Niall Anderson

Start of the LTT article... ‘Car traffic is the problem, not buses vs bikes’ says LCC's Munk In the last issue, LTT reported on London’s declining bus services, and what was needed to improve them. Simon Munk of the London Cycling Campaign offers his assessment. 05 March 2026 Simon Munk Simon Munk London’s bus speeds are dropping and ridership is directly tied to bus journey times. Transport for London (TfL) has said (and the last issue of LTT reiterated this) that “for every 10% reduction in speed, there is a 6% drop in demand” for buses in London. These are undisputed facts. What is disputed is why bus speeds keep dropping and what to do about that and falling ridership. Looking at Government data1 for bus ridership inside London versus the rest of England, you can see a remarkable pattern. London has been criticised for its extensive cycling infrastructure, nearly all arriving post 2013, but despite few other urban areas in the UK delivering anything like the changes London has seen, bus ridership in the capital very closely correlates to that across England.

2nd half of article... Indeed, the London bus ridership trajectory overtakes England’s in the post 2013 period and recovered quicker post-pandemic, despite London putting in hundreds of active travel schemes during it. So, if cycling’s not the issue, what is? Here’s some uncomfortable questions for those who blame cycling… 1. Why are private motor traffic volumes rising nationally and indeed in London? What can we do to stop that? Hint: road-user charging. The Clean Cities campaign2 points out that post-peak evening driving in central London is now higher than morning peak – people are choosing to drive more when congestion charging is suspended. 2. What can we do to get rid of more parking or loading on TfL’s red routes and make more bus lanes 24/7? Why is TfL behind on its ‘bus priority action plan’? And why is it so weak? And why have TfL Buses never championed major successful bus gate schemes such as on Bishopsgate, Bank Junction and Stoke Newington Church Street? These were largely promoted as active travel measures. 3. How should TfL deal better with bus delays at junctions? The plan currently appears to be to increase motor vehicle capacity through junctions, as buses are often mixed in with it, despite ‘induced demand’ and risks to safe active travel. Surely giving buses separate priority at junctions is key? 4. What other factors are even considered? Most changes clearly slowing down buses (roadworks, internet shopping, post-pandemic driving for leisure) appear to have nothing to do with cycling. And what about junction redesigns that (rightly) prioritise pedestrian safety? Without coherent answers, we’ll be stuck with an endless and unseemly scrap for capacity between cycling (and walking) and buses that still serves all those modes poorly. 1 https://tinyurl.com/4a5ksfsm 2 https://tinyurl.com/7u3n5ne8

photo showing bike and bus lanes in London, via London Cycling Campaign

🚌🚲 Buses v bikes ?? - a correction!

-> www.transportxtra.com/publications...

@edi.bike @edinburghbug.bsky.social @transform.scot @stephenjenkinson.bsky.social @edinpl.bsky.social @paulwhite-cpt.bsky.social @labourwalkscycles.bsky.social @libdemcycling.org.uk @staceyoflaherty.bsky.social @sw20.info

New cycling infrastructure in London. Generous size - CEC take note.

Look at the size of that! (The path, not #TheDoodle). Very impressive.

Maybe we can persuade @profdevisridhar.bsky.social to do some Instagram demo videos - she’ll be an influencer in no time! (Also merch opportunities - watches, exercise mats….). :-)

Transform Your Upper Body with Perfect Tricep Dips | Anytime Fitness Tricep dips are for everybody, as in every body on the planet. And you can literally do them anywhere, with proper form. No machines or weights necessary.

Also (more seriously), tricep dips (I think)…

www.anytimefitness.com/blog/master-...

Start of Transform response... 1. Inadequate plans for road traffic reduction The failure of the government to bring forward a robust implementation plan for its previous 20% reduction in car kilometres by 2030 target, let alone deliver on it, demonstrated a wider failure of political leadership. This commitment was for an absolute cut on 2019 levels. The revised target, by contrast, is to reduce car use by at least 4% relative to a 2030 “business-as-usual” projection, making it a much weaker goal: a smaller percentage reduction measured against a higher baseline, so absolute car kilometres could still increase. This inaction on traffic leaves the government open to accusations of willing the ends, without providing the means; wanting the PR hit of announcing ambitious policies to help deliver more sustainable living, and then largely continuing with business-as-usual amongst a distracting fog of consultation and delay. It is intellectually incoherent to believe you can drive forward a multi-billion pound road-building and widening programme while also claiming you want to reduce annual car mileage. The government would never announce a multi-billion pound house-building programme if it had a commitment to, for argument’s sake, provide homes to fewer people. Scotland annual car kilometres continue to rise post-pandemic. Source: Scotland’s annual car kilometres, 1995 to 2023, Audit Scotland (2025) Given the huge constraints on public spending it is astonishing that there is no mention of road-user charging as means of getting much better value out of our existing road network.It is also increasingly pertinent that we have sensible conversations about how we plug budgetary gaps as revenues from fuel duties decline. Transform Scotland is a registered

