Wheelie good result for Lancaster City Council

Lancaster City Council is celebrating after picking up gold in a national challenge that pitted organisations against each other to see who could get most people on their bikes.

Cycle September saw organisations across the country battle it out over the course of a month.

This year 161 organisations from across the country with between 500 – 1,999 members of staff took part, with the city council pipping the Met Office for top spot.

In all 108 members of staff took part, recording journeys to and from work, at weekends and evenings. In total they cycled 11,033 miles, saving 3,424lbs of CO2.

To encourage staff to take part, a number of special events took place during September, with local cycle shop, Bay Bikes from Morecambe, providing free health checks so staff could get their bikes in tip top condition.

The Edge Cycleworks in Lancaster kindly provided a top of the range cycle helmet in a track challenge at Salt Ayre, to see who could tackle the 1.5mile circuit in the shortest time.

Coun Eileen Blamire, leader of Lancaster City Council, said: “This is an excellent result and shows that the legacy of being a Cycling Demonstration Town lives on after all these years.

“We have such wonderful cycling facilities locally that it’s great to see them being used by the council’s staff to get around.

“As well as being good for your health and the environment, cycling saves money and is a great way to get from A to B.

“Well done to everyone who got involved and contributed to this magnificent result.”

The Cycling Demonstration Town Project took place from 2006 to 2011 and saw £3 million invested in local cycling projects.

Last updated: 25 October 2018