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26 06 06 T h e A c t i o n - U p d a t e o f S p o k e s t h e L o t h i a n C y c l e C a m p a i g n St Martins Church, 232 Dalry Road, Edinburgh EH11 2JG 0131.313.2114 www.spokes.org.uk [email protected] Spokesworker is an occasional ("roughly monthly”) news sheet, with stop-press news of forthcoming events, and of road, traffic and planning matters. It is not automatically sent to all members. A copy is enclosed if we are writing to you anyway, and copies are handed out at working group meetings. You can make sure to get a copy by sending us 10 or so stamped addressed envelopes. Spokesworker also appears on our Internet web site - to be notified of such updates by email, contact [email protected]. A HUGE SUCCESS SPOKES NEWS One of the biggest Spokes victories ever has been achieved, CYCLING RECIPE COMPETITION with the announcement by transport minister Tavish Scott of Several tasty new prizes have now been added, the full list now £4m for 2006/07 Sustrans projects, followed by £4m for 07/08. being... Lunch for 2 at Kalpna Indian Vegetarian Restaurant, This must rank alongside other historic successes such as the Lunch for 2 at Engine Shed vegetarian cafe, 2 FilmHouse tickets, Middle Meadow Walk cycleroute breakthrough 25 years ago, the 2 litres of Luca's Ice Cream, and a signed copy of 101 Bike creation of Lothian Regional Council's 3-person Cycle Unit in the Routes in Scotland by Harry Henniker. What's more, we've not 1980's, the reversal of ScotRail's Edinburgh-Glasgow bike ban yet had many entries, so your chances are high!! Entry forms and the subsequent abolition of bike fares in the 1990's. were sent to all members with the recent Bulletin 94 mailing, and This success follows a major campaign which succeeded for are also on our website in downloads – oneoff documents. Please two reasons. First our annual survey [Spokes 93 p1] identified get your cycling friends to enter too – they might even take you that Scottish cycle project spending was entering a major decline: out for lunch if they win! If there are enough good entries we until our survey this was not even known! Second [Spokes 94 p7] hope to produce a Spokes Cycling Recipe booklet after the many members took the time to write to MSPs and to Lib Dem competition, so you could win fame as well as your lovely prize. contacts, creating a stushie in the LD party, whose own minister was not acting in tune with LD environmental aspirations. BULLETIN 94 SPARE COPIES – CAN YOU USE? Following this embarrassment a motion demanding more Sustrans The printer gave us more copies than ordered, so we have quite funding was passed at the LD Scottish conference, putting a few 100s spare. Can you leaflet bikes in your local shopping minister Tavish Scott explicitly at odds with his own party policy. area, or around the city centre? Or distribute at relevant bike The announcement meets all our hopes for Sustrans, and we rides, conferences, etc? Please contact Spokes if you can help. heartily congratulate the Minister on this new decision. It is MAYER HILLMAN an increase on the 04/05 £3.5m (and a doubling of the miserable Mayer Hillman, an expert on climate change and transport, 05/06 £2m), it was for the first time ever announced in good time, author of a Penguin book on climate change, and a man who lives and it covers 2 years, so allowing proper advance planning. by his principles – refusing to fly – is visiting Edinburgh and TOTAL CYCLE FUNDING STILL TOO LOW would like to meet involved Spokes members on the evening of Thurs 6 July. If interested, contact [email protected], However, although the Sustrans cut is now sorted, this is not st enough to reverse the downturn in total Scottish cycle project phone 443.6712 by July 1 if possible. If there are just a few funding, because the loss of the Public Transport Fund was an people Peter offers food at his house; otherwise the venue will be even bigger loss than the Sustrans cut [Spokes 93 p4]. PTF was Henderson's restaurant [pay for your own food]. particularly good for large-scale cycle projects [over ~£1m]. SPOKES FLAGS The Minister has suggested that the new Regional Transport We now have very attractive Spokes flags/pennants for stalls, Partnerships [Spokes 94 p7] could provide money for large-scale etc, looked after by TryCycling, who now organise most stalls cycle projects. This is true, and is probably now the best hope – [Spokes 94 p4]. The flags are also available for other approved but the Scottish Exec has the final say on the spending plans of the Spokes purposes. [email protected]. RTPs, so it is still up to them to ensure it happens!! Each Partnership is now drawing up a Regional Transport Strategy, which includes its spending plans for the next 2 