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Wednesday 31 October 2012

Rough Ride with Paul Kimmage

Having just finished reading Paul Kimmage's 1990 book Rough Ride, I thought it was worth taking a moment to reflect on the main themes of the book.
While doping, and the breaking of cycling's code of silence toward doping feature heavily, for me, the central theme of the book is one of how professional cycling has broken the dreams and spirit of a thousand riders.
Those fortunate enough to make it, mainly face a career of obscurity and water carrying. If you're lucky, very lucky, one day they might let you win a stage or an event.  But for the majority, it's a story of toil, commercial pressures, shit hotels and racing against people who you once beat easily but now struggle to stay with on the flat.
Written 1990, read by me 2012. Slow reader
This is the context in which the doping flourished.  It should be no surprise that the doping became more sophisticated as winning became more lucrative and more telegenic.
The other maddening pressure which comes across in his book is the fear of what to do next.  What does a former professional cyclist do?  Open a bike shop? Write a book perhaps.  For the ones that remain in some way in the public eye, there are countless thousands who fade into obscurity and do what the rest of us would do: just get a job, any job.
The final chapter  'Andre' about former team-mate Andre Chappuis brings this fear into unnerving focus.
Kimmage has of course become something of a cycling cause celebre in recent months with UCI beginning legal proceedings against him.  They should put a statute up to him in my view - or, perhaps more appropriately, establish some kind of long-suffering cyclist award!  I jest of course.
In the book Kimmage hoped that the doping of his era would be tackled and ended: that the UCI would bare its teeth and intervene. We know that it didn't and the whiff of suspicion remains that that they actually became further embroiled.
It seems now that the leadership is being shown by the teams - specifically Team Sky and its 'if you doped your out' policy.
As Sky and others move to reassure sponsors, the commercial imperative remains but as a punter and a defender of cycling, I Just hope that the doping can be finally put to bed.

Tuesday 30 October 2012

Manchester Bike Hub is go!

So, the hotly anticipated Bike Hub cycle parking facility has received its official launch and it has now become clear how much cycling infrastructure you can get for half a million quid.
What you get is 200, bike spaces, lockers for some users, showers and an Edinburgh Bike Co-Op outlet.
The facility which is in the basement of City Tower in Piccadilly Gardens, will be open from 6am to 8pm and will cost users £100 or £200 per year for membership.
While I think that any investment in cycling facilities is a good thing and should be applauded, you do have to ask yourself if this will really encourage new people to take to the road and commute to town on their bikes.
Presumably the on-foot exit/entrance 
After all, this is what this facility is all about: getting more people to ride bikes to work.
Consultation was undertaken last year on this infrastructure which I remember responding to.  It was a classic case of consulting on a pre-agreed plan as what we've ended up with here is pretty much what was described by the questions of the consultation.
So: card access, mechanical advice on-site, showers and undercover spaces is what it's all about.
There may be a little bit of 'build it and they will come' about the Bike Hub but at least it is there and we can see if it does have an effect.  Will more people take to the streets or does it just offer an alternative for existing cyclists?
It'll be interesting to see how well this small step works out when it opens properly on November 12th. 

Monday 29 October 2012

South Manchester bike theft

Theft is one of the two things I would consign to room 101 if I had the chance. The other is litter by the way.
The front page of this week's South Manchester Reporter is all about theft, bike theft in particular.
Apparently a spate of bike thefts have been going on in Chorlton, Didsburyshire and Withington as the robbing unmentionables have apparently developed a taste for high-end carbon road bikes.
My first ever new bike, a Cannondale hybrid got nicked from town a few years back and I still look for it to this day.
Bike theft, stiletto attack and a cat 
It's a painful experience having your bike nicked, it really is.
Just last week one of the Chorlton Velo members had his carbon steed lifted while he was in the shop at 8am on a Sunday morning. You can read the outpouring of sympathy and disbelief in the comments section of the 'paper here
It's difficult not to go all 'Daily Mail' when thinking what can be about bike theft, let's just hope this publicity has some positive effect.

Sunday 28 October 2012

Autumn cycling beauty

So pleased I managed to get out yesterday rather than waiting for today's club run.
Although its not as wet as feared today, yesterday was an absolute stunner.
A relatively flat 75 miler around the Cheshire lanes including a splendid frangipane cake at Jodrell Bank.
Millions of crisp colourful leaves from a hundred thousand trees lined our route most of which will be like soggy weetabix in a week's time.
Beautiful halcyon days.

