Five ways to improve cycling for women
Cycling offers cheap, reliable, healthy transport. But women are missing out on these benefits. The latest figures or England show that men made almost three times as many cycle trips as women, traveling 4.5 times the distance.
Put off by fear of traffic, poor lighting and harassment, nine in ten women are afraid of cycling in UK towns and cities. 58% of women still think their cycle journeys are limited by safety concerns and a lack of suitable infrastructure.
Without attention to this issue, half the population risk missing out on the benefits cycling brings. And by designing with and for women, we make our streets, routes and infrastructure better for everyone.
Despite strains on budgets, local authorities can help. While significant and sustained levels of infrastructure investment are required to build high-quality, safe cycle routes and undo decades of car-centric planning, here we set out five 'easy wins' that local authorities can do today.
