How do we create better cycle routes for women?

When my colleague Gwenda recently asked a group of women why we cycle, the answers were inspiring. 

“It brings me joy,” one said. “I can’t help but have a smile on my face.” Another loved the way it brings a small dose of nature into your day. It’s a way to get some exercise without thinking about it. It’s bonding time with children.

Other reasons were more practical: to save money on running a car or on public transport, or avoid the stress of sitting in traffic jams. To be in control of our own timescales, liberated from waiting half an hour at a chilly bus stop.

Lots of these reasons will be familiar to many of us who cycle. But there was one answer that stood out to me as being specific to women’s experiences. A theme of cycling feeling safer than walking alone, an ability to escape from unwanted situations.

A bike can be liberating for women’s transport independence, especially for those who don’t have access to a car. Yet too many women still feel like cycling is out of reach. Like it isn’t for them. 

We don’t think that’s right. That’s why Cycling UK is launching a new campaign: ‘My ride. Our right’.

No good option

Across the UK, half as many women cycle regularly as men, and a recent study found that 9 in 10 women are scared of cycling in British towns and cities. Women are more likely to be put off cycling by a fear of sharing roads with large vehicles, of people overtaking too closely, and of having to negotiate busy junctions and roundabouts. 

For many women travelling alone, there is the added layer of concern about harassment or abusive behaviour. It’s that voice in our head that tells us to avoid that dodgy underpass, or cutting through the park as it’s getting dark.

The problem is, sometimes those routes are the only alternative to a busy road or a horrible junction. What do you do when there is no good option to choose?

Some will grit their teeth and get through that section as quickly as possible, while others will simply put their bike away.

Designing routes for women

Lots of people I’ve spoken to say it doesn’t feel like cycle routes are designed with women in mind. Isolated overgrown paths, barriers that trap cargo bikes and trailers, bike parking hidden round the back of buildings, or the dreaded ‘cyclists dismount’ sign.

As one mum said to me, try pushing a bike through a pedestrianised area with a wriggly toddler in the back seat.

In a way, it’s not surprising, given that highways engineering and transport are still very male-dominated sectors. The cycle routes that do exist have tended to be designed for a solo person on a standard bicycle taking a traditional commuting pattern from the outskirts of town into the centre, which doesn’t reflect the kinds of journeys that women tend to make.

Overall, women still have a greater responsibility for childcare than men, and are more likely to ‘trip-chain’ – going from school drop-off to work, then to the shop, then back to the school gate. These zig-zag patterns often make it more tricky to work out a good route to take. 

Cycling with young children complicates things further: a road which might feel fine cycling on your own can suddenly become a perilous obstacle course of parked cars and potholes.

What needs to change?

Cycling is a safe way to travel, but it doesn’t always feel like it. For women especially, creating good-quality, direct cycle routes that are physically separated from motor traffic makes a massive difference.

We can see the evidence here in the UK. In London, after 10 years of investing in cycling infrastructure, you don’t just see speedy male commuters on road bikes any more. There’s much more of a mix of genders and different types of cycles.

Other places like Bristol and Edinburgh are slowly starting to catch up, but we need to go further. And for that, councils need the certainty of long-term funding for cycling.

While the four governments across the UK have been deciding on their budgets, Cycling UK has been pressing for 10% of overall transport spending to be invested in cycling and walking routes, if we really want to give people better transport choices. We’ll continue to push for long-term funding commitments.

We’ll also be talking to councils about smaller changes that can make a big impact. Lighting existing cycle paths can make women feel more confident to use them after dark. Removing barriers, reducing speed limits and installing cycle parking in good locations all help.

This isn’t just about transport – it’s about equality, opportunity and giving more people the freedom to ride. Because when we make cycling safer for women, we make it safer for everyone.

If you believe we should all have equal access to the benefits of cycling, add your voice to our call for safer streets and routes designed with women’s needs in mind. We’ll keep you up to date with what you can do to support the campaign.

Count me in