Flat G 3 Dunnage Crescent London SE16 7FJ 020 7232 0444 / 07905 889 005 masonb@supanet.com www.southwarkcyclists.org.uk 11 February 2006 The Editor Southwark News Unit A302 Tower Bridge Business Complex Clement’s Road London SE16 4DG Dear Editor I should be writing about the fantastic front page of last week’s Southwark News about the Tour de France zapping through Bermondsey and Rotherhithe on 8 July 2007. But not yet. This letter is Southwark Cyclists answer to a couple of recent letters here knocking cyclists. This is a really good example of how the reckless behaviour of a minority on bikes diverts us all from the right messages. And I hope this letter can kill a few urban myths while we’re at it: All cyclists ride on pavements. Wrong. Bikes on pavements are mostly a pest. We don't defend reckless behaviour. All cyclists jump red lights. Wrong. We don't defend that either. All cyclists are the same. Wrong. You wouldn't let one loutish pedestrian or one drunk driver give all pedestrians or all drivers a bad name..would you? Cyclists don't care. Wrong. All sensible cyclists are very conscious that a few reckless idiots on bikes set some people against all cyclists. That doesn't help our cause a bit. Cyclists aren't doing anything to stop idiots on bikes. Wrong. Training provided by Southwark Cyclists, and our website, newsletters, rides, meetings, training courses and events all push responsible cycling and, for example, the Highway Code. Cyclists don't pay Road Tax. Right. No one does. There is no such tax. Seventy years ago the 1936 Finance Act scrapped Road Tax. The then Chancellor of the Exchequer Winston Churchill said that continuing it might lead car users to think they had moral ownership of the roads. Alright, but Cyclists don't pay Vehicle Excise Duty so don’t pay for the roads then. Wrong. The Duty goes into the Treasury’s pot along with all our other taxes. All taxpayers pay for the things taxes pay for: defence, the NHS, schools, museums, farmers, roads....Cyclists pay income tax, VAT, national insurance, Council Tax....and all those other taxes that everyone else loves paying too. The idea that paying VED gives you a greater right to the road is as wrong as saying that smoker’s tobacco taxes give them a greater entitlement to hospital treatment. So Cyclists pay for the roads?! Right. Through our taxes. And don’t forget that most cyclists own cars too and so pay Vehicle Excise Duty too. Cyclists back-wheels go round. Right! I haven't heard that one this week. So who are Southwark Cyclists? Just a local voluntary group, open to everyone, that aims to encourage more people to cycle and to improve conditions for cyclists. We promote and arrange cycle training, organise free leisure rides every week all year round, and are involved in major local projects such as schools training, Burgess Park Bike Track, the Bermondsey Street Home Zone, the Walworth Road project, the South Bermondsey link, the 2007 Tour de France in London, routes to the 2012 Olympics and much more. Have a look at www.southwarkcyclists.org.uk Come along and meet us outside Decathlon’s sports-store at Surrey Quays on Saturday 4 March from 11-5. Stunt rides, the BMX team, bike try-outs, Dr Bike, advice, training, three local rides that day, something for everyone. There’s never been a better time to get on a bike and we’re here to help. Just ask. Best wishes. Barry Mason Coordinator Southwark Cyclists 07905 889 005 info@southwarkcyclists.org.uk 1 1