Vision

An alliance of dues-paying member organisations with a common interest in helping MK become a leading cycling city by 2050, where 7% of all journeys are by cycle, 30% of journeys to school are by cycle, and 50% of all cycle journeys by girls and women: See Background.

How

Members & sponsors contribute more than half the cost of a Cycling Organiser, a trained Community Organiser working 2dpw, to achieve alliance goals agreed and monitored by a quarterly-meeting leadership group.

Goals

• Research. Collect data, partnering with research organisations where appropriate, to identify barriers to cycling. Ensure robust benchmarking from which increases in cycling can be monitored.
• Infrastructure. Build relationships with power-holders in MK City Council to support more extensive and effective cycling infrastructure (why this matters).
• Education. Deliver education initiatives to increase cycling confidence among students, parents and employees. Share best practice in cycle promotion activities.
• Celebration. Organise and publicise inclusive city-wide cycle celebration rides and other activities, e.g. Mayor’s cycling awards, involving business, education and local government leaders.
• Communication. Develop and use language which addresses areas of interest common to the majority of MK residents, e.g. how cycling enables motorists by reducing congestion, helps children’s health.

Activities

• Research
  • Two 121 meetings with leaders in each member organisation each year
  • Three counts each year of cycle parking facilities at school and work
  • Three counts each year of cycle journeys to school and work
  • Gather evidence of best cycle promotion practice from cities across UK and internationally, especially on doubling cycling modal share.
• Infrastructure
  • Annual listening campaign to identify infrastructure issues
  • Identify and analyse the interests of power holders relating to the issues
  • Plan actions to engage power-holders and get pledges of action – with turnout, testimony and SMART asks – and hold them to account for pledges made.
• Education & celebration
  • Annual assemblies and open evenings in schools, presenting research evidence to promote positive attitudes towards cycling
  • Three utility cycling competitions between organisations, celebrated in Mayor’s Cycling Awards Breakfasts, each year
  • Three best practice workshops each year
  • Three mass cycle rides through city centre each year, including Cycling Santas.
  • Support annual Bikeability Olympics for primary school children.
• Communication
  • Weekly posts on social media, press releases after Mayor’s Awards events and before and after mass rides.

Alliance tasks (each of which will require a member of the Leadership Group to oversee): Research, Education, Events, Communication, Finance, Access (women, ethnic minorities and people with disabilities).

Member benefits (see more details):

• contribution to improving health of staff
• contribution to achievement of carbon net zero targets
• contribution to corporate social responsibility agenda
• opportunities to build relationships across MK community.

Member responsibilities: Payment of annual dues, £500-£5000 per year depending on turnover and number of people; Attendance of quarterly meetings to make strategic decisions, plus short training on concepts and tools of Community Organising.

Challenges

• Despite MK’s pride in the Redways, levels of cycling have remained low.
• MK’s current cycle provision doesn’t meet the latest design principles. See p21 of the Department of Transport’s Gear
  Change: A bold vision for cycling and walking. Most Redways fail the first five standards.
• The original network ran out in CMK and historic centres Bletchley, Newport, Wolverton – addressing this may require space reallocation.
• Navigating Redways with underpasses is a challenge and the underpasses suffer from poor maintenance, with flooding and broken glass.
• Reaching 7% or more of all travel in MK by cycle is key – all of the top cycling cities in the world have achieved that, also 50% of all cyclists are women (Goel et al).
• The best cycling cities are also good for walking and public transport. We must encourage less car use.
• Cycle parking in MK is poor – in top cycle cities it is easier to park a cycle close to destinations than to park a car
• MK is a dispersed city, so creating a culture of cycling is more challenging as less visible.

Contact – Organiser Tom Bulman, cyclingmk@citizensuk.org, tel 07962 838685.

(Photo above shows mural at Stantonbury School, created by local artist John Watson in 1978.)