Extinction Rebellion and those New City Cycle Lanes!

William Ranieri interviews Suzanne Harrington from Extinction Rebellion about those painted “guerrilla” bike lanes on roads in Brighton. Extinction Rebellion said that activists sprayed the bike symbols as part of a campaign “to highlight the urgent need for more cycling space “. The group said that dozens of bright pink, yellow and green bike stencils were sprayed on roads in London Road and the Hanover and Old Steine areas. It said: “The pop-up bike lanes draw attention to the fact that dangerous polluting cars must give way to bikes in order to tackle our environmental crises and the dangers of travel during a pandemic. “Toxic air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from road transport have dropped in the city – and across the world – after lockdowns were imposed to tackle the coronavirus crisis. Less cars on the roads has also led to more cycling and walking as our neighbourhoods have become safer. As lockdown is eased, climate change activists, academics and politicians are calling on cities to dedicate more road space to active travel to prevent emissions returning to previous levels. Offering a viable alternative to cars would also help avoid an emissions surge from private vehicles as social distancing means public transport cannot meet demand.”