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Chancellor slammed over "squandered opportunity" to provide funding for cycling

Yesterday's Spending Review outlined where government will splash the cash in 2020/21...

Campaigners have slammed Chancellor of the Exchequer Sajid Javid for failing to allocate dedicated funds to walking and cycling in yesterday’s Spending Round announcement.

Outlining government spending plans for 2020/21, the Chancellor announced £13.8 billion in funding for areas including policing, education and health, hailing the proposals as marking “the end of austerity” – leading to an accusation by his Labour counterpart, John McDonnell, of making “meaningless platitudes.”

The Department for Transport’s response to a recent report by a House of Commons select committee which called for more ambitious targets to be set for cycling and walking is expected in the coming days.

> House of Commons committee urges government to boost cycling and walking funding

The government itself has admitted that it will miss its target of doubling the number of journeys undertaken by bike by 2025, and despite the publication of its Cycling Walking & Investment Strategy in 2017, the money has not followed.

Responding to yesterday’s announcement, Xavier Brice, chief executive of the active travel charity Sustrans, said: “Whilst we welcome the announcement of an additional £30 million to tackle our pressing air quality crisis, we are disappointed with the lack of focus on walking and cycling in this Spending Round.

“Investing in walking and cycling to make them attractive, safe and convenient methods of transport for shorter journeys would reduce our reliance on cars and improve air quality in our towns and cities.

“This is especially important when parliament’s Science and Technology Committee recently reaffirmed the need for fewer not just cleaner vehicles if we are to meet the government’s own targets on climate change.”

> Private car ownership unsustainable, warns House of Commons committee

He added: “This Spending Round was an opportunity for the UK government to show exactly how committed they are to achieving their cycling and walking targets. The lack of investment suggests this is not a priority.”

Paul Tuohy, chief executive of Cycling UK, commented: “Today’s Spending Round was a squandered opportunity that showed the government’s lack of commitment to protecting the environment and public health.

“We’re facing a climate crisis, an air pollution crisis, a congestion crisis and an inactivity-related health crisis.

“Getting more people out of cars, particularly for short journeys, is part of the solution to all of these crises, but this won’t happen by magic and by simply setting targets to increase active travel, when what’s required is a major increase in investment.”

Separately, the Department for Transport has today announced funding for upgrades to 22 routes forming part of the National Cyycle Network – although the £20 million pledged is a drop in the ocean compared to what is needed to achieve the government’s own targets.

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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6 comments

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alchemilla | 5 years ago
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"Upgrades to 22 routes forming part of the National Cycle Network". That's very specific, why 22, and have they been earmarked already? Which ones?

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LastBoyScout replied to alchemilla | 5 years ago
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alchemilla wrote:

"Upgrades to 22 routes forming part of the National Cycle Network". That's very specific, why 22, and have they been earmarked already? Which ones?

Sure I saw signs on the A4 Bath Road in West Reading yesterday advertising improvements starting soon.

Avatar
Eton Rifle | 5 years ago
7 likes

What a surprise. This is the same government that is planning to CUT fuel duty post-Brexit in an attempt to disguise the increase in fuel prices from Sterling's collapse. Gotta keep the Gammon 4x4 driving demographic on-side, eh?

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MattieKempy | 5 years ago
8 likes

Of course they won't invest in cycling or walking. Telling drivers they need to get out of their cars and actually do something won't win an election and let's face it, politicians of all persuasions  (though the Tories are by far the worst in this regard) don't care about anything other than power.

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Jetmans Dad | 5 years ago
2 likes

Quote:

He added: “This Spending Round was an opportunity for the UK government to show exactly how committed they are to achieving their cycling and walking targets. The lack of investment suggests this is not a priority.”

Nailed it ...

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burtthebike | 5 years ago
5 likes

But since this Spending Review is just an election bribe and will be immediately ignored should the unthinkable happen and enough gullible people believe BoJo's lies and he somehow gets elected PM properly.  So it really doesn't matter that they ignored the best investment the government could make, and even if the HS2 review comes to the inevitable decision that it isn't credible, they still won't be spending the money saved on cycling.

I heard Javid on R4 this morning, justifying this review by saying that he'd discovered this massive pile of money just lying around that nobody had spotted before, and that he had to spend it now.  How the interviewer managed not to say "magic money tree" I don't know, but I admired their restraint.  They did point out that the Office of Budget Responsibility hadn't reported yet, and therefore the entire spending review was just a fantasy.

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