Help us fight for justice

Imagine you’re ten years old and one of your pleasures in life is cycling to and from school on a separated cycle lane where, in Flo’s words, you “can just cycle to school without having to worry about the traffic”.

Following its introduction in September last year, the new cycle lane along Upper Shoreham Road in Shoreham quickly proved popular for both parents and children attending three nurseries, three primary and two secondary schools close by the lane.

Yet despite more than 30,000 cycle trips along the lane within five weeks, West Sussex County Council made the decision to remove the lane less than two months after installation started. I’ll admit the lane wasn’t perfect. It was put in quickly with temporary bollards, and in places could have been wider, but it enabled residents to travel safely and confidently by bike. Like Flo, Karen Murphy and her two children, Silas (11) and Audrey (eight), depended on it.

“We used to frequently ride along the cycle lane,” said Karen, “often joining another safe route travelling from Shoreham to Steyning. We haven’t [gone that way] since it was removed. I’m nervous about travelling along the Upper Shoreham Road without it. I’m not the only one. I don’t understand why the council removed what had swiftly become a valuable community asset, and hope they rethink their position.”

A precedent-setting case

They didn’t rethink, so back in February Cycling UK applied to the High Court for a judicial review of the council’s decision. We don’t issue court proceedings lightly or often, but we’ve always been prepared to do so when needed, standing up for those who cycle and those who might, particularly when the case involves a point of principle or may set a precedent.

That was why, back in 1899, the Cyclists’ Touring Club (CTC) went to court after the landlady of the Hautboy Hotel in Ockham refused to serve Lady Harberton, who had arrived by bicycle in what was then described as a ‘rational cycling costume’. That essentially meant more practical clothing for cycling, but which often left the wearer enduring ridicule from the public.

I should add that CTC lost that case, but while laws and court procedures have changed in the last 120 years, the outcome of litigation was uncertain then and remains uncertain today. Victory or defeat isn’t always an indication of whether you were right to bring the case to court. Precedent-setting cases are worth fighting. We can only bring those cases to court, then and now, thanks to the support of you, our generous members.

To ensure we always have CDF funds in place so we can fight for justice again in the future – we need your kind donations to CDF this Christmas. Please donate what you can now or consider supporting with a recurring monthly gift, the best way to ensure we are ready for the fights to come. All of our work through CDF is funded by donations

Duncan Dollimore, Cycling UK's head of campaigns and advocacy

Trial date set for January

Back to the present and Shoreham: our legal action is being funded through Cycling UK’s Cyclists’ Defence Fund (CDF), which was initially established after nine-year-old cyclist Darren Coombes suffered a brain injury in a collision with a motorist. The driver’s insurers admitted liability but sought to reduce Darren’s compensation because he wasn’t wearing a helmet at the time. The claim was defeated and CDF was established in the aftermath to defend and stand up for cyclists, or those who might cycle, in similar precedent-setting cases. 

Speaking out and taking action when other’s don’t can be a costly business. As well as the unpredictability involved, another thing that hasn’t changed with litigation is that it isn’t cheap! That’s why your donations are so vital to CDF. Without them, we simply couldn’t continue to challenge decisions like the one in Shoreham, or take action when the police and crown prosecution service fail to do so after a cyclist’s death, as we did in the Michael Mason case four years ago.

Judicial review cases are particularly expensive. Yet we now have a trial date listed for 25-26 January next year. It’s been a long process to get there as the High Court initially refused Cycling UK permission to bring the case. We successfully appealed that decision to the Court of Appeal – but appeals and delays cost money.

To make sure we’re able to carry on with this case – and to ensure we always have CDF funds in place so we can fight for justice again in the future – we need your kind donations to CDF this Christmas. Please donate what you can now or consider supporting with a recurring monthly gift, the best way to ensure we are ready for the fights to come. All of our work through CDF is funded by donations. 

Please donate this Christmas

I’ve mentioned Flo, so I’ll leave the last word to Cycling UK’s CEO, Sarah Mitchell. “I used to cycle to school myself,” she said, “and so I was particularly disappointed to hear that children like Flo, who used to be able to cycle to school on a safe cycle lane, now can’t because that lane’s been removed. I’m proud to be leading an organisation that’s prepared to challenge decisions which make it harder to get more people cycling and has been championing the cause of cycling for over 140 years. But we can’t do this without your support, so please donate to Cycling UK’s Cyclists’ Defence Fund this Christmas to ensure we can carry on standing up for cycling.”

We’ve gone to court about a council’s decision to remove a particular cycle lane in England, but CDF was set up to fund work and action wherever it’s needed across the UK. We’re hugely grateful for the amazing donations and support received since we started this case. If you’re outraged that a council anywhere can prioritise residents’ on-street parking over the safety of kids cycling to school, please consider donating to CDF.

This is about more than just this one cycle lane. We’re fighting this case to set a precedent. We want to stop this from happening in the future so that we can bring about lasting change and realise our vision of a country where there is safe, separated space for everyone to cycle.