Yes to Leighton Buzzard's cycling schemes [News release]

Rupert Read, the lead Green Party for MEP in the Eastern Region in the 4 June 2009 Euro-elections, undertook a tour of Bedfordshire earlier this month, and will be doing the same early next month. Having visited Leighton Buzzard as part of this tour, Read has praised the efforts of Bedfordshire County Council and the Town Council in their successful bid to secure over £1 million of funding for Leighton Linslade to become Bedfordshire's first cycling town.

The Leighton-Linslade Cycling Team will focus on the challenging target of an overall doubling of cycling.  They plan to increase the number of children regularly cycling to school from 1.2% to 3.5%, increase the number of commuters regularly cycling to the train station from 50 to 150, double the number of people who cycle to the town centre and double the number of cyclists using key routes, measured across eight key locations.

Read said;

 

"This project really is a fine example of good transport policy.  Cycling is good not only for the environment, but for our health too.  If this scheme achieves its target of doubling cycling in the area, the quality of people's lives in the area will improve.  We know that the health benefits outweigh the dangers of cycling tenfold, and that cycling regularly reduces the risk of heart disease, strokes and increases the length of people's lives.  And schemes like this will dramatically reduce the dangers of cycling so everyone's a winner!"

 

Read, an avid cyclist himself, is a transport expert.  He continued;

 

"If elected as MEP for the Eastern Region, I will promote policies that will create more localised schemes like the Leighton-Linslade model here.  I would oppose new road building schemes and mass-continent crossing proposals, and instead push for massive investment in walking and cycling (nad public transport) schemes that can be maintained over the long-term".