Prepared printout for Forum Meeting yesterday

City centres are slowly returning to being places for people to walk about, cycle about and shop or enjoy a coffee in the sunshine after 3 decades of parking problems, traffic jams, pollution and stress. This has made our high streets unpleasant places and removing cars will make them habitable again.

Advantages of Cycle friendly streets in the Centre of Ely

Studies show that shoppers who come in by bike spend money in small shops.

They come into the centre more frequently.

They visit multiple outlets rather than visiting one shop and returning home.

Less space needed to park – by taking away 2 parking spaces in the carpark next to Waitrose, potentially an additional 20 people can park and access the centre.

By encouraging residents to leave their car at home and visit the centre by bike, walk or bus, your are freeing up parking spaces for visitors from the outlying villages and further afield.

It is a quick as coming in by car but you get 20-40 minutes fresh air and exercise and it's not cost you anything in fuel.

Children who regularly cycle to school and with their parents to go shopping develop road sense and will ultimately grow up to become safer drivers as adults.

Cycling is only partially a leisure or sport activity; it is also a means of transportation – one that is cheap, enjoyable, healthy, quiet and doesn't involve as much space as parking cars does.

Opposition:

Some argue that the existing bike parking in Ely is not used; the bike parking placed in places where cyclists are confident their bike is secure and in sensible walking distance, such as opposite costa are always half full and on market days full. The parking behind waitrose is never used as it doesn't appear very secure and isn't on anyone's route – people seldom approach the centre that way by bike.

Cycle parking that isn't a Sheffield stand style often involves stands that damage tyres, buckle wheels and don’t provide a secure object to fix a locked bike to. Cycle parking like this is rarely used by cyclists. If you insure your bike, your bike would not be insured unless it is fixed to an immovable object – would drivers park their cars in spots that damaged their wheels and would they leave their car open? No. so why would cyclists?

Strategy:

By closing the high street to cars 7 days a week, cycle parking could be placed at both ends and in the middle of the high street.

Reducing the speed limit in the centre of Ely to 20mph would make Ely a safer place for cyclists and pedestrians alike.

If residents could be assured of safe and convenient places to leave their bikes, they could pop in to town after work, market days and weekends for top up shopping by bike.

Initiatives like columns in the paper on how to get your bike out of the garage and into a usable condition would encourage many who own bikes but don't use them.

Cycle surgery on market days – bring your bike in and we will give it a tune.

There are literally hundreds of residents who cycle to Ely train station every weekday to go to work, what is stopping them cycling in to town on a Saturday?

Could it be they have kids and they don't feel the roads are safe enough to cycle as a family?

If they cycle long distances like from the villages, the roads are quiet early in the morning and a busy Saturday on 60mph roads is too dangerous?

Cyclists who cycle for sport or leisure have expensive bikes, too valuable to leave in town if they can't be assured of finding a secure spot?

Leisure and sport bikes don't come with mudguards, carriers, chain guards etc and require specialist clothing. By encouraging Utility cycling you are adding cycling as a means of transportation into the consciousness of people.

Families with trailers for young children can put a pushchair in the cargo bit of the trailer and walk with their kids once parked up. They then have plenty of room for shopping and kids to get back home.

A long term strategy of cycle paths and routes in from all the housing estates into the centre would encourage young families on to bikes to access the centre and the river, they would spend money and enjoy the experience of living in Ely, a place more beautiful from outside the confines of a car.