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Birmingham.jpgCouncillor says Birmingham’s Cycle Revolution is “discriminatory” and only benefits “young, white men”
A councillor in Birmingham has said that the city’s £24.3 million ‘Cycle Revolution’ will only benefit “young, white men” and that cycling is a “discriminatory” form of transport.
Last year, England’s second largest city was awarded £17 million under the government’s Cycle City Ambition initiative, which together with £7.3 million in local funding is aimed at getting 5 per cent of journeys made by bicycle within a decade, rising to 10 per cent after 20 years.
According to the 2011 Census, Birmingham has the lowest proportion of bike commuters of any major city in England – just 1.44 per cent of adults, virtually unchanged from 2001.
Among features of the council’s strategy aimed at driving growth are 71 miles of new cycle routes, improvements to 59 miles of existing routes, including segregation, lower speed limits for motor vehicles, and a network of traffic-free routes using canal towpaths and open spaces.
However, speaking at the Edgbaston District Committee, Conservative councillor Deirdre Alden expressed concerns over the sums being spent, because “the vast majority of cyclists on our roads are young, white men," reports the Birmingham Mail.
She went on: "Most elderly people are not going to cycle, and it would be dangerous for them to start on our streets now.
“Women of any ethnic group who wish to wear modest clothing, and I count myself in that category, are not going to cycle. It is a discriminatory form of transport,” she added.
Making cycling more accessible to people who do not currently ride is a key part of the council’s strategy, however, with the Cycle City Ambition application underpinned by a ‘built it and they will come’ approach.
Providing safe infrastructure, for example, has been shown to encourage more women to cycle, and the initiative also seeks to increase levels of cycling among ethnic minorities and schoolchildren.
The councillor also claimed disabled people do not get any benefit from cycling, although a report from a Birmingham City Council committee ahead of the formal bid cited that “indicators demonstrate that cycling amongst individuals with disabilities [in Birmingham] is increasing at very encouraging levels.”
According to the Birmingham Mail, councillors were reportedly “stunned” – despite the initiative being widely reported locally at its launch – to hear that of 5,000 bikes the local authority plans to buy to establish cycle hubs which will act as hire stations and centres for training, 2,000 will be given to people living in deprived areas.
The initiative, Big Birmingham Bikes, follows on from the council’s Be Active initiative, designed in part to reduce levels of obesity.
At its launch earlier this year, Councillor James McKay, the council’s cabinet member for a green safe and smart city, said the Be Active initiative was “now an internationally recognised public health intervention. Look at the figures: forty per cent of 11-year-olds are overweight and one-in-four is obese.”
He added: “There are barriers to cycling and not everyone can afford to go out and buy a bike straight away, but short-term loans, long-term loans and bike maintenance should help to break down those barriers.”
Labour Councillor Matthew Gregson said this week: "My concern is that we are giving these bikes away to people who are not going to use them. This would be a waste of public money,” and said they should only be given to people who showed they were committed to cycling.
"Otherwise,” he warned, “it's a massive waste at a time when we've got very few resources. We should send back a message to the Department for Transport that this part of the scheme is an absolute nonsense.”
However, there was support for the city’s plans from other councillors. One, Labour Councillor James McKay, said: "Everyone accepts the model of us all getting around in single occupancy cars is broken. With a rising population, this will lead to gridlock so we have to change our way of doing things."
One of his Labour colleagues on the city council, Councillor Caroline Badley added: "We are going to have to move to a position where we have more people using bikes and we know that many people do not use bikes because they do not feel safe. While there are some reservations, this investment is generally a good thing."
