Cycling

"Cycling is easy, cheap, green, independent, quiet, fast, convenient, door-to-door, healthy and fun"

Cycling also reduces congestion and danger on our roads, decreases social exclusion, benefits air quality and reduces costs to society. Did you also know that cycling uses up 8 calories per minute (on average) and experts say that regular cyclists are often as fit as people ten years younger than them and that cycling halves the risk of developing heart disease.

The National Cycle Network is a safe, attractive, high quality network for cyclists and a major new amenity for walkers and people with disabilities. It was officially opened in June 2000 with work continuing throughout the year. It offers 10,000 miles of continuous routes, including traffic-free and traffic-calmed sections and minor roads. The routes run right through urban centres and reach all parts of the UK providing safe links to work, to schools, to friends and family, to shops and stations.

Route 45 of the Network links Salisbury and Gloucester along mostly traffic-free paths. It passes through Stonehenge, Old Sarum, Marlborough, Swindon and the Cotswold Water Parks before ending in Gloucester city centre.

An important element of this route links with the Chiseldon Timberland Trail where the route passes over the M4 avoiding the busy main road leading into Swindon. For further information on this Trail go to our Get Stuff page on this website.and for further information on cycling visit the National Cycle network website (www.nationalcyclenetwork.org.uk) or check out the Swindon Cycle Map on the Swindon Borough Council website (www.swindon.gov.uk/swindoncycle.pdf)

Swindon's Cycling Champions project

Swindon is to benefit from part of a £6.3million project to promote cycling to the less physically active. The four-year national 'Cycling Champions' project started in January 2008 and is run by CTC (Cyclists' Touring Club). In Swindon, the Cycling Champions project will include activities such as group rides, Bike Buddy schemes, cycling for health schemes, cycle training and cycle maintenance courses, and generally support novice cyclists.

For further information on the national Cycling Champions project visit the CTC website (www.ctc.org.uk), for more information on the Swindon programme contact Tamina Oliver on Tel: 01793 466315 or by email: toliver@swindon.gov.uk.