Tower Hamlets Wheelers
NEWS RELEASE 24 March 2003
For immediate release
Ref THW08TowerofLondon240303
Cyclists highlight lack of cycle parking at the Tower of London
- "Missed opportunity to make it easier for locals to visit the Tower" say
the Tower Hamlets Wheelers
The Tower Hamlets Wheelers (1) demonstrated the lack of cycle parking at the
Tower of London at the weekend when they led a bike ride (2) for people in
Tower Hamlets to take advantage of the excellent £1 offer to get into the
Tower which runs until the end of March and is open to residents of Tower
Hamlets (3).
A beefeater approached the Wheelers and told them to take their bikes
elsewhere. The conversation went like this:
BEEFEATER: Alright, move on, you can't put your bikes here.
ALIX (WHEELERS MEDIA OFFICER): Why not?
BEEFEATER: You wouldn't believe the amount of Semtex you could fit in a
bicycle.
ALIX: What about how much you could fit in a car?
BEEFEATER: Car and coach parking is over there, away from the Tower in that
underground car park.
ALIX: Why can't there be cycle parking over there too?
BEEFEATER: There just isn't any. Just find somewhere else to put them.
(later)
BEEFEATER: Did you find somewhere to put them? I hope it was a long way
away.
ALIX: Yes - a bit of a walk away. Are there any plans for installing cycle
parking? - there seems to be a lot of building work going on by the Tower.
Perhaps some cycle parking could be included.
BEEFEATER: No, I know there aren't any plans for cycle parking. I've seen
bombs in bicycles in Belfast.
ALIX: What about car bombs?
BEEFEATER: You'll have to speak with the City of London about it. The car
parks are sited on their land.
"This is a missed opportunity for the Tower to help make it more accessible
to local people," fumed Caroline Fenton, a Wheeler who went on the ride.
"Ten bicycles could be parked in the space of one underground car parking
space, using just five bicycle parking stands costing only £500 to buy and
install. Surely the keepers of the Crown Jewels could afford that?"
The Department for Transport (DfT) is currently accepting bids for the
second round of its Cycle Projects Fund for which almost any organisation in
England can apply (not traffic authorities). Bids for between £250 and
£50,000 can be made and the deadline is 31st March (4).
The Tower Hamlets Wheelers is applying to the DfT fund to build up its
self-help bicycle maintenance workshop which is launching on Saturday 29th
March (5).
"The Tower of London still has time to apply for DfT funding if it really
wishes to cater better for local people to visit this wonderful attraction,"
says Caroline. "Tower Hamlets is a small borough - only 6km (less than four
miles) at its widest point - so anywhere in the borough is within easy
cycling distance of the Tower. This is the second time the Tower has run the
the £1 special offer, it's great value and we hope that it will be run
again."
Previously, City Cyclists, another group of the London Cycling Campaign,
lobbied for allowing cycling along the waterfront by the Tower, but this was
denied (6).
Last year Tower Hamlets council was in discussions with the Tower about
doing a tie-in with the Wheelers for rides down to the Tower for local
people who could get in for £1, after the council saw the Wheelers'
specially-drawn maps (7) to Tower Bridge - adjacent to the Tower - for a
bike ride to Car Free Day on 22nd September. The council described the maps
as "wonderful" and could be an "excellent opportunity" for joint publicity.
However, although according to the council "the Tower of London is very keen
to establish links with local groups" the Tower was concerned that they
could not accommodate a group of cyclists as they have no bike racks. This
is apparently because they do not think that anyone has ever cycled to the
Tower before, so there has not been any call for cycle racks. But the
Wheelers who arrived on Saturday saw one bike chained to the railings (where
it shouldn't be), then another group of cyclists who turned up within 15
minutes of the Wheelers, indicating that there is indeed demand for cycle
facilities.
"The Tower should take into consideration not only local people arriving by
bicycle but also tourists who may hire bicycles," says Wheelers co-ordinator
Owen Pearson. "There may be more cycling tourists if London becomes more
cycle-friendly due to the congestion charge reducing traffic and the LCN+
(8) providing more high-quality cycle routes. We hope that contrary to what
the group on Saturday were told, there will be cycle parking installed as
part of the access improvement works, and that the Tower of London and the
City can work together to encourage and accommodate cycling."
ENDS
Further info
CDs with jpeg photos on them are being sent by post to some newspapers.
Photographs are available by email on request: please contact Alix Stredwick
07903 606 330 alix@towerhamletswheelers.org.uk (home: 020 8880 6873) and
they will be with you within 24 hours. Please contact Alix for any further
information.
Notes
(1) The Tower Hamlets Wheelers is the local cycle action group in the east
London Borough of Tower Hamlets, campaigning for better cycling facilities
and encouraging more people to cycle - for health, the environment and for
London. The Wheelers are affiliated to the London Cycling Campaign, the
largest urban cycling campaign in the world.
(2) The ride was an easy, family-friendly ride as part of the Wheelers
monthly rides programme which is expanding to suit riders of a range of
abilities, and is open to anyone to join in, usually costing nothing. It
took place on Saturday 22nd March at 11am from the Green Bridge in Mile End
Park and went almost the entire way on quiet cycle routes to the Tower of
London, via places of interest in the borough such as the Wapping Project at
the disused Wapping hydraulic power station.
(3) Tower Hamlets residents who can show a library card, Idea Store Card or
Leisure Pass along with proof of their residential address (gas bill, etc.)
can get into the Tower of London for £1. Normal price is £11.50 for adults
and the offer runs until 31st March 2003.
(4) please see www.dft.gov.uk/pns/DisplayPN.cgi?pn_id=2003_0001
(5) please see news release THW09Workshop250303 which will be with you in
the next couple of days
(6) contact ralph@citycyclists.org.uk
(7) please see http://www.towerhamletswheelers.org.uk/ then news/media ->
special reports Car Free Day 2002 -> 'Bicycle bus' route maps
(8) The LCN+ is the London Cycle Network. Please see
www.tfl.gov.uk/streets/cycling_lcn.shtml
Tower Hamlets Wheelers
wheelers@towerhamletswheelers.org.uk
www.towerhamletswheelers.org.uk
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