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
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56 comments
I hope this woman doesn't get to derail Birmingham's cycling improvement plans as it desperately needs them. Cycling around it is currently pretty scary
I emailed her today: "I'm somewhat disappointed to read your comments on Birmingham's plans to invest to increase cycling as a firm of transport.I agree with the sentiment that currently, it a proportionally more white men who use cycling as a form of transport, but that is exactly the reason for the investment, in this order to make it more accessible to everyone. That is the opposite of being discriminatory...Birmingham spends vast amounts each year on the roads yet a large proportion of residents do not own cars. Is that not discriminatory? £24M on something that is green, will not congest the roads and get people doing something physical, in a city that has high obesity issues is something, in my view, should not be cried down in order to make a sound bite. "
She kindly took the time to respond:
"I didn't make a soundbite and I had no idea it would ever be I didn't make a soundbite and I had no idea it would ever be reported. There was no journalist present and the paper didn't speak to me. What I said was Where is the Equalities Impact Assessment for this scheme because at the moment, the vast majority of cyclists I see in Birmingham are white men. That's a fact, the EIA (when I got it) confirmed women are under represented and we are a multi cultural city. So the £24 needs to be spent properly to benefit all, which is why I wanted to see the EIA. (It's not so strong in my opinion about ways to get women etc. onto bikes,)reported. There was no journalist present and the paper didn't speak to me. What I said was Where is the Equalities Impact Assessment for this scheme because at the moment, the vast majority of cyclists I see in Birmingham are white men. That's a fact, the EIA (when I got it) confirmed women are under represented and we are a multi cultural city. So the £24 needs to be spent properly to benefit all, which is why I wanted to see the EIA. (It's not so strong in my opinion about ways to get women etc. onto bikes,)"
She still don't get it by her reply.She makes no mention of kids being able to cycle to school safely.Men and women being able to travel by bike for work etc.This country is so slow to catch on to new trends.Europe gets it we just play pre war sports and ride round in 4x4's.
Also the lovely Deirdre gets paid £19k a year for the upwards of 20hrs per week as mentioned above.
Not too shabby an existence then ……………… certainly enough to buy a bike and get fit.
Jesus, B'ham councillors have a £16K basic allowance. My county councillors get less than half that, and city councillors less than one fifth.
Never-the-less, to be paid more than the basic you need to take on additional responsibility, which ups the time estimate. And B'ham seem to base their basic allowance on a assumption of 3 days work per week.
And can we please have a discussion of her stupid opinions without resorting to sexism, ageism and comments about her appearance?
Do you really want this? It would be so boring
.
I was watching Toby's Travelling Circus the other day, they were looking for a clown...Freddo was upset about something or other so went for a sulk...
I think Toby may have found his replacement clown.
Don't worry ct, at least one of us gets the reference.
Wrong on every single point except the stats, which she missinterprets AND missuses in a single sentence. Quite impressively ignorant and prejudiced really.
Perhaps one of her more enlightened/informed friends or colleagues could point her in the direction of some Edwardian images of ladies cycling in full skirts AND corsets - respectable enough for her???
Their son is the tory leader on the council, I think we can guess his thoughts on cycling given what mum, dad and other tories have said.
Nepotism?
Yes and no. The local party probably doesn't have a queue of people lining up to be councillors, despite what some people on this thread seem to think. So the people who get approached to fill a gap on the ballot paper will be people known to the incumbents.
It's pretty amazing how widespread the use of the smoking/climate denial school of disingenuous argument has become.
From the financial collapse (apparently caused by poor Americans) :
http://www.salon.com/2014/09/07/finally_wall_street_gets_put_on_trial_we...
to sugar industry lackeys:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/well-good/10443122/Anti-sugar-campaign...
the smell of BS is everywhere this week...
http://www.birmingham.gov.uk/cllrdalden
I wouldn't want to see her in Lycra …………. Who ate all the pies?
She doesn't look fit like many women who regularly cycle in and around Cambridge.
What a stupid woman.
What is it with the Tories? Is it an entry requirement of the party that you must hate cyclists (and well as being f*cking stupid)?
As a young(ish) white male I find the discrimination against my minority based purely on gender and ethnicity truly disgusting. Why would this Councillor not support facilities that aid our group, especially when they can also be used by white middle-aged women like herself, doctors with lisps and three legged dogs?
Because she dislikes cycling and cyclists, apparently. If you read the original Birmingham Post article (http://www.birminghampost.co.uk/news/regional-affairs/cycle-city-birming...), her husband also calls for compulsory registration and insurance for cyclists.
What she on about? I'm a woman who cycles. I seem to manage to ride and dress fairly modestly.
She make it sound like we're all riding round with our baps and flaps on display.
