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There is fierce opposition to the council spending £2.35m to create a new cycle lane through Victoria Park in Bath, with many people questioning whether the money should be spent on the scheme at all. A petition calling for the plan to be stopped has received more than 900 signatures, and residents have urged the council to pause the expensive project and think again.
Victoria Park is circled by a road that is already used by cyclists, and an unlit path runs through the park itself which is often used by people on bikes. Many respondents to the public consultation said they could not see the point of a new lane, and asked why the council would spend more than £2m on a route that, in their view, already exists in another form. The strength of feeling has surprised some observers, given that cycle lanes are usually welcomed by those who use them.
Supporters of the scheme say it would make cycling safer and encourage more people to leave their cars at home, which would help cut traffic and improve air quality in the city. They argue that a proper lane, separated from traffic and lit at night, would be a real improvement on the current arrangement, and that the cost reflects the work needed to build it properly through a historic park.
Critics say the money would be better spent on other things, and they point to the state of the city's roads and to other services that they say need funding more urgently. They also worry about the effect of the work on the park itself, which is one of Bath's most loved open spaces and is used by families, dog walkers and visitors throughout the year. Any change to the park, they say, should be handled with great care.
The council has not yet said whether it will press ahead with the scheme, change it or drop it altogether. It said it would consider the responses to the consultation and the petition before making a final decision. For now, the debate in Bath shows how a single cycle lane can become a test of how a council spends public money, and of how much weight it gives to the views of the people who live near the scheme.
Source: The Bath Bee
