Now it’s time to ask the question locally, what are your councillors doing to combat carbon emissions from transport?
If you would like to ask your local councillor what they are doing to combat carbon emissions from transport and emphasis the important role bike riding can play, follow the instructions below.
Bicycle Queensland has recently submitted our recommendations for the 2022-2023 State budget. The focus area of our submission is to promote more people riding more often. The recommendations focus on investment in infrastructure, cycle tourism and getting more women and kids riding.
COP26: More than 250 civil society organisations sign open letter calling on governments to boost global cycling levels to reach climate goals quickly and effectively
An open letter by the European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF) and a global coalition of pro-cycling organisations urging governments to cut transport emissions by investing in cycling has seen a surge in support from all over the world.
Since it was published on 2 November, over 190 civil society organisations have added their signature to the letter, which now counts more than 250 signatories from all over the world, including ECF, Greenpeace and Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). The letter calls on governments at COP26 to commit to significantly increasing the number of people who cycle in their countries in order to reach climate goals quickly and effectively.
As the global pro-cycling movement continues to grow ahead of COP26 Transport Day (10 November), which is set to focus almost exclusively on the electrification of road vehicles, governments and transport ministers will be under pressure to take cycling into account when negotiating climate commitments related to the transport sector.
Today, transportation is responsible for 24% of direct CO₂ emissions from fuel combustion, with the vast majority coming from cars, and these numbers are not decreasing. With global temperaturs rising fast, humanity cannot afford to wait decades for fossil-fuel cars to be fully phased out and replaced by electric vehicles. To quickly cut transport emissions on a massive scale and keep 1.5°C alive, governments need to invest in much more cycling now.
ECF and its allies believe cycling represents one of humanity’s greatest hopes for a shift towards a zero-carbon future. Cycling produces zero emissions, delivers far-reaching positive societal impacts and relies on technology that is already widely available today.
The more than 250 signatories to the open letter call on governments and transport ministers attending COP26 to declare commitments to significantly boost cycling levels at home and collectively commit to achieving a global target of higher cycling levels. The letter was sent to governments ahead of COP26.
Bicycle Queensland is in full support of this movement. More people cycling more often is our goal and a global movement to get more people on bikes is incredibly important.
Jill Warren, CEO of the European Cyclists’ Federation: “The dramatic growth of this global civil society movement in only a few days sends a forceful message to governments at COP26 about the importance of active mobility. There is no conceivable way to reduce CO₂ emissions quickly enough to avoid the worst of the climate crisis without significantly more cycling.”
Henk Swarttouw, President of the European Cyclists’ Federation: “More people riding bicycles will reduce our transport emissions and help save our planet. It will also stimulate our green economic recovery after COVID-19 and relieve our overburdened public health systems. Investing in cycling is a low-cost, low-tech no-brainer. It is what any sensible political leader should be doing right now.”
Brisbane City Council has released concept designs for the next stage of the North Brisbane Bikeway. This is an excellent step forward, making a safe, convenient and direct connection all the way to Eagle Junction and beyond.
The below announcement from Brisbane City Council:
Brisbane City Council is pleased to release the proposed concept design for the North Brisbane Bikeway: Price Street to Kedron Brook project between Dickson Street, Wooloowin and Jackson Street, Clayfield.
Attached is a copy of the project newsletter with information about the project, along with an invitation to have your say on proposed design options within the project alignment to finalise the connection between Price Street and the Kedron Brook Bikeway.
In response to a request from Bicycle Queensland, the Minister for Transport and Main Roads, the Hon Mark Bailey MP today announced a six-month trial of allowing bicycles and e-scooters on trains in peak hours.
Bicycle Queensland CEO Rebecca Randazzo said the six-month trial of allowing bicycles and e-scooters on peak hour trains in peak direction of travel, which will start 1 July, was a win for people who want flexibility in how they get around south-east Queensland.
“Every time someone uses the combination of bike and train to get around SEQ, that’s one less car on the roads,” Ms Randazzo said.
