Crispin’s Guide to Stirling Cycling –
General
Why
Cycle Campaigning?
In 1996, 62% of Scottish households had use of a car,
and there were only 38 cars per 100 population.
Motorists are in the minority, but short-sighted
Government and Council policy means that cyclists and pedestrians must fight
for their rights.
The
number of bike sales in the UK is regularly greater than new car sales.
As many journeys are made by cycle each year as by
rail and London Underground combined .
Motorists do not pay for the true cost that driving
imposes on society.
Air pollution from traffic kills up to 19000 people a
year in the UK - 239 people each year in Edinburgh, 134 in Glasgow.
Inactivity
results in Scotland’s three biggest killers (Heart Disease, cancer, stroke)
A
study in Dundee showed that one in four 11-14 year olds shows signs of heart
disease.
Half
an hour a day of moderate activity has major benefits (halves risk of heart
disease).
The
level of cycle use in Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, Holland and Denmark is much
higher than in the UK and these northern European countries do not have a
significantly better climate than Scotland!
Two-thirds
of all journeys are less than 5 miles.
In fact, cars are now used for 62% of journeys between 1 and 2 miles and
78% of journeys between 2 and 5 miles.
These
journeys are an ideal distance to be cycled.
The National Cycling Strategy
(NCS) was launched in 1996 and continues to receive government support. The aim of National Cycling Strategy was to
double cycle use by 2002 and double again by 2012.
The
2002 target will not be met – WRITE TO YOUR MSP AND ASK WHY?
For
the National Cycling Strategy to succeed the political support must be firm and
increasing: the cycling infrastructure provided on our roads must be of the
highest quality. This will require ever
increasing investment and road safety measures must be strictly enforced.
What
you can do.
Get
involved – talk to your local CTC Right-to-Ride Rep and find out what you can
do to help.
- Your local Right-to-Rep Rep is a volunteer
campaigning for better cycling facilities in your local area.
Write
to your MSP and make sure that they know that cyclists vote too.
For
that next trip, ask yourself, “Can I ride a bike, walk or use public transport
rather than automatically jumping in the car?”.
Recent
Publications on cycling, walking and health (1999-2000)
There is a stream of research showing the health
benefits of regular moderate physical activity. Most studies are not
specifically on cycling, but health experts generally reckon a daily 15-20
minute bike commute gives a good quota of moderate physical activity
Health Benefits
Lee
& Paffenbarger. Am J Epidemiol 2000; 151: 293-9.
Moderate to intense physical activity
associated with better health and lower mortality rates
Batty & Thune BMJ (Br Med J) 2000;
321: 1424-1425
Physical activity prevents cancer
Babyak et al. Psychosom Med 2000; 62 633-8.
Regular exercise is better than prescribed
anti-depressants in avoiding return of major depression symptoms.
Sesso
et al. Circulation. 2000; 102: 975-80.
Lee
et al. Circulation. 2000; 102:
981-6.
Short bouts of exercise are as as
effective at protecting the heart as longer workouts, but increasing the heart
rate is a key factor
Hakim
et al. Circulation 1999; 100: 9-13.
Walking 2 miles cuts heart attack risk in
elderly men
Hayashi et al. Ann Intern Med 1999; 131:
21-6.
Walking to work and other types of
physical activity decreased the risk of hypertension in Japanese men (those who walked more than 20 minutes had a 29%
decreased risk of hypertension).
Hu et al. JAMA (J Am Med Assoc) 2000; 283:
2961-7
Regular leisure-time physical activity
substantially reduced the risk of stroke in women in a dose-response manner.
Stampfer et al. N Engl J Med 2000; 343:
16-22.
Among women, adherence to lifestyle
guidelines involving diet, exercise, and abstinence from smoking is associated with
a very low risk of coronary heart disease
Wannamethee et al. Circulation 2000; 102: 1358-1363
Benefits of gentle exercise in men with
coronary heart disease.
Taddei et al. Circulation 2000; 101:
2896-901
Regular physical activity prevents
age-induced endothelial dysfunction
Lee et al. Int J
Epidemiol 1999; 28: 620-5.
Reduced risk of lung cancer with 6-8 hours per week of moderate intensity physical activity per week.
Manson et al. N
Engl J Med 1999; 341: 650-8.
Heart disease reduced risk with brisk walking and vigorous
exercise
Rockhill et al.
Arch Intern Med 1999; 159: 2290-6.
Women who were more
physically active had a lower risk of breast cancer than those who were less
physically active
Tang et al. Int J
Cancer 1999; 82: 484-9.
Slattery et al. Am
J Epidemiol 1999; 150: 869-77.
Terry et al. Int J
Cancer 1999; 82: 38-42.
Reduced risk of endometrial cancer with
increased physical activity
Hendriksen et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2000; 32: 504-510.
Commuter cycling improves physical
performance as much as a 'training program'
Transport Policy, cycling and health
Dora C. BMJ 1999; 318: 1686-1689.
Authored by the World Health Organisation,
this showed the effect on health on different transport policies: promote
cycling and walking
Haines
et al. BMJ
2000; 321: 1168-1169
Policy goals on physical exercise, global
warming, and reduction of pollution all point in the same direction: fewer journeys
by cars and lorries
Carnall D. Cycling and health promotion.
BMJ 2000; 320: 888
Benefits of cycling in promoting health
Wardlaw MJ. BMJ 2000; 321: 1582-1585
Three lessons for a better cycling future
Walter & FitzRoy. Air Pollution and
Mortality in a Sample of British Cities. Department of Economics, University of
St Andrews. August 2000
Künzli et al. Lancet
2000; 356: 795-801
Motorists do not pay for
the true cost that driving imposes on society. Air pollution from traffic kills
up to 19000 people a year in the UK - 239 people each year in Edinburgh, 134 in
Glasgow.
Helmets
Cook & Sheikh. BMJ 2000; 321:
1055 http:
//bmj.com/cgi/content/full/321/7268/1055
The web-correspondence discusses pro- and
anti-helmet evidence
Links -
Further details can be obtained via
Medline http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query/static/citmatch.html
British Medical Journal website http://www.bmj.com
Crispin
Bennett 19 August 2001