York Cycle Campaign dates for your diary
Want to help YCC grow?
Thursday 23rd January from 6 pm at the Winning Post
The recruitment team will discuss plans for the year, including events, on-street canvassing, and any ideas you have to recruit, engage and retain our members. The Campaign’s influence grows with its size and the willingness of members to be active! All welcome, please email if you can attend, marked for the attention of Leah and Joseph.
Secure cycle parking for Residents’ Weekend
Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th January, 10am-5pm – York Minster refectory, 2 Deangate, YO1 7JA
Free but donation to local homelessness charity (SASH) requested. If you can help, email us.
Cycling security and marking
Sunday 26th January, 4-6 pm at York railway station
YCC recruitment and information stall with British Transport Police providing free security marking. If you can help, email us. (Future events: Sunday 23rd Febuary 4-6pm; Thursday 13th March 4-6pm).
Ward reps meeting
Monday 27th January 7pm – Cycle Heaven, Hospital Fields Rd.
Open to all, not just ward reps – discuss cycling issues that concern you in your local York area/commute and hear the latest news on travel in York. For more information contact Andy D’Agorne on 07941 392667.
Monthly social ride
31st January, 6:30pm (last Friday of month) – visitors’ entrance to York Minster
A gentle 30-minute ride around the city centre before going to a cafe or pub. A relaxed way to meet other members. All welcome – no need to book, just turn up.
Recent events
First Committee meeting of 2025
The Campaign has held its first committee meeting of 2025. As announced at the recent AGM, two members have stepped down – Lizzie and Juliet, thanks for all your hard work over the years. We welcome two new members – Michael Driscoll (secretary) and Frances Coates. At its first meeting of 2025, the committee considered strategy and a new structure based around working groups. Watch out for more details.
Christmas shopping cycle parking
We consider our first trial secure parking scheme for the Christmas market to be a success. We provided safe parking for a variety of bikes and around 25 cyclists of all ages. A Dutch couple were so delighted they came back the following day. Not often we get to impress the Dutch with our cycling facilities!
Meeting with Deputy Mayor
YCC Committee members Andy Farndale, Andy D’Agorne and Leah Bennett have met with Jo Coles, the Deputy Mayor responsible for Police and Crime in York and North Yorkshire. They have secured a commitment to closer working on action to tackle bike crime, and emphasised its importance in deterring people from cycling into York city centre. She was very interested in the successful pop up bike park and encouraged the campaign to make full use of grant funds and regular policing public engagement activities.
Bike marking
The 11th December bike marking at the railway station was a bit quieter than usual, with 10 bikes marked. Every marked bike is a good thing and we also had opportunity to talk to cyclists about YCC.
News
Cycling and Walking Plan approved
The Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan was approved at a meeting of City of York Council Executive on 12th December. The plan outlines the council’s active travel strategy for the city and priorities for securing funding.
Barrier removal update
YCC asked Cllr Kate Ravilious, Executive Member for Transport, for an update on the barrier removal programme. Council officers are still working through legal issues, plus final designs for the new barrier arrangement. They intend to start adapting/removing barriers in March. Cllr Ravilious has requested that this programme is prioritised. The University of Westminster will be monitoring a number of barriers in York over the next two years, aiming to understand the consequences of removing a barrier (eg on modes of transport, demographics of route users). Sustrans recently posted a blog about barrier removal on its own network in York.
Slip sliding away
Did the recent freezing conditions make you wonder which cycle routes might be least icy? City of York Council publishes a map of gritting routes and salt bin locations. Gritted cycle routes are shown in pink and orange.
Opportunities and actions
Help our Residents Weekend cycle parking
We will be repeating our secure cycle parking in a space generously donated by York Minster Refectory after our Christmas Market trial. If you can help supervise the area and register users please send us your availability (day(s) + time(s) during weekend 25th/26th January 10am-5pm – max 2 hour shifts) and your mobile contact number so we can create a rota. There will always be at least one other helper present. In case of bad weather, there is a covered area.
Cycle stand audit
The YCC and Transport Team from York council have developed and trialled an app to audit bicycle stands in York. The audit will help us identify how many stands we have, where they are, what type, the standard, how safe they are, and suggestions on suitable new places for stands. The app will be going ‘live’ soon. We need members to help us implement the audit, so your support will be greatly appreciated. If you would like to volunteer, please contact Leah.
Tips for greener cycling
Many of us assume that cycling is automatically eco-friendly. However, there are things we can do to optimise this, as Cycling Weekly recently explored in its greener cycling tips.
Safer/more secure cycling
North Yorkshire Police are reminding cyclists of how they can reduce the chances of their cycle being stolen. Advice includes: use two locks (at least one D-lock or an armoured product such as a Hiplok); fit a GPS tracking device to your bike; register the frame number of your bike free on the system most police use to identify suspected stolen cycles; and report a cycle theft immediately to the police.
And in other news…
Chief Medical Officer supports active travel
In his annual report, the Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty has highlighted the need to make walking and cycling more practical and safer. He sees this as part of helping boost physical activity levels and significantly improving the health of England’s increasingly urban population.
Danish five-minute city
Why stop at 15 minutes? The Nordhavn district of Copenhagen is a dockland area that is gradually being converted into a “five-minute” city – a new residential development designed for walking and cycling to be the norm.
Dutch roundabout in Sheffield
In December, a much-delayed roundabout opened in Sheffield. The Dutch-style roundabout gives pedestrians and cyclists priority over motorists. The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents said similar roundabouts in the Netherlands had almost halved serious incidents.
Why cycle lane colour matters
An intriguing article in the ETA (Environmental Transport Association) newsletter explores the reasons behind cycle lane colour choice, the importance of consistency, and why coloured asphalt is so much better than paint.
York Cycle Campaign 
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