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Cycling UK urges government to give clarity on new lockdown cycling rulesBig Ben © Simon MacMichael

Cycling UK urges government to give clarity on new lockdown cycling rules

National cycling charity calls for guidance on length and duration of rides ahead of revised regulations taking effect in England from Thursday
by Simon_MacMichael
Mon, Nov 02, 2020 19:11
34

Cycling UK has called on the government to give clarity on how the revised National Restrictions for England, announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday and due to take effect on Thursday, will affect cyclists.

As we reported earlier today, under the latest rules designed to contain the spread of the coronavirus, cycling will be permitted for journeys such as commuting or essential shopping, as well as for daily exercise.

> What the new lockdown rules mean for YOU as a cyclist in England

The latter will only be permitted with members of your household or support bubble or, if you are on your own, with one other person who does not live with you, with the new rules more restrictive than the current “rule of six” regime.

But as in the nationwide lockdown earlier this year, to date there is little clarity on whether there is a limit on how long you can exercise for, or how far you can travel from home while undertaking it.

Alex Cuppleditch, Cycling UK’s head of volunteering, told road.cc: “As we prepare for a second lockdown in England, as per the earlier lockdown, cycling is still a legal and encouraged activity across the UK.

“With the new lockdown in England, there are still a number of question marks around issues such as amount of times and length of ride, which Cycling UK hopes to have the answer to in the coming days and will ensure is reflected via our advice pages for both groups and individuals.”

She added: “Cycling is still a safe and recommended activity, if public health advice is followed.

“Cycling UK is encouraging everyone out riding to respect and adhere to the guidelines across each of the home nations – if unsure what that means, check our website or road.cc for the latest updates.”

Later this week, once the latest set of regulations in England has passed through Parliament, we will be revising and republishing our article from earlier this year explaining exactly what the rules are in England, Scotland and Wales, and how they differ in each country.

Second lockdown
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Simon MacMichael

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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34 comments

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Awavey replied to Miller | 4 years ago
3 likes

exactly, there were no question marks that needed to be ironed out as far as I was concerned, this just gives them scope to add some completely nonsensical limitations to it

surely Cycling UKs position should simply have been, hey remember what you did between March and July this year, just stick to doing that again for 4 weeks

Avatar
scimos replied to Miller | 4 years ago
1 like

Miller wrote:

Oh God, don't even ask the question.

+ 1 - why do we even go there- what difference can it ever make ?

 

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TimC340 replied to scimos | 4 years ago
4 likes

Absolutely crazy to get involved in a conversation about it. There are no limits, other than some border limits, on how far you can cycle, so long as you sleep in your own bed at night. There was no limit last time either (despite some claiming a '1 hour' limit - they were wrong), and the lockdown achieved what it needed to. Leave well alone and let people decide what's right for them.

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Daveyraveygravey replied to TimC340 | 4 years ago
0 likes

TimC340 wrote:

Absolutely crazy to get involved in a conversation about it. There are no limits, other than some border limits, on how far you can cycle, so long as you sleep in your own bed at night. There was no limit last time either (despite some claiming a '1 hour' limit - they were wrong), and the lockdown achieved what it needed to. Leave well alone and let people decide what's right for them.

The problem is last time, there were all kinds of people saying all kinds of things were against the rules.  Even my wife, who isn't a cyclist but at least understands how much I love it was telling me I couldn't go our for more than an hour or more than once a day.

Lots of people were saying what happens if you have a crash, is it ok for you to put additional strain on the NHS?

I'd quite like to know what the rules are before Thursday, assuming they tell me I can go as far as I like whenever I like.

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