You can do it NZ - be positive!!

Sometimes it's quite demoralising when you read about cycling on the web - Cyclists do not have the same rights as motorists on roads. It appears Australia has some ignorant people in high places, one can only be thankful that Mr Scully is the former minister for roads in New South Wales.

But sometimes you hear about some really great things happening ...



Positivity is the key, according to Mikael of Copenhagenize.com

"Pointing behavourial fingers at cyclists serves no good purpose if you don't point the fingers at the other traffic users at the same time. Behavourial campaigns aimed at everyone remove this focus on cyclists and also serves to place the bicycle on an equal footing in the public psyche.

If pointing fingers is your thing, then point them at the most dangerous and destructive elements in cities and towns. The automobiles. By recognising that there is a Bull in Society's China Shop and taking measure to tame it, you place focus logically and correctly on the largest problem.

Getting cyclists to behave like cars is harder than forcing cars to behave like cyclists. Lowering speed limits, building traffic calming measures, etc all help cycling as well as public health through reduced pollution, fewer accidents and less severe accidents, creating more liveable cities, and so on."

There are some fabulous street calming ideas in the Uk - I don't know about you but I definitely fancy some of these in my street!

In Copenhagen "We reached our destination by following some basic unwritten rules. We didn't bang on about the issues of danger or safety. We didn't point fingers at minority groups like the cyclists. We just built the infrastructure and people figured it out.

I'll make a wager. A city that doesn't highlight the positives about urban cycling – and only the positives, constantly and consequently – will never reach 15-20% modal share for bikes and will not succeed in mainstreaming urban cycling like we're seeing in so many cities around the world.

I'd like very much to lose that bet but I'm quite sure I won't."

So there it is - try and say, or show, something positive about cycling everyday - pass it on ...