Government approves name change- allegedly?

Discussion of the re-branding of CTC as Cycling UK.
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atoz
Posts: 583
Joined: 5 Jan 2007, 4:50pm

Government approves name change- allegedly?

Post by atoz »

Hi all

Opened Cycle magazine when it hit the doormat, and what do I find- ah yes, quel surprise, a piece by our esteeemed chief honcho Paul Tuohy claiming support from the government, esp the Department for Transport- I quote
The Deparment for Transport in England said they wished Cycling UK had been around 10 years ago
etc etc. Are we really to believe they didnt' know who the CTC was in all that time, and it was just a change of name and logo that galvanized the civil service into action?

Only problem with this piece of self congratulatory puff is that...we still have the same hostile government policies towards any form of transport that doesn't favour the private car. Don't notice the government blowing serious dosh on facilities/routes for cyclists- and just as importanly, reversing the crazy policies on public transport that have forced many people to take to their cars - you know, the fact that because of privatisation, we have some of the most expensive and unreliable public transport in Europe. The reusultant increase in private car usage has not been in our best interests, to put it mildly.

Cycliing Uk's efforts would be better spent cultivating the opposition parties, as the serious money' is talking about a snap election after the Brexit referendum.

The whole approach taken reminds me of when the CTC tried to cozy up to the repellent Bottomleys in the days of Thatcher. I might also add that the CTC made a tactical error at the time of the 2015 election by implying that the party most favourable to cyclists (and therefore by implication the one to vote for) was the Lib Dems. As we now know what happened to the Lib Dems, maybe that tactic wasn't the CTC's finest hour.

For once, we have an opposition leader that is actually an active cyclist- unlike the current PM. The opportunity to engage and influence party policy has never been better.

To Paul Tuohy I say this- stop trying to ingratiate yourself with one of the most reactionary governemts we've ever seen, and make the effort to do the right thing.
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CJ
Posts: 3413
Joined: 15 Jan 2007, 9:55pm

Re: Government approves name change- allegedly?

Post by CJ »

atoz wrote:Opened Cycle magazine when it hit the doormat, and what do I find- ah yes, quel surprise, a piece by our esteeemed chief honcho Paul Tuohy claiming support from the government, esp the Department for Transport- I quote
The Deparment for Transport in England said they wished Cycling UK had been around 10 years ago
etc etc. Are we really to believe they didnt' know who the CTC was in all that time, and it was just a change of name and logo that galvanized the civil service into action?

I'm sure they DID know about CTC ten years ago, but it didn't play their tune and obviously wasn't a professional piper.

CUK, on the other hand, has converted that troublesome speaker of truth unto power into an obedient little charity like Sustrans, that helps the Department - and other donors - to tick cycling boxes with soft campaigning (e.g. Big Bike Revival) without shouting too loud about the hard but really important stuff government ought to be doing, such as the adoption of enforceable national standards for roadside cycle tracks, like in NL/D/DK/CH etc., instead of the random assortment of rough, narrow, discontinuous and unkempt bodges we get in GB!
Chris Juden
One lady owner, never raced or jumped.
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deliquium
Posts: 2349
Joined: 9 Mar 2007, 3:40pm
Location: Eryri

Re: Government approves name change- allegedly?

Post by deliquium »

CJ wrote:
CUK, on the other hand, has converted that troublesome speaker of truth unto power into an obedient little charity like Sustrans, that helps the Department - and other donors - to tick cycling boxes with soft campaigning (e.g. Big Bike Revival) without shouting too loud about the hard but really important stuff government ought to be doing, such as the adoption of enforceable national standards for roadside cycle tracks, like in NL/D/DK/CH etc., instead of the random assortment of rough, narrow, discontinuous and unkempt bodges we get in GB!


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Bonefishblues
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Joined: 7 Jul 2014, 9:45pm
Location: Near Bicester Oxon

Re: Government approves name change- allegedly?

Post by Bonefishblues »

A serious and not intended to be a provocative question: how effective was CTC in its former guise at influencing positive change for cyclists?
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CJ
Posts: 3413
Joined: 15 Jan 2007, 9:55pm

Re: Government approves name change- allegedly?

Post by CJ »

Secured legal entitlement to cycle on bridleways, without which mountain-biking would've had almost nowhere to go in England or Wales.
Chris Juden
One lady owner, never raced or jumped.
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