We can make a difference

A message from our new Chair and your opportunities to shape our city

Our new Chair, James Diamond, writes……..

After a month in the role I am pleased to  share the latest updates from the Exeter Cycling Campaign with our supporters.

I have already met both Councillor Phil Bialyk, Leader of Exeter City Council, and Councillor Carol Whitton, Chair of the Exeter Highways Committee.  Both of them emphasised the respect and trust they have in the Campaign and its supporters in the Exeter community. I have also met four City Councillors, including a cycle safari in Whipton Barton with Cllr Liz Pole. I assured them we will celebrate every metre of safe walking, wheeling and cycling that they deliver, but will always be asking for more, better and faster.

Myself and three other Campaign supporters also attended the Active Devon ‘Moving Communities’ conference at Sandy Park on 6 November.  It was a brilliant chance to meet Councillors, planners, public heath experts and other community organisations. Active travel was a big part of the conversation in the sessions. Chris Boardman, Active Travel Commissioner for England, was the key note speaker and one of his lines really stuck with me..

“We have great evidence. Evidence is our essential foundation. But no-one buys a house because of the foundations. They buy a house because they make a personal, emotional connection and feel ownership.”

We need to be thinking about that as we seek to persuade Councillors and communities that cycling is part of the solution to their pressing issues.

What’s Next?

We’re not slowing down!

 Here are some things we need your help with ..

Got 20 minutes?  Please respond to the Boniface Trail Exeter to Crediton consultation- see note below

• Got 15 minutes? Please respond to the Local Transport Plan #4 – see note below

• Got a bit more time? Could you be our next Secretary or Deputy Chair? Email info@exetercyclingcampaign.org.uk to arrange a chat

• Can you analyse data & turn it into simple messages for Councillors? Then maybe you could help produce a State of Cycling in Exeter in 2025 report. Please email info@exetercyclingcampaign.org.uk for a chat.

Boniface Trail – Crediton to Exeter

Your chance to shape the route

The Boniface Trail Association has long called for a safe active travel route between Crediton and Exeter.   Devon County Council are now consulting on the route for this trail.

The Campaign has drafted a response to this consultation. We’d like to hear your thoughts on this, and to encourage you to submit your own comments to the consultation.

You can see a summary of our response here.

and our draft full response here.

Let us have any comments on our draft response (info@exetercyclingcampaign.org.uk) and please submit your own comments to the consultation.

What are we saying about the route?

We’re proposing a blended route incorporating elements of both DCC’s proposed options, arguing for a separated, off-road cycle route along the A377 from Crediton to Newton St. Cyres, and a quiet route from Newton St. Cyres to Cowley Bridge.

We also recommend using Langford Road over Upton Pyne Hill to avoid challenging gradients, and connecting the trail to the E19 LCWIP route via Cowley Bridge Road – thereby connecting up Duryard and Thomas Hall school to the active travel network.

Our response outlines concerns about the route’s design, advocating for traffic calming measures, regular maintenance, and inclusive design principles to ensure accessibility for people with disabilities.

We encourage the council to adopt a definition of ‘Quiet Lanes’ and to utilise the expertise of Active Travel England in designing the route.

What’s the strategy?  A chance to influence it.

Devon and Torbay Councils are consulting on their joint Local Transport Plan for 2025 to 2040. It’s really important to ensure this long term plan puts active travel at the heart of transport planning for the next decade and half.

The Campaign has drafted a response to this consultation. We’d like to hear your thoughts on this, and to encourage you to submit your own comments to the consultation.

You can see a summary of our response here.

and our draft full response here.

Let us have any comments on our draft response (info@exetercyclingcampaign.org.uk) and please submit your own comments to the consultation.

What does Exeter Cycling Campaign stand for?
A comprehensive, convenient and connected network of cycle paths for people of all ages and abilities to choose cycling as the safe, natural choice for everyday journeys. 

We advocate not only for people who cycle but for people who walk, wheel and scoot.