Friday 26 October 2012

Lighting up time

One day last week on the daily commute home I cruised past this chap on a mountain bike. Wearing jeans, trainers and a sports-casual jacket (him, not me), my first thought was 'good on him, the more people on bikes we have the better.' This was immediately followed with the thought: 'do yourself a favour pal and get yourself some lights.'
I've had mine on my bike for a couple of weeks now but with the clocks going back on Sunday, there'll be a good few sets of lights dusted off this weekend.
It's a rather depressing thought that we'll have to wait until the end of February for it to be light at 6pm again.  But if you want cheering up, it's only eight weeks until the winter solstice and the days start lengthening.
I use three lights: one rear, two front. Lighting technology has come on leaps and bounds over the last decade or so with the development of LED technology.
I've always really rated Cateye lights as , apart from anything, you can but replacement brackets and the like rather than having to buy a whole new light because a plastic clip breaks.
You really do get what you pay for with lights and, with that in mind, I pepped up my front luminosity with a Moon 500.  It's a neat little unit which charges via a USB and it's bright.
The light of a silvery moon
While the high viz top may be de rigueur among certain parts of the cycling community, I think they are a option, while a decent set of lights are an absolute must.
So, if you're going out riding this weekend, go and treat yourself to some lights first.  It's nearly Christmas after all!
Ride safe

Thursday 25 October 2012

Manchester's most famous cyclist?

There are a few riders who could fit the bill of Manchester's most famous cyclist: Darryl Webster is a name which springs to my mind, there's a really interesting interview with him here - apparently he lives in Wales now.
Although Chris Boardman rode for Manchester Wheelers, he's from Wirral so doesn't count.
Neither do any of the 'Manchester based' British Cycling team which the MEN is fond of claiming as their own.
There are names of which I know very little such as: Cyril Cartwright and Reg Harris.
But, above all of these is one rider whose legendary status has led him to becoming synonymous with the two-wheeled machine we love. A man whose very identity is built around The Bike.
A man, so ingrained in the culture of the city that his photograph currently takes pride of place on the hoardings around the Central Library.
Matt The Bike: the legend
I give you Matt 'The bike'. Matt is the original cycle courier in the city centre and can often be found having a soft drink in The Britons between jobs.  A very familiar face around the city who is now welcoming thousands of visitors as they disembark the tram at St Peter's Square.
If you see him, say hello!

Wednesday 24 October 2012

Chris Hoy visits Manchester Arndale

Chris Hoy is putting in an appearance at Waterstones in the Arndale tomorrow evening.  He '...will be signing copies of his fully update (sic) autobiography "The Autobiography of Britain's Most Successful Ever Olympian." Let's hope the proof reader did a better job on the book compared to the flyer (meeeee-ooowwww).
A Hoy, there
I was lucky enough to meet Mr Hoy a few years back when I was doing PR for a regional car dealer. They'd borrowed Chris a motor in return for doing a photo at the Velodrome - it made the MEN as I recall.
The one remarkable thing about him, apart from being a nice bloke, was that I expected him to be huge and he wasn't. There's a tendency to expect famous people to be massive - or at least bigger than they really are - apart from Ronnie Corbett.
Let's hope Chris gets a decent crowd.

Tuesday 23 October 2012

Chinatown narrow gauge bike lane

There's a derelict building on Charlotte Street in China town which is being refurbished at the moment. Despite the fact that Charlotte Street is one way [from Portland Street to Moseley Street] the lovely people doing the building work have established a pedestrian and cycle lane around the site.
It's temporary, so use it while you can.  Only thing is, is that it's a bit narrow...
Narrow gauge bike lane 

Monday 22 October 2012

The truth will out

Well, it's happened.  The UCI didn't duck the only decision they could make.  Not massively convincing from Pat McQuaid but a new start none the less.  There could be more if Lance wants blow the whole thing wide open, but that would mean doing the one thing he's refused to do: acknowledge his own shortcomings and tell the truth.
Zero times Tour de France winner, Lance Armstrong