years. ROUTES NEWS These RTSs are meant to follow Scottish Executive Guidance, COLOURED SURFACING which is actually quite good, but is as always open to interpretation if a RTP doesn't see cycle use as important. In Spokesworker 30.5.06 we reported the Planning Committee decision to retain coloured surfaces on traffic routes, even in A Spokes briefing document on how the Guidance treats central areas. It is vital to get this decision converted into reality cycling is on Spokes website in downloads – submissions [pdf]. soon - partly because the colour badly needs renewed/installed, WHAT YOU CAN DO but also because there are people behind the scenes who are trying The above is all a bit technical, but we suggest concerned to get the decision reversed in the final version of the StreetScape members write to MSPs seeking an assurance that the Scottish Manual due later this summer [Don't mention this in your letter!] Executive when approving RTSs will ensure that they... Please write to or email your councillor [see back of Spokes a. Include significant expenditure on cycle projects, and 94 for how to contact your councillor]. First, say how delighted b. Integrate walking and cycling into all transport projects. you are that the Planning Committee is now to allow coloured surfacing on central area traffic routes. If possible add a sentence If possible read our abovementioned briefing before writing. or two on why you consider this so important. Then ask your If you live outside South East Scotland it is also worth councillor to press for the existing lanes which have been allowed lobbying your own RTP directly, using our document for ideas. to deteriorate to be resurfaced urgently, and for any new ones you Within SE Scotland our local partnership SESTRAN has feel important. Specify those that particularly concern you. already alloted significant funds to cycle projects [Spokes 94 p1], Possibilities include the Mound, Buccleuch St/Potterrow, and for which they deserve high praise, but there is less sign that they Princes St, and there are many others [NB parts of Princes St may are integrating cycling into all transport projects. You could write soon be dug up for tram advance works so this might be wasteful]. to SESTRAN chair Cllr Russell Imrie [Spokes 94 p8 for contact] Please copy to Spokes any useful replies, or new ideas you have. to seek assurances on this – for example, all bus corridor schemes MILLBURN TOWER PATH should really be bus/cycle corridors [Spokes 94 p7]. This path from the new Royal Bank Gogar site, across a field, Finally and very importantly - please respond to the National past Millburn Tower, to Edinburgh Park had become overgrown Transport Strategy Consultation – see 'Consultations' below. with a fast-growing rape crop. The path, which was well used NOTE: See www.robedwards.com [21 June] for more on the earlier in the year, has now been re-opened thanks to some manual Sustrans decision. Rob is an Edinburgh cyclist, and a freelance labour by Peter Hawkins. More info: [email protected], environmental journalist for the Sunday Herald and New Scientist. phone 443.6712. CONSULTATIONS BORDERS RAILWAY Please respond now to these consultations... By David Spaven of Waverley Route Trust and TransFORM Scotland. CITY OF EDINBURGH LOCAL PLAN Plans to re-open the railway from Edinburgh to Galashiels and Tweedbank took a major step forward on 14th June when the URGENT – comments must be in by end of June. Scottish Parliament approved the Waverley Railway (Scotland) The Local Plan is mainly about land use, developments, etc, so Bill. However, it is not guaranteed that the Scottish Executive will issues like onroad cycle lanes are not covered - these are covered provide the 75% funding conditionally awarded towards the in the separate Local Transport Strategy (to be consulted on later). scheme’s £155m construction cost last year. The current scheme Most of it looks good on cyclist issues, but there is one glaring has a number of flaws which will need to be resolved to omission - bike parking, at residential and other developments. strengthen the business case on which Executive funding depends. The Plan includes the rules for developers when preparing However, given the delay in the planned re-opening date to planning applications, and for officials when assessing them. We 2011, there is much to play for. Since 2002, the Waverley Route are perplexed why cycle parking has been forgotten, particularly Trust has been arguing for a more imaginative approach, to secure as cycle access and routes are often mentioned (a good point!) the most cost-effective, attractive and useful railway – maximising Even if you don't have time to look up the Plan, please send modal shift from road transport for passengers and freight.