Deirdre Alden's comments are patently daft. As everyone else has pointed out, creating safe places to ride bikes is exactly the point of this scheme, so that everyone can ride.
If you don't understand an issue, it's wiser to keep quiet than to demonstrate your ignorance in public. Ultimately, it's not down to logic, it's probably just a visceral dislike of people on bikes. Shame.
I can see lots of bikes being sold on Gumtree, especially when the cold and wet weather kicks in.
As for white males, being all over the place! Maybe in her neck of the woods where she goes for her yearly Sunday pootle, but all the places i ride, i get a mix bunch of cyclist (some on the road some on the pavement)
The woman is clearly stupid! unless there is some law that i missed that says i have to wear lycra, she is just spouting tosh for the hell of it.
Why the hell would you give bikes away when Birmingham is flat broke, these bikes are going to spend most of their life's rusting and the cycle lanes will be 1 meter long (with a lamp post in the middle), but that's ok as if you add up all the 1 meter bike lanes they will add up to the length they promised the government that they will create
Also these bike lanes. Which part of Birmingham will they be? as it is pretty hit and miss as to finding a useful one and there off road so called scenic routes are where bottles go to die in some well dodgy poop filled areas (it aint dog poop).
I can see the Daily Whatever spouting that the Muslims are demanding that they have screened cycle lanes to protect the modesty of women, and that blacks are using the lanes and bikes to sell drugs.
Stupid idiots
Those Bromptons will end up on Ebay
PS
Mr Cameron accepted free trips to apartheid South Africa by a pro apartheid lobby (he never did it for free) surely he must be happy that there is some kind of race divide in cycling
"Position Held: Shadow Cabinet Member for Green, Smart and Sustainable City"
I wonder if she understands the concept of irony?
if this councillor thinks cyclists don't wear modest clothing she should come up and see me out on my bike in winter
When you look at her picture on the Birmingham Coucnil website you can see why she doesn't wear lycra
She also says on her little bit of blog that you can contact her on Deirdre.Alden [at] birmingham.gov.uk or phone me on 0121 427 2681.
Give it a go and let her know how special she is.
Do feel free to share a photo so everyone can judge if your appearance is relevant to your opinion.
Perhaps you should read your own signature statement while you're at it and then have a word with yourself.
lol, someone pee'd on your cornflakes didn't they ! Why not have a pop at other posters on the story who have similarly slagged her off, no, just me then.
And as for my signature statement - how is that relevant when i simply made a point about her physique. It's hardly revenge when she has actually not done anything to me in the first place for me to seek revenge.
As for my physique.....well i have been known to stand in as David Beckham's double.
Wasn't it that idiot Clarkson that recently stated you had to simply work harder then you didn't 'need' to ride a bike, as if choosing to ride was some kind of poor man's tool?
Quite how this Tory mp reaches the decision that cycling is discriminatory when Top Gear publicly ridicules cycling as being for the lazy and feckless whilst driving about in absurdly pretentious sports cars they don't even own is bizarre.
Motoring is increasingly expensive and is built solely on the premise that if my car is 'better' than yours I'm somehow better than you also as a person. Just pathetic and insultingly shallow, probably why all car ads feature young beautiful people driving about on empty roads rather than fat grumpy people in congestion!
Why does this real prejudice suck? I know a young lady who has recently qualified as a doctor and is completing her first year in my town as an F1. She's completed 6 years at med school amounting nearly 50k in student debt and this month received her very first pay, you can imagine her joy at finally earning something. I feel proud just to know her.
She rides to the hospital as she did in London whilst studying at Imperial and she recently had some prick nearly knock her off driving at ridiculous speed in one of those 'Barbarian' pick up trucks. Society labels her according to Clarksons wisdom as lazy and needing to work harder. We should pity her as being a failure in society? If he'd killed her what price to her, her family and to all those she's worked so incredibly hard to help for so long?
In contrast what price to the Barbarian? £80 fine?
The moron in the truck however should be celebrated and be a role model, he had leather seats after all.
That's the real prejudice we need to break, cycling should be celebrated and for all. Motoring needs to take a back seat.
Who let this nutrock away from the sink
Here's an idea: why not make it safer for them? Maybe by spending £24.3m on improved cycling infrastructure...
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