Friday 19 October 2012

Lance scandal is destroying cycling

The UCI must be absolutely shi**ing themselves this morning as the Lance case claims its first real victim which will hit the sport where it hurts - in the pocket.
Despite, Nike, Trek and that beer brand all disowning Lance, the various doping bans which were handed out and Johann Bruyneel getting the bullet from Nissan Trek, Rabbobank's decision to end its association with the sport after 17 years, really brings home how tainted the sport of cycling has become for sponsors.
The UCI need to act and need to act fast.  
The 21 day window it has to respond to the USADA's reasoned decision still has over a week to run and so far, the silence has been deafening.  Their defensive statements in the run up to the report's production add to the impression that the UCI is intent on looking for wriggle room in the USDA's case.
However, while they do noting, the world is still turning and they are rapidly being painted into a corner by the series of event which is unfolding before their eyes.
Whatever the UCI does next, needs to be decisive, show leadership and show a way forward for the sport.
We're out
Failing to bottom out the crisis at this stage will be a critical failure of leadership which would have severe ramifications for the sport.  By far the most sensible suggestion I've heard so far in how to achieve this is Jonathan Vaughters' idea of a truth and reconciliation commission.  It would be fun to watch the UCI having to swallow this one too!

Wednesday 17 October 2012

Dave Quinn rides again

I'm always astounded with the difference in feel between two, ostensibly very similar, bikes.  Having just had my winter bike rebuilt following fork disasters which I've covered earlier on this blog, my first ride in anger commenced on this morning's commute.
It felt really odd being on a different bike after riding my 'summer' bike for the past few months.
With the new forks expertly put in place by the wonderful Mr Xander at Dead Rats and a few little tweaks for me to do to complete the job, I set out on my first proper ride.
Wow, talk about twitchy! The new forks give the bike a much more aggressive feeling.  I have a feeling I'm going to begin a long process of adjusting handlebar and saddle heights until I get it to where I want it to be.
Ready for winter
It's great being back out on the Dave Quinn machine, it's a lovely bike which is a joy to ride.  There's a few Dave Quinn bikes knocking about and a bit about them online. Dave 'Quinny' Quinn is the bloke who owns The Bike Factory in Chester.  I gather he no longer puts his name on frames - well, it's fallen out of fashion really hasn't it.  Shop's still there though, although I've not been in there for ages.
Ride safe

Tuesday 16 October 2012

A rant about Portland Street


If, like me you have the misfortune to have to ride along Portland Street in Manchester city centre, you’ll know that it’s simultaneously a popular yet incredibly hostile road for cyclists.

Putting aside the ‘use an alternative route’ approach as I'm essentially snookered by one way systems and tram lines which are lethal on the 363 days of the year when they’re wet, what could be done to make the street safer for everyone?

I may well be going over old ground here but, it seems to me that the main issue stems from the re-routing of buses up Portland Street from Oxford Street in order to accommodate the buggering about with St Peter’s Square. The volume of double-deckers and National Express buses on the road is phenomenal. This is one busy road.

The other notable thing for cyclists is the lack of any cycling infrastructure: travelling north – from Oxford Road toward Piccadilly Gardens, the road starts at a bottle neck before spreading into two lanes the left hand one being a bus lane. The bus lane is more or less continuous all the way up to Piccadilly Gardens. 

Travelling south the bus lane is less well defined to allow for other road users to turn left at various points. In fact, at the section in-between Princess Street and Oxford Street, past CUBE Gallery, the bus lane disappears all together replaced by on-street car parking bays. Beyond these and back at the Oxford Street junction, you can find the only section of bike lane on the street with its stop box at the lights.

Approaching Portland Street from Oxford Street
 My understanding of the advanced stop box is that they are required by law to be accompanied by ‘feeder’ lane on the left which cyclists should use to enter the stop box – even, as is the case at the Oxford Street / Portland Street junction, if you’re turning right across three lanes of traffic - see picture.

The real difficulty arrives when the buses turn onto Portland Street from Oxford Street and queue up to decant their passengers.  If you recall how busy St Peter’s Square used to be with buses and then think about the length of the bus stop in comparison what’s available on Portland Street, it’s no surprise that a backlog forms.  Surely by simply moving the bus stops along Portland Street so as passengers alight outside of the IBIS Hotel, this would defuse the issues at this junction.

