Promotion and Encouragement

Cherry Allan's picture

Smarter choices

By Cherry Allan on 21 December 2011
Smarter choices - or measures, including cycling, that help people find alternatives to driving - can make a huge difference to travel habits...
Cyclist on path
Headline Messages: 
  • Measures that provide encouragement, incentives and opportunities to try out alternatives to the private car are known as ‘smarter choices’. 
  • Smarter choices to encourage cycling must go hand-in-hand with improving cycling conditions on the highway. If anything, however, smarter choices are more cost-effective in terms of congestion, yielding on average £10 of benefits to every £1 spent.
  • Smarter choice measures include: elements of travel plans, advertising and promotional campaigns, cycle maps, marketing directly to individuals, tax incentives, cycle training, rides, events and activities for specific groups in society.
CTC View (formal statement of CTC's policy): 
  • Smarter choice measures are:
    • a proven way of reducing car use and carbon emissions
    • an effective means of encouraging people to take up cycling, or to cycle more often
    • a good investment, offering an excellent return 
  • Investing in ‘smarter choices’ is at least as important as investing in physical improvements to the highway network. 
  • Both national and local authorities should dedicate sufficient resources to smarter choices, recognising that they rely on revenue rather than capital funding.
Download full campaigns briefing: 
application/pdf iconSmarter choices
Publication Date: 
October 2010
Chris Peck's picture

Get Britain Cycling report recommends £10 per head, per year funding for cycling

By Chris Peck on 23 April 2013
Six weeks of oral evidence, hundreds of written pages, and the report is out. CTC welcomes its publication and urges the Government to implement its 18 recommendations
Chris Boardman, MP Julian Huppert, Dr Sarah Wollaston and Ian Austin

CTC, the national cycling charity, is calling on David Cameron to act on the report, which calls for 10 per cent of journeys in Britain to be made by cycle by 2025 – the current figure is less than 2 per cent.

It has also called for central government spending of at least £10 per head of population per year to boost cycle use, increasing as cycle use rises. London has recently announced plans to spend £12.50 per person per year over the next 10 years, whilst the Dutch are spending around £24 per person per year.

Cherry Allan's picture

Cycle-friendly employers (CTC views)

By Cherry Allan on 12 March 2013
Doing everything possible to encourage employees to commute by cycle and to cycle for work purposes helps improve the health and productivity of a workforce, lowers the cost of business transport and eases congestion at peak time.
Cycle commuters arriving at work
Headline Messages: 
  • Encouraging employees to commute by cycle and to cycle on business, can result in a healthier, more productive workforce and lower transport costs.
  • Workplaces that encourage cycling help mitigate their negative impact on the local and wider environment.
  • If employees are encouraged to cycle rather than drive, congestion is less severe at peak times, which is good for business and the economy.
CTC View (formal statement of CTC's policy): 
  • Employers should recognise the health, environmental and economic benefits of promoting the use of cycles for commuting and work purposes.
  • Actions that employers should take include:
    • making cycling an integral part of a Travel Plan
    • paying the full, tax-free cycle mileage rate
    • subscribing to other tax incentives (e.g. the Cycle to Work scheme)
    • incentivising cycling through Workplace Challenges, events etc.
    • providing good quality facilities (e.g. cycle parking, showers and lockers
    • supporting a bicycle users group (BUG)
    • supplying ‘pool’ bikes
  • Employers should not be discouraged from promoting cycling because of liability fears, neither should they make cycle training or wearing a cycle helmet a prerequisite for cycling on business.
Download full campaigns briefing: 
application/pdf iconCycle-friendly employers (CTC views)
Publication Date: 
July 2012
Julie Rand's picture

Let CTC help your cycling group move up a gear!

