Campaigners in Scotland say it with cake

On Sunday, campaigners gathered outside the SNP conference in Glasgow to a celebratory ringing of bike bells, as the youngest representative, from collaborative campaign group We Walk, We Cycle, We Vote, Sebastian Forup (5 years old, East Lothian), presented Humza Yousaf MSP with a "thank-you" slice of Rocky Road cake. The cake, which was well received by the Minister, was gifted in recognition of the fact that Scottish investment in better infrastructure for cycling and walking is set to be raised from £40m to £80m per year. 

This government funding announcement was made on 05 September, and will take spending on active travel to nearly £15 per head in Scotland - significantly more than the rest of the UK, but still just over 3% of the overall transport budget. 

We’re looking forward to engaging local communities in co-creating a happier, healthier and wealthier Scotland that really is the best place for our children to grow up.

Suzanne Forup, Cycling UK Head of Development in Scotland

Suzanne Forup, Cycling UK's Head of Development in Scotland, said, "We know that this announcement is just the start and that there might be a rocky road ahead as we begin to rebalance our streets towards active travel. We know that people want to live in safe, thriving communities where families can be active; we’re looking forward to engaging local communities in co-creating a happier, healthier and wealthier Scotland that really is the best place for our children to grow up.”

Sally Hinchcliffe, one of the organisers of Pedal on Parliament, and a supporter of Walk Cycle Vote, said, "We've been campaigning for over 5 years for decent levels of investment in cycling and walking in Scotland - and this shows that the Scottish government has actually begun to listen. It's been a long hard road to get as far as we have and we wanted to take this moment to recognise the progress that has been made and look forward to even better things on the road ahead."

We Walk, We Cycle, We Vote represents a diverse group of over 50 organisations across Scotland, from community and active travel groups to health charities and is co-ordinated by Cycling UK and Pedal on Parliament.