In a couple of recent blog posts I'm being rather direct with Cambridgeshire County Council and the local Police Force. Take a look at them if you're interested.
I just wonder if I'm coming on too strong there?
I ask because as far as I can tell Cambridge Cycling Campaign are saying sweet fanny addams about this. Am I missing a bigger picture here?
Cab, why don't you ask Cambridge Cycling Campaign? They are quite approachable I think.
I have approached them in the past. How shall I put it... They don't like me. They don't like my attitude, and I see the differences regarding, say, Gilbert Road as nigh on irreconcilable - they hail small improvements as great victories, I see them as giving up on ever getting GOOD facilities.
So, yes, they're approachable. If you dare criticise them they become awfully spiky.
I'd love them to be an organisation I'd be proud to be a part of though.
It is tough being a local cycling campaign - I'm seeing it from both sides now! On the one hand you want to press for a really good Dutch style network, and anything less won't do much to encourage 8 to 80 cycling. On the other hand, an improvement is an improvement and it seems churlish not to welcome it - especially as building working relationships with the council is a key part of getting better designed infrastructure built in the first place.
OTOH I would have thought that in Cambridge, with a cycling rate of 50% of the population, that a really ambitious campaign could actually get some political backing locally. I suppose there's room in the ecosystem for both a campaigning approaches - and having a noisy group of malcontents who aren't happy at anything but the best could actually help the case of the more pragmatic campaigners. As long as the Cambridge Cycling campaign aren't actively *against* decent infrastructure (as some of the more vehicular ones can be) then you could still work together quite effectively, even if you don't see eye to eye on tactics.
imho until Cambridge Cycling Campaign answer a simple question I've frequently put to them, they'll be in a serious credibility deficit. Said question is very simple; if, here and now in Cambridge, we're not going to hold out for the best quality cycling infrastructure, then when and where will UK cyclists do so?
The problem with facilities like Gilbert Road is that they're used as sticks to beat us with; because we've got better facilities, those cyclists on the pavement (mostly kids going to the school along there) are now 'antisocial cyclists' and councillors have directed police to target them as a priority. So yes, it would be churlish to oppose small improvements when the net effect IS that things are better for us, but I'm unconvinced that said small improvements do creat a net improvement in our lot.
And thats quite a fundamental difference between how I see things and how they see things. That isn't to say that CCC don't do some good stuff - their input in things like, say, the new cycle route up to the A14 crossing from Orchard Park is very good indeed. But if we take an holistic look at the whole of Cambridge and ask how much more cyclists could achieve, I'm afraid I've found them to be quite a hindrance at times (e.g. "how can you say we don't consider cyclists, we consult Cambridge Cycling Campaign!"). In places we've got narrow, highly contested city streets - two dozen cyclists could, with some thought, very simply -own- the city centre - a critical mass movement here could bring the transport network crashing down around them, and I think gain some big concessions very quickly. CCC have opposed any such actions here, and while they do so its been impossible for other critical mass movements to get off the ground (when a 'moderate' cycling group can be pointed to by police and councillors in contrast with the proposed 'extreme' actions).
So, as ever, I don't really know what to do with CCC.