By Julie Rand on 5 March 2013
Are you one of CTC’s valued volunteers and active within a local group? Would you like to share the secrets of your success with others? Would you like some help to resolve issues affecting your group?
Riders from Cycle Bristol

For the first time, CTC is using its AGM at Guisborough, North Yorkshire on Saturday 11 May 2013 as the chance to provide support to volunteers.  CTC Member Groups and Affiliated Clubs are invited to come along to a special networking event before the  AGM in the afternoon. 

MeganHardeman's picture

Building a better future for university students

By MeganHardeman on 21 February 2013
The Building a Better Future for Young People initiative gives two University of Reading students experience of promoting cycling. Megan Hardeman explains how working with CTC is helping to improve her CV.

It's not often that an opportunity comes knocking that allows you to use a variety of skills and interests to lend a hand to a great cause - whilst also boosting your CV.  When such an opportunity came up I jumped at it.

As Communications Officer for Cycling Development in Reading, I'm responsible for documenting and advertising events that the charity puts on throughout our community by using my journalism and marketing skills.

My Background

Chris Peck's picture

Enter a new health and fitness study to win £100 in vouchers

By Chris Peck on 18 February 2013
Researchers from University College London are asking for your help to learn more about cycling and health by entering a new study.
UCL researchers are launching a study into the effects of cycling on health

This may be the first time you have entered a scientific study, or it may be one of many. Either way, it’s natural to have questions.

Who is running the study?

University College London, in collaboration with CTC, is undertaking the largest most comprehensive study into the effect of cycling fitness on health and disease in the UK population.

What are we trying to find out?

ginnyleonard's picture

Free cycle training in West Yorkshire!

By ginnyleonard on 24 January 2013
David Hall from West Yorkshire has benefited from free adult cycle training and now he is such a confident cyclist he's getting ready to ride the 'Way of the Roses'.
Way of the Roses sign

CTC's Cycling Development Officer for West Yorkshire Ginny Leonard was contacted by David Hall in the summer of 2012, he had never had the opportunity to learn to ride a bike. Being over the age of 40 David told Ginny he lacked confidence in his ability to ride a bike and after he had taken a tumble,  he thought he never would ride a bike. However, with support from CTC David decided to give cycling one more go.

Seamus Kelly's picture

CTC supports Greater Manchester Cycle Commuter Project

By Seamus Kelly on 9 January 2013
Seamus Kelly, Cycling Development Officer, is working with TFGM's cycling team to support business engagement and community development programmes.
Cyclists riding through a park in central Manchester

Transport for Greater Manchester (TFGM) established a cycling team as part of their ambitious Local Sustainable Transport Fund (LSTF) programme.

The cycling elements of the programme include hard measures, such as secure parking facilities at purpose-built cycling hubs and cycle storage grants to businesses, and soft measures such as cycle training, events, group rides and try-a-bike sessions. 

Chris Peck's picture

Young people are driving less

By Chris Peck on 21 December 2012
The number of driving licence holders in Britain has fallen for the first time in decades, according to the National Travel Survey. The biggest changes, however, are in the different age groups. Fewer young people are obtaining licences, but the number of older people with licences is growing.
Fewer young people are learning to drive

Since 1975 the number of drivers' licence holders has risen by 81% - from 19m licenced drivers to 35m in 2010.

Access to ever increasing numbers of cars and the consequent reshaping of people's lives to make them dependent on them is one of the chief reasons why cycling levels have remained virtually static since the mid twentieth century.

Chris Peck's picture

Surge in cycle use in 2011

By Chris Peck on 13 December 2012
Cycle use increased by 15% in 2011, according to new data from the Department for Transport. This contradicts earlier figures that had seemed to suggest static cycling levels last year. Growth was particularly strong among young and middle-aged men.
Young and middle aged men show the biggest increase

The data, published as part of the National Travel Survey, show that Britons now cycle 49 miles per person, per year, more than at any time in the last 20 years. 

The increase is particularly marked because the Survey had shown a slight drop in 2010, possibly due to seasonal factors - there were two months of snow cover over much of the UK in 2010. 

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