I’d also like to see some kind of bike lane running the length of the street – if room can be found for parking bays, then surely room can be found for a bike lane.  This would probably mean Portland Street becoming a single lane carriageway in both directions.  That would be a good thing in my view as it’s essentially what is in place now but without the bike infrastructure.

Monday 15 October 2012

Radio documentary tonight: drugs in cycling

Rather sad that in a year of massive success for cycling in the UK that the BBC is airing a two hour documentary on drugs in cycling.  But, it could be read as a sign of increased interest from the media in the sport.
Either way, it should make for fascinating listening.


BBC Radio 5 live Sport will look at the Lance Armstrong saga in a special programme on Monday at 19:00 BST. "Peddlers: Cycling's Dirty Truth" 

Mark Chapman presents a special programme focusing on drugs in cycling through the Lance Armstrong era.
Hear from one of Armstrong's former team mates, Tyler Hamilton, as well as interviews with Dick Pound, the former head of WADA and Emma O'Reilly, Armstrong's former masseuse. Plus British cyclist David Millar who was banned for two years after admitting taking performance enhancing drugs and Christophe Basson, a French cyclist who was driven out of the sport by Armstrong and other riders after he spoke out against drugs.

Sunday 14 October 2012

Manchester's best used Sheffied stands?

The Art & Craft centre stands are giving the ones by the Cornerhouse a run for their money.
Well, they are undercover!

Saturday 13 October 2012

Friday 12 October 2012

Mudguards for road bikes

With the weather turning, leaves dropping off the trees and chilly mornings  it's almost time to start thinking about sorting the winter machinery to see me through to the end of March.  There's one aspect of 'the winter bike' which is always the most difficult to master: mudguards.   
Finding mudguards to fit nicely on to a road bike is something of a minefield.  Having tried various types over the years, I've never been taken with the 'race blade' type which do little to keep either you, or the person riding behind you, dry.
The ones I've settled on now, and are pretty bloody good, are the Crud RoadRacer Mk 2.
I particularly like the section on the rear guard close to the bottom bracket where it flares out keeping your front mech clear - very nice touch.
Crud: anything but
So, with these little beauties on, it can rain as much as it wants - within reason.

Thursday 11 October 2012

Can Lance rebuild his battered reputation?

Oh dear, dear me.  Lance.  What can you say? Having read some of the USADA's evidence against Lance, it's impossible not to come to the conclusion that he did it.  They've pretty much got him bang to rights.  
Of all the testimony, it's George Hincape's which is most damning.
While Lance and his team of lawyers have tried to swat away allegations from those they considered untrustworthy, having your chief lieutenant point the finger too, demolishes any shred of doubt there may have been.
Rather than analyse the quotes and testimony from the Reasoned Decision of the USADA - principally because other people have already done it and done it better than I would elsewhere - I'm going to explore what it could mean for Lance now.
Lance's moves thus far have been true to form: abrasive, dismissive and acerbic.  But now he's played those cards and its all blown up in his face, what options does he have to salvage a reputation which has fallen further than Jimmy Saville's - admittedly from a higher starting point.
Let's just imagine that I'm advising Lance on his reputation, what would I advise he do now?
Well, presuming he is as guilty as the evidence suggests, my advice would be to simply come clean.
Top half of Team Battenburg 
Lance's story remains a fascinating one and he can actually use the doping to his advantage by building the next stage of his life around it. As well as being driven to win, Lance could well point out pressures from sponsors like Nike and Trek and the requirement of the UCI to have a global figure for the sport which would build on the foundations set by Greg Lemond and sell the sport to the biggest market in the world.
These pressures, Lance could say, led him into a spiral of doping which had to be maintained to prevent the whole façade from crumbling. With each race, each transfusion and each denial, he was painting himself into a corner from which there was no escape but only denial.
An 'I did it and I'm sorry' followed with a pledge to continue raising money for his cancer charity, would be the first step toward his public rehabilitation.
The next steps from the UCI and Lance himself will be fascinating to watch. Whether he digs his heels in or comes clean, Lance will remain a divisive figure in the sport and while his record is still recognised by the UCI, he continues to cast a long shadow over it.

Wednesday 10 October 2012

The USADA case against Lance

Further details of the USADA case against Lance are beginning to emerge. See the New York Times for deets.

