Towards a dis-integrated transport system?
Article published: Wednesday, February 10th 2010
In the wake of a decision to continue the ban of bicycles on Metrolink trams, cycling groups have alleged that the body responsible refused to consult with them and that Greater Manchester Transport Executive (GMPTE) suppressed a crucial document.
This January the Council Capital Projects Committee of Greater Manchester Integrated Transport Authority (GMITA) voted to recommend continuing the ban of the carriage of bicycles on Manchester trams. The only exception is for Brompton style bikes or a fold-ups that can be fully encased. The recommendation will be considered when a final decision is taken at a full GMITA meeting this week.
However prior to the decision, the Committee failed to consult with cycling organisations before reaching their decision.
Cllr Richard Cowell, the Executive Member for the Environment, called the action “disgraceful”, adding, “It was a very poor decision. I feel that other options could have at least been explored had the committee met with cycling organisations first. The way the decision was taken is very concerning.”
At the heart of the furore is the fact that the full report from Mott MacDonald, the transport consultants commissioned by GMPTE, was not released to the committee or to the public until after the vote. The Friends of the Earth Love Your Bike campaign issued a Freedom of Information request in September but GMPTE claimed to have lost the request, leaving campaigners no choice but to threaten to contact the Information Commissioner.
As the GMITA committee themselves only saw a synopsis of the report before making their decision, Love Your Bike now question whether they were able to make an informed decision based on the limited information they possessed.
Cllr Andrew Fender, a Labour councillor who pushed for talks with cycling organisations before the decision, believes the responsibility for the decision lies squarely at the feet of GMITA’s ruling Liberal Democrat/Conservative coalition.
He said, “I urge the City Council to do all in its power to ensure that this matter is now given proper consideration by GMITA following consultations with the cycling organisations.”
Critics have pointed out that the decision could impede the Council in fulfilling existing commitments on transport and the environment.
In January 2009, the Council approved the Manchester Climate Change Call to Action report, which aims to reduce Manchester’s annual CO2 output by more than one million tonnes by 2020. This spoke of creating a green city with an “accessible and safe public realm, used throughout the day by different people in different ways…helping to support a radical shift to walking, cycling, and the use of public transport.”
And late last year, a Transport Strategy for Manchester City Centre was also published which pledged to increase the role cycling plays in transport and access to the city by developing an integrated transport system.
Yet the recent GMITA recommendation would appear to suggest that cycling and tram use are not compatible, explaining why campaigners have reacted with dismay that an integrated transport authority is stifling its own objectives.
Pete Abel from Love Your Bike crashed the committee meeting. He said, “We are annoyed because they are preventing the development of an integrated transport system, which will benefit people in Manchester whether it is for business or for families wanting to take the tram to the outskirts for bike rides.”
Liberal Dem Cllr David Sandiford, who voted to maintain the policy of prohibiting bicycles on trams, reasoned that due to numbers of existing users bicycles would increase the risk of injury to passengers.
When asked why different options were not even discussed with cycling organisations, such as the possibility of permitting the carriage of bikes during off-peak hours, Sandiford claimed, “You cannot negotiate over safety. We were advised it is too dangerous.”
The committee unanimously supported the second recommendation to increase investment in storage facilities for bikes at Metrolink stops across Manchester. For the time being, cyclists will have to leave their bikes at one of these facilities should they need to take the tram.
Campaigners hope that one day Manchester will follow in the footsteps of Edinburgh transport chiefs who agreed to permit the carriage of bicycles on trams on a trial basis in 2008. Edinburgh is the only city in the UK that currently allows this, although it is standard practice on most parts of the continent and in the US.
Love Your Bike are continuing to lobby councillors ahead of the full GMITA meeting on Friday 12 February where the finally decision will be taken, but based on the Council Capital Projects Committee’s recommendation little looks set to change.
Amy Conlock
More: Manchester, News
Comments
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If GMITA is to be criticised, it is for spending any money on a consultants report which could only come to one obvious conclusion: There is no room!
Comment by Alan Salter on February 10, 2010 at 2:27 pm -
Alan, no room even for a folded Brompton cycle?
The GMPTE policy currently states that even folded bicycles are forbidden unless “fully encased”
There appears to be plenty of room for people to travel with suitcases or pram buggies etc many times the size of a folded Brompton!
Comment by Pete Abel on February 10, 2010 at 5:59 pm -
[…] on MULE Amy Conlock reported on claims that GMPTE had refused to consult cycling groups when deciding to continue the ban of bikes on Manchester’s […]
Pingback by Transport Strategy for Manchester out for consultation — MULE on February 19, 2010 at 12:54 pm
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