Staying active with the Connecting Communities programme

Al Donald was interested in Cycling UK’s Connecting Communities project as he was trying to remain active while dealing with disability – he has multiple sclerosis.

Cycling was something that he had loved since he was a boy, but he hadn’t had much opportunity to do it recently. He says of participating in Connecting Communities: “It was a chance to try and rediscover cycling again and to feel the benefits of motion and exercise and being outdoors in the fresh air.”

His mood had been low and he says had been “searching for something to help lift my mood”.

He found out about the project because: “A friend had been down to one of the sessions at Musselburgh and told me about it. We’ve been going regularly since then. The cycling really does help.”

Through the Connecting Communities programme, Al was able to borrow an electric version of Brompton’s G-Line, with its larger 20" wheels. He already owned a Brompton but found its smaller wheels no longer suited him.

“The provision of the e-bike was great,” he says. “Although I’ve got my wee Brompton in the house, I’m not using it as much because I lost confidence with the bad roads.”

Practising with the G-Line on paths around the racecourse helped him regain his confidence; he says, “it made a great difference and it’s really enjoyable”.

This new-found confidence has got Al out and about again. “I’ve been to the shops, the gym, right across to the other side of Edinburgh to go visit a friend. Yeah – it’s great.”

Al highlights the positivity that he feels for cycling and how participating in Connecting Communities has strengthened this for him. “It reinforced my positivity that cycling can make to one’s life, you know.

“The absolute positivity of motion and sense of free movement. It reminded me how precious cycling can be and how precious being able to use a bicycle is.”

It reminded me how precious cycling can be and how precious being able to use a bicycle is Al Donald, Connecting Communities participant

This isn’t the only improvement Al has noticed. “It’s benefitted my mental health. It really has. It lifts my mood.” He struggles to find the right words: “It just makes me… it cheers me up.”

Al has enjoyed cycling along the promenade at Portobello, Edinburgh’s classic seaside suburb. This flat, paved, traffic-free route spanning roughly 2 miles along the beach. He emphasises the importance of good infrastructure in making cycling more accessible.

“I cycled along to Portobello and cycled on the promenade. Cycleways make it easier because they’re thought out a wee bit more.

“I use the towpath of the canal, but it requires you to go under bridges which are very narrow. Previously, before the MS became a thing, I was perfectly confident going through. I still can do that but it’s more of a challenge.”

Having access to the G-Line has changed the way Al travels. He says that he would never have attempted the ride across the city on his own Brompton because of the state of the roads: “I feel a bit vulnerable with the potholes.”

He would have used his car instead of cycling. “I think I will sell my wee one and try to get a G-Line.”

However, Al acknowledges the cost of buying a new bike and suggests that one improvement to the Connecting Communities scheme would be if Cycling UK could help people to buy a bike.

“To get the kind of discounting that Cycle to Work Scheme gets,” he says. “Some sort of incentive to allow a person like me to get their own e-bike to use on a daily basis. Just to save money on it. If there was financial support, that would be a nice thing to add.”

In addition to Connecting Communities, Cycling UK also runs the Cycle Access Fund in Scotland. This scheme allows organisations to apply for funding to buy cycles. However, individuals can’t apply.

Connecting Communities receives funding from a Scottish government People and Place grant, administered and supported in the south-east of Scotland by SEStran.