Bikes as art in the Northern Quarter

I spotted these a couple of weeks back and thought I must try and get a decent photo.  But until I manage that, you'll have to live with this one.
Now: interesting gable end
I think they're courtesy of the people at Ridelow which have some genuinely beautiful machines up for grabs. They're based on Church Street which runs between the side entrance to the Arndale and Affleck's Palace.
You can see from the 'before' shot taken from Google Streetview how much more interesting and urban it looks now - very well done I say.
Before: no bikes = boring

Tuesday 9 October 2012

Cycling safety campaign launch by DfT

The DfT has today launched its latest cycle safety campaign: Think! Cyclist.  You can view a video of Stephen Hammond MP talking about it here.


Press my triangle

Greater Manchester Cycling Campaign

Last night I took myself along to the monthly meeting of the Greater Manchester Cycling Campaign (GMCC) to get a feel for what it's all about and how they are going about trying to make Manchester a safer and better place to ride.
My initial impression is that you couldn't really wish to meet a nicer and more dedicated group of people.  But there is also a formidable knowledge and steely determination which, to their enormous credit, has not been blunted by years of, let's say, missed opportunities from the civic powers in the region.
These are the battle-hardened cycling infantry striving to influence cycling policy for the benefit of existing and would-be cyclists from Altrincham to Staly-vegas and the campaign deserves your support.
It seems I went along at quite an critical moment in the development of cycling policy in our region. Also in attendance was a representative of Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM): the newish name for the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive (GMPTE) changed to reflect its new powers as provided by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) formerly the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA).  As you would expect with the public sector involved, it is a superb example of an Acronym Rich Environment (ARE). 
Greater Manchester: doesn't Oldham look like Australia
TfGM were there to seek input into their new over-arching cycling strategy which, as I understand it, will guide the policies and ultimately infrastructure with which we'll ride on for the next 15-20 years.  Regardless of what may have gone before, you have to credit TfGM for approaching cycling advocate groups to help draft the strategy rather than presenting a document as a fait accompli.
So, there you have it: GMCC lovely bunch of two-wheeled enthusiasts trying to make Greater Manchester a better place to ride and TfGM seeking input into a strategy to guide the next 20 years of cycling in the region.  All in all a thoroughly enjoyable evening.
Ride safe

Monday 8 October 2012

Away fixture

Beautiful weekend we've just had and one which was an absolute 'don't miss' for cycling.  As I was away for the month in-law's birthday, it was going to be a bit of a challenge to get out on the road but fortunately for me, my mother in law is not the stereotype of Bernard Manning 'jokes' but an all round good egg so it was no sweat.
Driffield is the capital of the Wolds by all accounts
So off I set into the Yorkshire Wolds and what a superb place for riding it is.  I didn't really have a plan other than to follow my nose and do about three hours.  Quite why there are not a whole host of international class cyclists from East Yorkshire I don't know as there are some tough roads out there.  My route used part of the Route 166 Sustrans national cycle network.
While the climbs lack the length and height you get in North Wales or the Peak District, it is a constant up hill and down dale all day.  Some tough little buggers too - great rolling roads, exposed hill tops and fast descents.
Great place names too: Duggleby, Kirby Grindalythe and Lagtoft. 
A great part of the world for cycling if a little unknown. The only sad thing was the lack of cyclists out on the road.  During my three hour five minute ride, I saw only one other person out on a bike.  OK, so there are fewer people living there and its a big place - but just one person?
Ah well, their loss I suppose...
Ride safe

Friday 5 October 2012

Rain induced road rage

I'm not going to bang on about the rain again today, well, not directly anyway.  But I am going to bang on about the effect the rain has on road users. For us bicycleists, the effects are well documented and experienced: you get wet, your brakes stop working, you cant see, white lines and tar banding become lethal etc.  As I've argued before, the rain, or rather standing water, can help too by showing up diesel spills and revealing the shitty patchwork state of the roads we walk, ride and drive on.
But I want to explore what happens to the average Carist when the heavens open because it seems to me that people's ability to operate an internal combustion  engine fixed to a chassis and transmission rig, diminishes massively in the wet.
Its obvious to anybody who drives a car that the way you drive in the wet is different to the way you drive in the dry - same as if you ride a bike or motorbike or scooter, drive a JCB, a bus, horse & trap or whatever.  While there is a range of ability to adapt to different road conditions, there is also a palpable change in the attitude of some Carists when it rains and its this that troubles me.

