Hi there,

Another thread brought up the issue of cyclists failing to speak up in
their own interests, especially when local authorities ignore all the
'Best practice' advice they are supposed to follow and so make the
roads even more 'cycling unfriendly' then they are already.

The important point was made that whilst most LA's have 'Cycle Forums'
these are usually regarded by council officers as being 'talking
shops' to keep the local cycling zealots quiet and to meet their
statutory responsibility to consult. In addition, those dedicated
cycle campaigners most people leave campaigning work to are often seen
as being unrepresentative of 'normal' cyclists or even just 'nutters',
even when those campaigners are doing nothing more then quoting from
offical design guidelines. (For example, it seems many LA's actually
believe that 'cyclists' want narrow badly surfaced 'cycle paths' where
the cyclist has to give way every few metres and that most cyclists
have no problems at all with 'pinchpoints' and roundabouts...)

What is really needed is more cyclists getting of their backsides and
expressing their concerns to LA's and other bodies, perhaps taking the
time to find out just what their LA is supposed to be doing, what road
schemes are under consideration and so on.

Given the way cyclists are being ever more marginalised how about a
few more cyclists standing up for themselves and making the resolution
that:

'Where I see the interests of cyclists being ignored by central
government, local authorities or others, or cyclists unfairly vilified
in the press, I will take the time to stand up for my own and other
cyclists interests by at least writing to object.'

That't it, if every cyclist did this only 3 or 4 times a year we just
might have a chance of getting more attention paid to cyclists needs.
I am sure plenty of people here are not adverse to wring the odd
letter to their MP's but I have no doubt plenty of people don't. Let's
heed the words of a speaker at the Mass Cyclists protest held in Hull
in 1935,

'only by continually protesting and acting could cyclists maintain
their place on the roads of Great Britain'.

A happy New Year!