We Ride London protest planned

We Ride London, a pressure group that supports riders of motorcycles and scooters in London, is planning a mass protest on March 27 to raise awareness of two-wheeled issues.

The group claims that the over 155,000 riders who use their bikes or scooters to commute to work on in the capital are being discriminated against and marginalised by Transport for London (TfL) and the Mayor of London. The group also claims that data produced by TfL that highlights the positive contribution that two-wheelers make to congestion and pollution in London is being ignored.

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The We Ride London’s main focus is in three key areas:

 

1. Safety: Improved motorcycle safety by ending schemes that narrow lanes and add painted cycle lanes that WRL claim put riders’ lives at risk. Also, the group wants a consistency when it comes to the use of bus lanes for two-wheelers.
2. Security: According to the group, 16,000 motorcycles and scooters were stolen in London last year and they are demanding improved security, extra parking bays and harsher sentences for those apprehended for motorcycle theft.
3. Economic fairness: With the introduction of the muted Ultra Low Emissions Zone charge, WRL want motorcycles to pay a lesser tariff than four-wheelers, which will have to pay £12.50 per day.

 

Scheduled for March 27 from 4:30 to 5:30pm, the rally will meet at Parliament Square and will protest with banners and placards and ride around the square. Those showing their support for the campaign include Charley Boorman and Channel 5’s Matthew Wright.

 

“Motorcycling in London is part of the solution for reducing congestion and pollution as much as bicycling, but policy makers continue to ignore the positive benefit motorcycling brings to our capital,” said Boorman. “Most people who ride in London do so because it’s cheaper and quicker than other forms of transport, and they have journeys that aren’t practical on a bicycle. Motorcycles and scooters take up less road space, are proven through TfL’s own studies to contribute to less than 1% of the overall pollution in London, and are more versatile than bicycles. Other capitals around the world recognise and embrace this; why not London?”

 

For more information on the protest, or to show your support, click here.

 

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