parts 3 & 4 3. Aviation let off scot-free The plan starkly sets out the contribution that domestic and international aviation makes to the transport sector’s carbon emissions - 15% in 2023, and under the plans in the CCP, rising to 29% in 2035 and 44% in 2040. This belies the belief that aviation only contributes a small percentage of the country’s carbon emissions, not now, and certainly not in the future. The plan also shows that aviation’s absolute emissions will show hardly any decline at all by the end of 2040, even assuming the highly questionable availability and effectiveness of the so-called sustainable aviation fuel. So once again, aviation is being allowed to continue to merrily pollute while every other sector in society, both within transport and outwith, is expected to devise and implement stretching, sometimes expensive, and complicated plans to rapidly reduce their own emissions. Of course aviation is singled out as deserving of special treatment as it’s such a ‘hard to abate’ sector, with so much dependant on actions at the UK and international level, and on technological break-throughs. But of course the Scottish Government, should it so wish, has all sorts of mitigation levers it could pull in terms of airport planning constraints, being ambitious with the endlessly delayed implementation of the Airport Departure Tax regime, and running communication campaigns that highlight the hugely disproportionate impact that frequent fliers have in contributing to climate breakdown. The consultation documents talk of the government’s desire to “support modal shift through more sustainable forms of travel” and yet not a single aspect of the policy platform outlined in the plan is directed at a societal modal shift away from flying, the single most damaging mode of transport anyone can take. 4. Public transport & active travel in theory, cars in practice The draft CCP talks a good game on public transport and active travel, but again fails to provide the fun…

Start of spokes submission, with top takeway issues... Scotland’s Draft Climate Change Plan (CCP) 2026-2040 – consultation Response from Spokes, the Lothian Cycle Campaign January 2026 Please note: a. Our response concentrates on transport issues, primarily traffic reduction and active travel b. The consultation’s three transport questions don’t adequately cover our concerns, hence this submission. However, we do respond to the questions, in section 9 below, largely by reference to this main submission c. Spokes is a member of SCCS coalition and we endorse their submission, particularly the transport section 0. Top Takeaways [references are to sections below] [3] Demand management (notably road-user charging) is essential to car-km reduction. The Scottish Government should act urgently on its own commissioned research recommendations [2] The draft new ‘traffic reduction’ target is incredibly weak. It should be toughened and, if not, the government should be honest that its new target is to limit traffic growth, not to reduce traffic [4.1] The promise of multi-year funding for active travel projects should be implemented rapidly [4.2] Disguising of active travel funding by combining it with bus infrastructure money should end [4.3] 10% of the transport budget should be invested in active travel infrastructure and promotion [6] The move to zero-emission vehicles should include strong support for cargo bikes, particularly for last-mile urban deliveries and reducing motor van transport, but also for family transport

Scot Govt #ClimateChange Plan 🚘🚚🚲👩‍🦼🚶🚌🚆

Great to see strong response (like ours!) from @transform.scot

-> transform.scot/2026/01/29/h...

@edi.bike @edfoc.bsky.social @nigelbagshaw.bsky.social @sccscot.bsky.social @2050climategroup.bsky.social @oxfamscotland.bsky.social @drandrewboswell.bsky.social

Pleasing news this morning…

There’s an audiobook version? Does @youngvulgarian.marieleconte.com know?

I think the main question is… has he read your book?

“It’s the hope that kills you…” . Keep us posted.

So sorry to hear of this. I’d echo all the other comments about taking your time and not rushing back too soon - avoid the self-imposed pressure to re-start before you are actually ready. Best wishes.

There you go. What are you planning to do after lunch?

Good luck with the last stages!

Nice. Thanks for the heads-up and have pre-ordered. Now if you could just finish writing it please? ;-)

@mrjamesob.bsky.social Bedford CC dealing with the bigots like an absolute boss.

Wednesday

I’m counting down the days until I can get mine (Summer 2027, BTW. I’m just a youngster).

They have proofreaders?

a close up of a person 's hand holding a gun in a dark room . ALT: a close up of a person 's hand holding a gun in a dark room .

Most university strategies seem to boil down to someone shouting "more"

Have you met people?

Thanks. Your response very similar to mine, posted some time ago. Need to put infra where people are (west side of Whitehouse Road), not where people are not and route needs to connect to Cramond Primary School. Hugely concerning this latter point was not considered given the circumstances there.

This is great. And the podium for the kids….

Hmmm.... @srd.bsky.social , @cathyabbott.bsky.social any of this sound familiar?

Oh, that's fantastic. Thank you @infrasisters.bsky.social

Darren, you attempted to make a joke on BlueSky. Rookie error…

Yes, that’s starting to feel distinctly unethical.

Leading to a reduction in the quality of GB research, leading to poorer REF returns, leading to a restriction of funding….

Good lord. Remarkable figures here. Of course, that’s Birmingham. Couldn’t possibly happen anywhere else, could it?

But just think how smug we can be during the summer? And also… we get to live in Scotland.

These things always turn up just after it is too late…

FYI - only one “r” in Heriot’s.