This just in – Giant comedy cardboard cheque for £17 million arrives at Birmingham Council House!
Yes, bike fans, Birmingham Council is swimming in the long-awaited cycling cash thanks to a successful bid and the OK from the Department of Transport. And with the coffers swollen with all this money, their idea is to make Birmingham as bike friendly as Amsterdam.
So, should we all go out, buy clogs, circles of the finest Edam and Dutch phrase books immediately?
Erm…..no. Not just yet anyway.
Whilst our Dutch counterparts continue to cycle the miles and miles of their excellent cycling infrastructure, Birmingham Council’s plan will take 2 years and these plans want to triple the number of city cyclists, revamp canal towpath’s and create or upgrade 130 miles of off & on-road routes.
One of the main parts of the plan is to create a long-awaited bike share scheme on a par with the Boris Bikes currently in operation in the nation’s capital.
And with rumours abound that Manchester had already outbid Birmingham for the cycling cash, today’s announcement is particularly sweet for those involved in the bid. Councillor James McKay, cabinet member promoting a “green, safe and smart city”, told the Birmingham Mail, “You always get speculation over these bids and the level of speculation is a measure of the interest in the project.”. This after a Manchester MP for the Liberal Democrats had previously posted online that his city had already won the bid.
So while it is right to celebrate this victory, this author suggests we also temper the celebrations with an air of caution.
The cash is now available, which, don’t get me wrong, I think is brilliant. £17 million from the government and £7 million from Birmingham Council. So £24 million all together. What we need now is strong leadership. We need the money to be spent wisely. Sensibly. Correctly.
I can’t be the only one not wanting to be cycling around a city in 2 year’s time that’s full of Sir Albert’s Folly’s.
Let's Ride Birmingham! 