Getting ̶1̶0̶0̶,̶0̶0̶0̶ 50,000 people back on their bikes.

[Ron]

The areas covered by this programme have not been defined in the Press Release, I suspect this is an England only scheme.

[gaz]

I've now found the DfT's press release.

The Big Bike Revival will begin in May and will work with bike ‘re-cycle’ centres, which recycle second-hand bikes to get them back on the road. The events will help give people the basic mechanical skills needed to fix and maintain their bikes. A final list of participating centres and more details will be available via CTC in May.

The press release also covers funding for cycle parking at stations, perhaps a subject for another thread.

[gaz]

The figures are in (page 7 Cycle).

Over 30,000 people re-engaged with cycling during the BBR.

Not as many as hoped, still quite an achievement.

[mjr]

The figures are in (page 7 Cycle).

Over 30,000 people re-engaged with cycling during the BBR.

Not as many as hoped, still quite an achievement.

Yes, quite an achievement. Is there any analysis of why it fell so far short? It'll be a couple of weeks before I see a copy of Cycle

[admin]

My best guess is that they didn't get more people cycling because the roads are so nasty and frightening to ride a bike on.

Certainly around here, people only cycle out of desperation, or because they're "keen cyclists". The general population regard cycling as a highly dangerous activity, and I quite understand why!

But the Big Bike Revival wasn't about directly getting people on their bikes, it was about renovating old unused bikes in the hope that people might then ride them. As such it seems to have been quite successful, but it has made absolutely no difference to the environment in which people are currently expected to cycle.

I attach a graph showing KSI figures over the last few years for West Sussex:

Has the number of people cycling in the county doubled in the same time that KSIs have doubled? I don't think so. It's getting more dangerous out there.

[mjr]

Has the number of people cycling in the county doubled in the same time that KSIs have doubled? I don't think so. It's getting more dangerous out there.

I understand we've seen a similar surge in people walking and cycling being injured in Norfolk, although I don't have a pretty graph in the public domain yet. KLWNBUG and NCyC have been invited to and joined the Norfolk Casualty Reduction Partnership along with a few BC clubs, but it feels a bit like running through treacle, with a strategy being drafted for over a year before any of us see it, other safety actions being rushed and forced to build on past failed campaigns and highways designers refusing invitations.

I don't know where CTC is in this and I think I'm glad BC clubs are all over the map with apparently no regional or national coordination because the ones who have got involved seem on similar messages to KLWNBUG and NCyC.

I wish CTC would push Road Justice and space4cycling into this space instead of faffing about trying to bring bikes back into use before most places have got good places to ride them!

[gaz]

... Is there any analysis of why it fell so far short? It'll be a couple of weeks before I see a copy of Cycle

I expect such analysis has taken place but is deemed to be "commercially sensitive" .

Cycle p14.

Over 31,000 people took part in Big Bike Revival events, more than 24,000 bikes were brought back into service, and three million people learned about the Big Bike Revival online.

In the seemingly unlikely event that anything further appears in Council Minutes I'll post it here.

[Psamathe]

...

Over 31,000 people took part in Big Bike Revival events, more than 24,000 bikes were brought back into service, and three million people learned about the Big Bike Revival online.

...

That seems somewhat different from

...we’ll show them how we can get 100,000 people back on their bikes!

I would have hoped for that much money they would have been getting people to resume cycling on a regular basis (i.e. becoming "cyclists").

Ian

[Si]

Yes, quite an achievement. Is there any analysis of why it fell so far short? It'll be a couple of weeks before I see a copy of Cycle

One, if being a little cynical, might hazard a guess that it was because the original target was somewhat over inflated in order to acquire the funding for the project. Often happens.

That seems somewhat different from

http://www.ctc.org.uk/blog/paul-tuohy/winters wrote:
...we’ll show them how we can get 100,000 people back on their bikes!

I would have hoped for that much money they would have been getting people to resume cycling on a regular basis (i.e. becoming "cyclists").

Well, technically they have shown that they can get 100,000 people back on their bikes - just need to repeat the project another two and a bit times.

As for "that much money"......in cycling terms (and health & well-being in general) it wasn't much money at all. I've seen several projects where we've asked: "why didn't we just pay people to ride their bikes rather than putting on all of these events, promos and activities?". Having LAs and cycling organisations getting a chunk of people cycling does cost a heck of a lot of money...and it only gets worse when infrastructure is required as well. Small quasi-volunteer groups can do it for much less but on a much smaller scale.

[Ron]

Is there any analysis of why it fell so far short? It'll be a couple of weeks before I see a copy of Cycle

Too few Big Bike Revival Centres?
My nearest was 300 miles away.

[gaz]

In the seemingly unlikely event that anything further appears in Council Minutes I'll post it here.

Well Council Minutes aren't out yet but I've come across another little snippet.

I received an e-mail earlier this week about CTC Ride Leader Workshops, there's a footnote: "These workshops are funded as part of the CTC Big Bike Revival programme funded by Department for Transport."

BBR isn't over yet.