Pictured is Bicycle Queensland’s CEO Rebecca Randazzo and Transport Minister Mark Bailey on Sunday at Albion train station to announce the great news.
“And combining public transport and bike riding helps you find your 30 minutes of physical activity for the day. And reduces carbon emissions. And it puts a smile on your face because you’re not stuck in traffic.”
“As it says on the Queensland Rail website: ‘Using your bicycle is a great way to get around South-east Queensland’!” Ms Randazzo said.
Minister Bailey’s decision was a response to a letter sent in March, drafted by Bicycle Queensland and supported by all the bicycle user groups in the CityTrain operating area.
The letter highlighted Queensland Rail’s recent progress made in providing quality bike parking facilities at upgraded CityTrain stations but highlighted the prohibition of bikes on peak hour trains as a glaring issue in Queensland Rail’s services to bike riders.
“This is a great step forward, and we thank the Minister,” Ms Randazzo said.
“We would also like to be able to bring bikes on the G-Link tram on the Gold Coast, and a more liberal allocation for bike storage on the Tilt Train service from Brisbane to Bundaberg and Rockhampton,” Ms Randazzo said.
Bicycle Queensland recently attended the launch of Riding the Revolution: A New Approach to Active Transport in South East Queensland. CEO Rebecca Randazzo spoke on a panel at the event about the importance of infrastructure and incentivising active travel.
The report details how the rise of e-bikes and increase of cyclists due to the coronavirus pandemic could assist in long-term active travel change. As stated in the report, ‘the paper outlines a new approach to active transport planning, one that will capture the current opportunity and create a new policy and administrative framework to drive change for years to come.’
Pictured: Kirsty Kelly (Chief Executive Officer of the AITPM), Rachel Nolan, (Executive Chair, The Mckell Institute Queensland), John Brannock (Adjunct Professor & Course Coordinator, Advanced Planning Practice, UQ), Rebecca Randazzo (Chief Executive Officer, Bicycle Queensland)
The 2020 State Election, to be held in the midst of the most serious public health crisis in a century, highlights the importance of active transport and regular physical activity in improving population health.
Bicycle Queensland’s priorities for the 2020 election fall into three areas:
Funding for the Principal Cycle Network
Safety of vulnerable road users around heavy vehicles
Cycle tourism and rail trails
Read through BQ’s 2020 State Election Infographic below and our letter to the premier here.
Brisbane’s most exciting stat out of the whole survey shows up in how people expect their transport use will change. In Brisbane, use of the bicycle as a transport mode is up 36%, which is great. What is more surprising is the expected (future) use of the bicycle is up 71%.
In comparison, the expected use of cars and motorcycles is to stay the same, with train and bus public transport is expected to be down 15%.
Brisbane specific statistics highlight a major increase in bike usage as a mode of transport.
Data from road and public transport authorities show both private vehicle and public transport use was down during the lockdown stages of the pandemic. Sadly, private vehicle use has rebounded close to previous levels. Public transport use remains around 35-40% of previous levels.
The survey found that ‘personal health and safety’ has moved ahead of convenience in as a determining factor for the choice of transport mode.
Of the six factors influencing transport mode choice in the survey, sustainability remains the bottom of the list.
Transurban is not a neutral observer in this process. Their report reflects this, urging Governments to bring forward major road projects in response. They say these projects must include active transport options, saying “our survey showed an increased of up to 27% in cycling in most cities”.
Bicycle Queensland sees these results as confirmation of the findings of the survey we ran during the pandemic. Similarly, our survey found that 80% of respondents said they planned to cycle the same or more after the pandemic.
In conclusion, these survey results highlight the need for greater investment in active transport. For instance, it highlights the need for a safer environment for people switching from public transport, but also to provide those people driving motor vehicles, trapped in even greater congestion, to have another option to save time and money while boosting sustainability back up to its rightful place as a transport choice factor.
