Call for council to invest in cycling.
Birmingham Friends of the Earth campaigners dressed in gas masks blockaded a city centre street with bikes to mark In Town Without My Car Day.
The stunt was part of the group’s Let’s Get Moving campaign, which aims to improve Birmingham’s appalling air quality caused by the city’s traffic through calling for even more investment in cycling and walking.
The group choose to blockade a car using bikes, in order to highlight the importance of cycling in reducing traffic and therefore air pollution, and of giving greater priority to cycling over cars in terms of investment and road space.
In Town Without My Car Day is part of the European Mobility Week, which runs from 16th-22nd September and this year is also focussing on the impact of local air quality in the EU in 2013 the ‘Year of Air’.
Robert Pass Campaigns Co-ordinator at Birmingham Friends of the Earth said. “Air pollution is a huge problem, with massive health impacts that we can no longer ignore. Brummies are breathing in dangerous and illegal levels of pollutants on a daily basis, largely through traffic related emissions. So far this year, there have been over 300 premature deaths in the city which can be attributed to air pollution.
“We’re not saying that people can’t have cars, or should never drive, but with 20% of UK journeys under 2 miles, the bike can be a fantastic alternative to the car for In Town Without My Car Day or any day of the year. However in Birmingham it isn’t easy to make that positive choice, as the city lacks enough cycling infrastructure to make cycling safe and enjoyable.
“We’re calling on Birmingham City Council to build on the positive start they have made with the success of the Cycle City Ambition Grant, by securing at least the same level of investment in cycling for a minimum of a further eight years.”
