in Cycle City Ambition funding from the Department for Transport. The three cities are among eight that will benefit from the new investment of £114 million for the period 2015/16 to 2017/18.

The others receiving additional funding are Bristol (£19 million), Newcastle (£10.6 million), Norwich (£8.4 million), Cambridge (£6 million) and Oxford (£3.3 million).

All of the cities concerned were successful in the first wave of Cycle City Ambition funding announced in August 2013, and were invited late last year to apply for further cash by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg.

Announcing the amounts allocated to each city today, Mr Clegg said: “We are in the midst of a cycling revolution in the UK but we need to make sure we’re in the right gear to see it through. That’s why I’m so pleased to announce this investment for these major cities to make it easier for people to get around on 2 wheels.

“With the legacy of the 2012 Olympics and the Tour de France in Yorkshire last year still fresh in our minds, this money can help Britain become a cycling nation to rival the likes of Denmark and the Netherlands.

“Research shows us that boosting cycling could save billions of pounds otherwise spent on the NHS, reduce pollution and congestion, and create a happier and safer population.”

It’s the second time in less than six months that the government has made a major announcement on cycling on the same day the issue is due to be discussed by politicians.

The last was in October, when the DfT published its draft cycling delivery plan on the day MPs debated progress being made towards implementing the recommendations of last year’s Get Britain Cycling report from the All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group (APPCG).

Today’s announcement comes ahead of this morning’s Big Cycling Debate in London organised by the UK Cycling Alliance at which the three main parties will outline their manifestoes for cycling ahead of May’s general election.

Cycling minister Robert Goodwill will represent the Conservatives, and will be joined by Labour shadow transport minister Lillian Greenwood and Dr Julian Huppert, the Liberal Democrat who co-chairs the APPCG.

Mr Goodwill said: “Cycling is great for your health and good for the environment, and this government is doing all it can to help more people get out on their bikes.

“We have doubled the amount of money available for cycling and taken steps to make sure that future governments plan properly for cycling.

“This investment shows our continued commitment to making cycling even easier and safer, and our ambition to help make these cities better for cycles.”

Claims over the level of funding made by the present government, which abolished Cycling England in the months following the 2010 general election, have at times been disputed.

While Mr Goodwill has pointed in the past to cities such as Manchester receiving £10 per person under the Cycle City Ambition fund, that investment is by its nature short term and localised.

Campaign groups including British Cycling and CTC, as well as the 2013 report Get Britain Cycling from the APPCG, have all called for a minimum investment of £10 per person per head to be made.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

Add new comment

13 comments

Avatar
severs1966 | 9 years ago
0 likes

“...this money can help Britain become a cycling nation to rival the likes of Denmark and the Netherlands."

It annoys me a lot when politicos suggest that the pennies being spent in limited locations will turn Britain into the Netherlands.

The cycling provisions in the Netherlands in 1935 were more advanced than they are in Britain now, and this funding is barely comparable to what the Netherlands spends on maintaining cycle paths in one province, never mind building them in the whole nation.

Still, MPs are pretty much all liars, so this is nothing new.

Avatar
Wolfshade | 9 years ago
0 likes

Re: Birmingham

Yes, their cycling infrastructure is a joke, though north warkwickshire and solihull isn't exactly brilliant.

There seems to be a signfican failing to grasp that bicycles are no pedestrians and the needs of the two are very different.

Avatar
mtm_01 replied to Wolfshade | 9 years ago
0 likes
Wolfshade wrote:

Re: Birmingham

Yes, their cycling infrastructure is a joke, though north warkwickshire and solihull isn't exactly brilliant.

There seems to be a signfican failing to grasp that bicycles are no pedestrians and the needs of the two are very different.

Aside from the NCN 5 network, the rest is very iffy. I'm not sure casual riders enjoy the cobbled sections on the Aston-Brindley Place canal loop either!

Avatar
PonteD | 9 years ago
0 likes

I just hope that all this infrastructure is good enough to be considered a better alternative to cycling on the road. Its pointless spending millions on cycle paths if its still easier to use the road.

