Cycle Islington, a long-standing local campaign group, is celebrating its 50th birthday this year, with several events planned to commemorate the anniversary in June.
For Father’s Day on 21 June, the group, which has just under 600 members, is organising a bike ride, which will start and finish in Highbury Fields, looping around the north and south of the borough. This will be followed on 26 June by a ceilidh at Hocking Hall, Whittington Park Community Centre.
Eilidh, Coordinator of Cycle Islington, said: “We’re going to have a launch event at the Islington Museum in the second week of June. We’re going to screen a film interviewing people who’ve been involved over the years, particularly older people,” she said. “We’ll get Rowena Champion speaking. She’s the current transport exec.”
John Hartley, Secretary of Cycle Islington, said: “The best part is campaigning when we win. It’s really nice to see where the council implements things that we suggested or had an influence over.”
John and Eilidh are keen to get more people into cycling, especially young people and women. Currently, less than one-third of cycle trips in London are made by women. Eilidh believes that safety concerns are the main cause. According to a London Cycling Report, 24% of cycle networks are unsafe after dark.
“We’re campaigning to get more women on bikes. There’s an issue with safety,” Eilidh said. “Women prefer to cycle in segregated cycle lanes.”
In addition to campaigning to improve networks with more cycle lanes and low-traffic neighbourhoods, Cycle Islington wants to make cycling understood as safer and more accessible.
John said, “People are frightened to cycle. Cycling is actually a very safe activity. People are understandably frightened of motor traffic,” John said. “The perception of the danger is almost as bad as the danger itself. That’s what stops people, particularly women, from cycling.”
Sam is an MA Newspaper Journalism student, news blogger, and freelance writer who has previously written for Spiked.