Chatterbox 1211 - Rotary Club of Belper

Meeting - 28th November
Sustrans
by Clyde Hinton
W ith tonight's speaker it was definitely a case of ‘ON YER BIKE’. Clyde Hinton
was introduced by Stuart Limb and he proceeded to recall the history and
current progress of Sustrans (Sustainable Transport).
It all kicked off during 1977 when a group of enthusiasts took over a derelict
railway line in the Bristol area. This led to a lottery bid and a national vote which
won them an astonishing 50 million pounds. They have developed over the years a
series of routes both local and national which now total 12000 miles. It is looked
after by members who are called Rangers and are responsible for sections of local
routes.
Rangers mark out routes, litter pick, trim vegetation, deal with visits to schools
and other organisations and generally take every opportunity to promote cycling
for health and enjoyment. Health issues are an important part of their strategy -
obesity, heart issues and diabetes are highlighted to encourage people to go and
cycle as a means of keeping fit. We seem to have a long way to go as yet to catch
up with countries such as Sweden, where 10% cycle against 2% in the UK. However,
as more local routes become available we may even be inspired to form a Rotary
Cycling Group. Any volunteers out there?
Clyde went on to talk about the development of the Bennerley Viaduct as a
local central hub with an information centre and cafe. Local maps were handed out,
lots of questions were asked and then most of us probably felt slightly guilty as we
then got into our cars and went home!
Peter Shepherd
Another photograph on page 2.
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