Vote for the Cycle Path

2:21pm Thursday 11th October 2007

The bicycle is the most efficient means of transport we have. It is also health promoting and free from carbon emissions and noise pollution.

Some days I travel to work in Hereford via Holme Lacy and Rotherwas. Since the new academic year has started I have noticed more cyclists using the route through Rotherwas up to the college.

I have cycled this route and I can tell you its pretty scary. There are some nasty blind bends with little or no verge and it’s busy with vehicles avoiding going through the city centre to access the South of Hereford. It’s a similar story for other routes into and around Hereford and the market towns.

So when I learned about the Sustrans Connect proposal to create a dedicated cycle path from Holme Lacy in to Hereford I wanted to find out more.

The proposal utilises a combination of the old railway line and the sewage treatment works bridge across the river to create a safe route joining the north and south-east of the city and beyond. Eventually the path could extend as far as Ross following the Wye for part of the route. This scheme is not a done deal, negotiations are still under way with landowners and it is one of 79 across the UK competing for a Big Lottery grant of £50 million. In December the various national proposals will be put to a public vote and only one will be developed, so the Hereford route needs our support.

As any one who has used the path across the old railway bridge will confirm, a dedicated cycle and pedestrian route is a world apart from a noisy, smelly congested road. Developing this type of infrastructure is really the only way significant numbers of people will choose cycling and walking over car driving, and in turn gain the health and environmental benefits afforded by it.

The zero-emission vehicle has been with us for 150 years, we just need to give it some priority and infrastructure and more people will use it.

Keep an eye on the Sustrans scheme and give it your vote in December.

http://www.sustransconnect2.org.uk 0845 058 13 73

http://www.cyclehereford.com/