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In London the so called “cycling revolution” is taking its first initial baby steps. We had the announcement that the London Cycle Hire Scheme which launches at the end of July is to now be referred to as the Barclays Cycle Hire. This branding by Barclays Bank was not received with open arms as Londoners were disappointed we couldn’t come up with a more creative name such as Velib in Paris or VeLov in Lyon for our proud new cycle hire scheme. Every cloud has its silver lining however as it means the scheme now has. 25 million of additional funding and may be able to expand to a wider area more rapidly.
London has also had teams gearing up for the Cycle Challenge which launches in June. This is a competition organized by the mayor to encourage people to cycle as many miles as possible and log them onto the transport website. The winning teams that have cycled the most win prizes such as spa days.
It appears the “cycling revolution” in London doesn’t have one key supporter. The new minister in charge of transportation has gone on record saying he loves his Jaguar, all cyclists should have wing mirrors and he is too scared to cycle in London. The response by the mayor of London was to invite him on a cycle ride during Bike Week which the minister has agreed to.
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