South Oxfordshire District Council (SODC) has appointed its first ever Cycling Champion to help and encourage people to travel by bike, and she is our own District Councillor Sam Casey-Rerhaye.
Cllr Casey-Rerhaye will work with local organisations, communities, other councils and transport bodies to make sure there is wider access to cycling paths across the districts.
Cllr Casey-Rerhaye, who regularly cycles to work and encourages her children to cycle wherever possible, would love to see more people doing the same – particularly for journeys under five miles. Her aim is to make improvements to new and existing cycle paths in the district to help reduce pollution and carbon emissions and encourage others to increase their overall fitness through cycling.
Cllr Casey-Rerhaye said: “With the climate emergency, we are seeing how important it is to ensure that people have easy access to alternative transport. Cycling has a vital part to play, the more people travel by bike for either short journeys or part of a longer journey, the better chance we have of tackling harmful emissions and reducing chronic ill-health. This could make a massive contribution to a reduction in greenhouse gases – helping to secure a safer future for the next generation.”
Cllr Casey-Rerhaye can be contacted at Sam.Casey-Rerhaye@southoxon.gov.uk.
This is great. Every single new road should have a cycle track alongside it and provision should be made for existing roads to encourage cycling by creating new cycle tracks…I’d cycle more but the roads terrify me.