Birmingham city centre to become 20mph zone

It’s been a good month for 20mph limits, with Brighton and Cambridge both taking the plunge. Now Birmingham is set to follow suit, with around one-third of the city set to adopt the bike-friendly speed limit.

Birmingham City Council’s Cabinet is expected to approve the new limit at a meeting next week. As well as the entire area within the ring road, parts of Aston, Nechells, Ladywood, Edgbaston, Harborne, Selly Oak, Bournville, Moseley and Kings Heath, Springfield, Sparkbrook, South Yardley, Bordesley Green, Washwood Heath and Hodge Hill wards will get the new lower limit.

The 20mph limit is being introduced as part of the Birmingham Cycle Revolution scheme. It will officially be a pilot scheme rather than a permanent introduction, with the council’s cycling champion, James McKay, saying:

“Better safety for all road users is the inspiration behind our plans, and the other positive spin-offs are a bonus – but we accept that there are still significant numbers of people who remain to be convinced.”

Indeed, of the 3,500 people who replied to a public questionnaire, only 39% were in favour, and 58% against. However, 91% said they were in favour of 20mph limits near schools. 60% of cyclists, bus users and walkers supported the plans, versus only 40% of drivers. The City Council says that the results of the survey were not representative:

“Those who travelled by car as their main mode of travel were over-represented in terms of the consultation responses, and were more likely to be opposed to the proposal. Many of the reasons for not supporting the proposals could be said to be based on misconceptions in terms of where the limits would apply and that they would improve road safety.”

Main A and B roads will retain their existing limits, and as the council points out, “the vast majority of the city’s [car] traffic travels on the 10% of the road network that will stay at 30 or 40 mph”.

Predictably, UKIP has come out in opposition to the proposals, launching a petition against them. Its local spokesman, Keith Rowe, told the Birmingham Mail:

“The council should be trying to increase the flow of traffic and reduce bottlenecks and invest money in trying to get the economy moving. Birmingham is the spiritual home of the motor industry and should be car friendly.”

The local Green Party has called UKIP “ignorant”.

French cyclists could be paid for bike commuting

What’s better than cycling to work? Cycling to work and getting paid for it.

At least, that’s the thinking of the French Government, which is trialling a scheme in which employees would be paid for each kilometre ridden to work. The payment would be set at 21 to 25 centimes. At current rates, that means someone with a 10-mile round-trip would be paid around £750 for a year’s commuting.

The plan is part of a package of ‘carrots and sticks’ to get more French commuters on bikes. Among the carrots will be better provision for bikes on trains, legalising cycling through red lights in certain circumstances, more cycle contraflows on one-way streets, and large new bike parking areas; while the sticks will include quadrupling the fine for parking in a bike lane.

Although the plan is being put forward by the Socialist Government, there’s widespread support across the French political spectrum – indeed, the idea of subsidising bike commutes was first advanced by centre-right MP Philippe Goujon. Next year’s international urban cycling conference, Velo-City, will take place in Nantes and it looks like the French will be all set to welcome it in style.

National Cycle Network gets its own song

The 3,500 volunteers who look after Sustrans’ National Cycle Network now have their own song, sung to the tune of Glen Campbell’s Rhinestone Cowboy.

‘Like a Sustrans Ranger’ starts with the lament

I know every pothole in the broken down highways of the UK
Where the drivers don't give you an inch
And cyclists get squeezed out
When it comes to the pinch

and goes on to proclaim “I’m gonna be where the riding is traffic-free”. You can watch it here:

The song was written by Paul Watson of the White Peak Sustrans Rangers in Derbyshire. So if you “dream of the things I’ll do, with a hybrid cycle and a route with no traffic queue”, sing along…

You can find out more about being a Sustrans Ranger here.

More kids’ bike training for Birmingham

More Birmingham kids will be given a chance to get on their bikes, following a 50% rise in funding for Bikeability – today’s equivalent of the old Cycling Proficiency training.

Bikeability funding for the city is rising to £180,000 for 2014/15, a 50 per cent increase on the initial sum given for the current financial year. The increase comes as a result of Birmingham City Council co-ordinating a programme that has consistently hit its targets. Since launching in 2005, a total of 8,000 schoolchildren in Birmingham have been Bikeability trained.

This year, 4,000 students took part across the city. Cllr James McKay, the council’s Cycling Champion, said:

“We are absolutely delighted to receive extra funding from the Government for our efforts to improve cycling skills across the city. It is recognition we are making progress and doing good things when it comes to encouraging sustainable forms of transport, which are good for the health of citizens, while also helping to tackle issues such as traffic congestion.”

The provision of Bikeability training, a modern-day take on Cycling Proficiency, is also one of the key elements of the council’s Birmingham Cycle Revolution plans – which were separately backed to the tune of £17 million by central government last year.

Councillor McKay hinted that there are still more cycling announcements to come this year. “We still think we could be doing even more and will be putting together proposals in the coming months for more funding to continue the growth in cycling which we see as key to the city’s future.”

New Forest to get a network of Boris bikes

Until now, ‘New Generation’ bike share schemes have been confined to Britain’s cities – but now, docking stations are to spread to the countryside.

The New Forest National Park Authority is preparing to install 20 docking stations, and up to 300 bikes, in the picturesque South Coast area. The docks will be located near bus stations, railway stations, in towns and at tourist attractions.

A new family cycling centre will be built at Brockenhurst railway station. The scheme, offering short point-to-point journeys rather than extended day hire, than is aimed to complement existing bike hire businesses in the New Forest.

The scheme is being worked up by the National Park Authority together with outsourcing firm Atkins, and is expected to start in April 2015. The New Forest was one of four National Parks to receive cycling funding last year, together with Dartmoor, the South Downs and the Peak District.