British Cycling and Leeds Cycling Campaign propose transformation of Leeds centre

It's great that CB is continuing to use his big media profile to help pro-bike schemes, but this is not a bike scheme, this is a city centre prestige redevelopment (proposal).

1. It is a "shared space" initiative. Great in a quiet residential street, but suicide in a city centre. If cars are allowed in at all, it will be full of cars. If not, we will just get run over by buses. Segregated, cycle-only space please.

2. Getting to the Headrow from anywhere in Leeds will continue to involve just as much danger as before, in order to enjoy the couple of hundred metres of boulevard living.
Anyone who rides in Leeds can probably point out several bike deathtraps within 100 metres radius of British Cycling's pretty picture. make that a 1km radius and suddenly the list of deathtraps gets so long that you would have to print it on a toilet roll.

The money would be better spent on less prestigious, but more deadly junctions and stretches of roads that currently have much greater urgency.

Why aren't they? Because Leeds council doesn't actually care about safety for cyclists, just civic "prestige" (ie a flashy city centre). This is because the cameras of the world will look at the Headrow, but will not look at the other squillion miles of roads in Leeds MDC.

The attention of the press is rapidly attracted to a dead body under a car on the Headrow, but not a dead body under a car on Otley Road, or Dewsbury Road, or York Road, etc etc.

This is the same reason why a "cycle superhighway" from Bradford centre to Leeds centre gets massive publicity and hoo hah... because it will pass through the centre. You can be sure that the fanciest bits of provision will be the nearest to the press cameras. Away from the press' radius if interest, the facility will be the usual ill-thought-out rubbish.

LCC's "vision" is colossally more optimistic and pleasant, but is also inclusive of non-motorists all over the city. Its main purpose isn't civic prestige, but usability and safety for pedestrians, cyclists and anyone else not in a private car.
Somebody tell Mr Boardman about LCC's proposal and get him to get behind that... and roll the concept out to everyone else's towns and cities too.

Kirkstall road is probs the best route into Leeds, it would be fantastic if we had space for cycling on all major routes into Leeds.

CB is the don.

So they do The Headrow, and its great - apart from the fact if cars are allowed it will never be 'low traffic', and they will never stick to 20mph. And then you have to get to The Headrow - via one of the routes into Leeds city centre that (apart from maybe Kirkstall Rd) are bereft of cycling safe routes.
Then there's the issue of mixing bikes and pedestrians - so add education of pedestrians to look as well as educating motorists to look.
Leeds is a whole bigger issue than making one street work. It is without doubt one of the worst cities I have come accross for commuting on a bike.

All looks good but I can't figure out why campaigns for utility cycling keep piggy-backing on cycle-sport events.

We already have a strong culture of sport and leisure cycling in the UK and have done for many years. Has this translated into mass uptake of the bicycle as a form of transport? No. Do people involved in cycle-sport even use bikes to travel to races etc? On the whole, no. I race BMX and know loads of kids/parents who are involved in the sport; do you think the kids ride to school? Of course not.

It's a bit like piggy-backing a car race to run an anti drink-driving campaign. Yes, both involve cars but it's not really relevant.

The point I'm trying to make is that we need to start thinking about sport cycling and utility cycling as two quite different things which carry quite different benefits to participants. It's as distinct as the difference between walking to the shops and doing a 5km running race. Nobody uses the London marathon to encourage people to make more journeys by foot. Without making the distinction cyclists will always be viewed as lycra-wearing weirdos by the majority.

I saw the figure £4 million touted elsewhere for this renovation of The Headrow. Four million quid for one street. Though I suppose you gotta start somewhere.

The Headrow, in its current state, is an utter nightmare for cyclists. Narrow lanes and too many buses crammed in just make it horrible to negotiate. And that's without having to deal with the absent minded pedestrians!

I'm so glad to see BC stepping forwards from simply 'welcoming' political statements and giving 'advice', to having a more active role in putting ideas together and moving forwards as best as anyone in any not directly in charge can.

The political apathy surrounding urban redevelopment is astounding, but that appears to be a sad fact that isn't going to change on its own. While that remains, others can still work towards assembling a vision so convincing that's it's hard to ignore.

Just as in 1970s Holland, if any sort of 'cycling revolution' is going to happen, it's going to be instigated from the grass-roots upwards. It's heartening to see that BC have the wherewithal to stop 'calling' for things and start assembling them into a clearer, compelling image.