I feel honoured and privileged to be chosen as the new Chair of Cyclox. I am also a little daunted. Alison Hill has led the organisation with commitment, tenacity and skill for many years. She leaves the post with Cyclox in good health \u2013 and with big shoes to fill. But mainly I am excited about taking on this role. I am passionately committed to Cyclox\u2019s values and goals and look forward to working with the trustees and our members to take them forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Our goals<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Here\u2019s my take on these goals and why they matter:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- Campaigning to reverse decades of car-centric planning and build infrastructure to create the conditions for safe and inclusive cycling for all<\/strong>. This means pushing for dedicated cycling infrastructure wherever it is possible, and for other cycling safety measures when it is not. It means supporting low-traffic neighbourhoods \u2013 or what Chris Boardman thinks we should re-name \u2018child safety zones\u2019. To this end, Cyclox will continue to work with the City and County Council, the police, employers and developers where appropriate, and pressurise them when necessary. We will also build and sustain close alliances with like-minded campaign groups in the city, county and nationally. I see cycling, pedestrians, liveable streets and low carbon groups as different parts of the same social movement.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- To continue to build support for all the measures required to make our roads safe and Vision Zero<\/a> a lived reality.<\/strong> This includes better policing, appropriate penalties and improved road design. Other cities around the world have delivered on the ambition to radically cut serious road-traffic injuries and deaths. Oxfordshire must strive to do the same.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Working to make 20 mph the default speed limit on all roads in Oxford.<\/strong> For too long an obsession with automotive speed has endangered other users of cities. There are signs that social norms around speed are changing \u2013 as they did with drunk-driving. 20 mph zones are spreading across England and Wales. Even Top Gear<\/em> presenter James May has stated that 30 mph is too fast to be driving around towns and cities. 20 mph limits are vital in delivering Vision Zero. They reduce the differential between motorised traffic and pedestrians and cyclists. They are not anti-motorist (full disclosure: I also drive a car), they simply make vehicle traffic guests<\/em> in, rather than occupiers <\/em>of, city streets. They are a key plank in creating a city in which all forms of mobility (pedestrians, bikes, e-scooters, cars, vans, buses) can safely co-exist.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
![\"20](\"https:\/\/www.cyclox.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/20-mph-sign-1024x774.jpg\")
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There are signs that social norms around speed are changing \u2013 as they did with drunk-driving.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
Cycling and social change<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The case for cycling must not be made in isolation. At a time of climate breakdown, cities across the world \u2013 including Oxford \u2013 are going to have to make rapid, deep (and, importantly, just) changes in how their inhabitants move around. Creating conditions in which more people feel able to make cycling part of their daily lives is one foundation of that transition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The UK is facing a severe public and mental-health crisis. Health systems are struggling to cope with the demands placed upon them. Children lead ever more sedentary lives and have lost the freedom of previous generations to play, and build life skills, in public places. Cycling is key in addressing these issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For over 60 years, car-centric urban planning has privileged the needs of motorists over those of cyclists and pedestrians, and prioritised motorised movement over quality of life. Creating safe and inclusive conditions that enable more people to cycle regularly is vital to making cleaner, greener and more liveable urban spaces \u2013 in Oxford as elsewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cycling is part of the solution to many more social problems than you might think.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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We need to create conditions in which more people feel able to make cycling part of their daily lives.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>
![\"Empty](\"https:\/\/www.cyclox.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/Eynsham-Road-1024x768.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nMy vision<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
- To continue to build support for all the measures required to make our roads safe and Vision Zero<\/a> a lived reality.<\/strong> This includes better policing, appropriate penalties and improved road design. Other cities around the world have delivered on the ambition to radically cut serious road-traffic injuries and deaths. Oxfordshire must strive to do the same.<\/li>\n\n\n\n