The simple explanation for this is that car drivers are just a bunch of [expletive deleted]s and they are more concerned with trying to get the lights, answer their mobiles or disagreeing with John Humphries' questioning on the Today programme to care about other road users like cyclists.  
The problem with simple explanations is that they are usually wrong.
So what does happen on the roads when it rains? First of all, you probably get more people using them which means there less space for the next enclosed bubble of glacier-melting inhumanity.  I have no figures to back this up, but there's bound to be a cohort of people who will  choose their car as they cant face walking to a bus stop or riding a bike cos of the rain.
Secondly, I think more difficult conditions magnify the abilities and, crucially, inabilities of drivers.  In effect the spectrum of ability becomes wider resulting in the fatal mixture of indecision and nervousness placed cheek and jowl with over-confidence and bravado. 
At the heart of why this matters lies the essence of why the motor car is an inappropriate method of transport in modern cities: impatience. 
While I'm fascinated by technology generally, including cars, I find the hubris of Carists unbearably disgusting and anti-human.  Your car might be able to reach 130mph and go from 0-60 in ten seconds but not on Northumberland Avenue in Old Trafford you cant, and especially not when there's a queue of eight other cars 150 metres ahead of you.
But this does not deter the impatient Carist, as the world caves in around them because a bus has pulled out, the lights have changed or woe betide, somebody wants to use a zebra crossing, impatience grows to dangerous levels.
You can tell I had a run in with a Carist this morning, can't you!
Ride safe

Thursday 4 October 2012

Manchester tweed ride: what's that then?

One of the wonderful things about cycling, and there are many, is that it is a great leveller.  Barriers such as age, gender and class which percolate through other sports are swept away under the mass of chain-driven machines. Among the dedicated commuters, BMX yoofs and club riders, there exist a whole load of other dedicated sub-cultures which have their own version of what you might call cycling - I don't mean this in any negative way, rather that some groups of cyclists wont think of themselves as cyclists at all - they're just people on bikes.
One group, to which cycling seems to be very important, is having its latest meet up this weekend in Manchester.  
Tweed Ride: youth membership manager
Meet the tweeds.  I'm no cultural anthropologist but it seems to me that the tweed ride is a very welcome  two-wheeled extension of chapism which made a medium sized cultural ripple a couple of years back. I think it was centred on  a magazine called The Chap which had features on cardigans, shoe polish and stuff.  It was a bit of antidote to the fag end of ladism which was being inhaled deeply by Pete Doherty and various other self-destructive types with too many haircuts.
Chapism was all together more civilised and concerned with, well, cardigans and shoe polish.  I don't know that much about it but there's definitely a family resemblance between those chaps and the tweed ride.
The Tweed Ride then, meets at the White Lion in Castlefield - that's the one on Liverpool Road opposite the Museum of Science and Industry - at 2pm on Saturday and rides around town at a suitably gentlemanly pace no doubt.  The think the idea is that aficionados will be kitted out in tweed and be on vintage bikes but everyone's welcome. Final destination is the Victoria Baths in Longsight for a real ale festival. You have to say it all sounds rather splendid and I for one wish them the very best of luck.
Ride safe

Wednesday 3 October 2012

Cycling makes it onto the agenda at Manchester's Labour Party conference

Tis that time of year again when Our Glorious Leaders and opposition parties move their freakshows en masse to some convention centre or other for a week of polished speeches and reasoned debate on the fringes.  Yes, it's party conference season again.
Manchester has done pretty well out of these things in the past few years - the Tories even came here last year which is odd given they have zero councillors and zero MPs.
Usually, the only real effect a party conference at G-Mex, sorry, Manchester Central, has on cycling is that Lower Mosley Street and Windmill Street are shut meaning you have a detour if you usually use that route.
New street furniture offers freestyle opportunities
But, yesterday, Maria Eagle, shadow transport secretary and MP for the good and bad constituency of Garston and Halewood [actually that should be bad and good], actually put cycling and, specifically, cycling safety into her conference speech.
For me this can only a good thing: while cycling was not exactly at the heart of an emerging transport plan, the fact that the cycling lobby has made enough noise to get onto the agenda demonstrates the direction of travel cycling and cycling issues has made in political terms.
The Tories are at it next week in Brum and I for one will be looking at what Patrick McLoughlin might say about cycling and cycling safety.