The new road near my house opened tonight. When I enquired as to cycle lanes, the council proudly told me there would be a shared use path. Tonight as I cycled (on the road) I did notice the path would have been a useless alternative as it had several groups of people walking 4 abreast (the path is a nice size) so I would have had to slow down to get past (and then happily thank them for getting off the bloody cycle path that they shouldn't have been walking on in the first place  14 ).

When are planners going to realise that token infrastructure is a waste of money if cyclists aren't going to use it because mixing it with traffic is still the quicker/more convenient option? Yes I know it will encourage more children and timid cyclists to get out, but it also encourages more punishment passes from cars as you're not using the bike lane "like you're supposed to"!

These grants should come with strings attached, that no more money will be given until the council can prove that the existing infrastructure they are installing from the last round of grants is actually being used and is viewed by cyclists as being a better alternative to the road.

Avatar
hallamhash | 9 years ago
0 likes

Sickening that Birmingham have been given this funding again. The council have time and time again failed to deliver on providing cycling provisions. It is far and away the worst city I have ever had the displeasure of cycling in and is showing no sign of ever improving (aside from a few canal beautifying projects)
For the second year in a row the Sky Ride has been cancelled. This speaks volumes about the council's attitude that in the nation's second city a single weekend cannot be found to close roads that aren't even in the city centre.

Avatar
crikey | 9 years ago
0 likes

I suspect that after the next election Mr Clegg will have a lot more time to spend out on his bicycle, so he's doing himself a favour.

Allowing a few pounds to be spent on city centred schemes makes it look like it's a concern, but in reality it's an appeal to middle class hobby cyclists to buy votes.

We need a National approach with real vision and a long term recognition that cycling is a viable method of transport, and the appropriate level of funding as part of a plan to get people out of cars and onto trains, buses and bikes.

Avatar
HarrogateSpa | 9 years ago
0 likes
Quote:

We are in the midst of a cycling revolution in the UK

I don't think so. In my opinion, we're just starting to take some very modest steps towards providing some facilities for cycling. If it continues, and gains momentum, then one day, we might be in the midst of a cycling revolution. For the moment, Clegg is getting way, way ahead of himself.

Avatar
gwildar | 9 years ago
0 likes

I see Oxford is spending it on a useless bridge.

http://www.oxfordmail.co.uk/news/11826377.New__bridge_over_Thames_will_p...

Avatar
Edgeley replied to gwildar | 9 years ago
0 likes

Yup, in a city that desperately needs spending on useful cycle facilities, the county council has asked for funding for a bridge from nowhere to nowhere, plus some tarting up of an existing towpath. But it has a big plus for the council, which is that the hopeless route won't disturb car drivers.

A huge and ridiculous waste.

Avatar
Edgeley replied to gwildar | 9 years ago
0 likes

Yup, in a city that desperately needs spending on useful cycle facilities, the county council has asked for funding for a bridge from nowhere to nowhere, plus some tarting up of an existing towpath. But it has a big plus for the council, which is that the hopeless route won't disturb car drivers.

A huge and ridiculous waste.

Avatar
mtm_01 | 9 years ago
0 likes

Can't say I've seen too much impact upon Birmingham so far..

Avatar
joemmo | 9 years ago
0 likes

“With the legacy of the 2012 Olympics and the Tour de France in Yorkshire last year still fresh in our minds, this money can help Britain become a cycling nation to rival the likes of Denmark and the Netherlands."

So, so very far to go. I flew into Schiphol last week and just coming into land you can see lovely looking cycle lanes alongside the roads and canals, the like of which I doubt we have anywhere in the UK. Still, baby steps I suppose.

Still waiting for Newcastle to spend it's first slice of CCA money, little evidence of it to date.

Avatar
Manchestercyclist | 9 years ago
0 likes

Drop in the ocean compared to construction of new roads. Hopefully it will be an indication of things to come.

Latest Comments