What is the Cycle Demonstration Town Project?

About the Cycle Demonstration Town Project

In January 2008, the Government allocated an unprecedented £140m to Cycling England for the following three years. This funding injection gave a huge boost to the Cycling Demonstration Towns programme.

In June 2008, Cycling England announced Greater Bristol as the UK’s first official Cycling City, together with a further 11 Cycling Towns across England.  The new city and towns, together with the original six, will benefit from a share of £100m to pioneer innovative ways to increase cycling in their areas. Along with Chester, the other 11 new Cycling Towns/Cities are:

• Blackpool
• Bristol
• Cambridge
• Colchester
• Leighton-Linslade
• Shrewsbury
• Southend-on-Sea
• Southport with Ainsdale
• Stoke
• Woking
• York

Cycling England has published an overview of the entire Cycle Demonstration Town programme which describes in some detail the plans which each of the chosen communities has for their CDT initiative.

Chester’s Cycle Demonstration Town Plans

Chester’s Cycle Demonstration Town project is an ambitious programme of improvements for cycling in Chester which over the coming years, including developments to cycling infrastructure, training and participation. The overall aim is to double the number of journeys made by bike between 2009 and 2012, with the main target being people who don’t currently use their bikes to cycle short journeys in and around Chester.

The three years of Cycling England funding will be used to try to engage with the whole community, particularly young people.  The project will actively encourage residents to cycle more by supporting them through training and participation, with the aim of making cycling the most obvious transport choice for journeys around Chester.

Improvements to key cycling infrastructure and the establishing of city centre cycle permeability will add to the attraction of cycling as a transport mode. The Cycling Demonstration Town project is managed by a Steering Group. The Chester cycling community is represented on the steering group by the Chester Cycling Campaign.

Your Cycling Ideas Can Help Chester to Prosper

Photo: M G Spiller

All the communities that towns and cities with the best quality of life in Britain like York, Bath or Cambridge have large numbers of cyclists. This is no accident. There is overwhelming evidence that high cycling levels makes cities wealthier, cleaner, healthier and happier. And these things created a virtuous circle that makes cycling more attractive.

But nowhere has this happened – in Britain or in Europe, unless citizens have become active to lobby for resources to be spent on cycling at the right time. As a first step we need you to let us know the areas that could be improved.

The time is now. The new Cheshire West and Chester authority (CWaC) will soon have to decide on it’s priorities for transport capital programme (snappily titled: LTP3). This runs from April 2011, but discussions have already started . As CWaC has few large schemes carried over from the old authority, there is a great opportunity. Chester is at a cross roads. If we make the right arguments now, cycling projects that improve the economy and quality of life, will be part of this new plan. The Chester 2050 exercise has shown cycling as a positive part of the future. If we can persuade the right people, we will succeed, just as we did in winning the Cycle Demonstration Town project.

Hoole Road Bridge is a perfect example of the sort of project that needs to be included. Intimidating for all but the most adventurous cyclist, a recent report has shown that a safe combined cycleway and pedestrian bridge can be provided at a modest price compared to most road schemes, Thousands of people could start cycling, reducing congestion and pollution, freeing up road space for essential traffic and bringing money in Chester, rather than elsewhere.

Cycling in Chester has come a long way in the last year. Almost £7 million Cycle Demonstration Town cash will be spent over the next three years, and we can either allow the effort to fizzle out, or make it a base to build on. There are plenty of areas the money will not touch. The intimidating ring road, and numerous mini roundabouts need to be treated, and continuous, safer on and off-road cycle routes provided. And of course the benefits of cycling need to be rolled out to the rest of West Cheshire too.

Cycling is a healthy way for people to travel without congestion or pollution, with minimal need for road space or expensive and land-hungry car parking. And everyone who cycles into Chester re-cycles money in our economy. And pro-cycling is definitely not anti-car. And this is why we need you to join in.

What Can I Do?

We must create a vision for Chester cycling after 2011, based on solid evidence and solid proposals. We need to engage organisations as diverse as the zoo, racecourse, health service, university, and Grosvenor estates. Schemes must be mainly capital (in other words, leave an asset). We need your ideas! Good examples would be:

• Hoole Road Bridge
• Complete, safer cycle routes (such as from the zoo to city centre)
• Tackling dangerous roundabouts on the Chester ring roads
• Improved bridges or new bridges

We need to convince the council, and to start now. First, by give us your ideas us through the website, or PBlackie62@hotmail.com. We will then need help to pool and develop the best ideas, and to lobby decision makers.