G-BUG

By on 3 December, 2020   /   Blog posts  

 

Sign up more members!  Join our Committee!

The COVID-19 crisis has seen more and more people around the world dusting off their bikes and enjoy cycling as a safe and healthy way of getting around. Guildford is no exception.

Cycling is back on the agenda. Taking more journeys by bike improves our health and well-being, is good for local businesses, reduces toxic air pollution and helps tackle the climate crisis.

As we emerge from the COVID-19 crisis, there is a risk that we will see a return of the heavy traffic, polluted air and dangerous roads that we are used to in Guildford. This is a moment of huge opportunity.

Even before Covid-19, there has been growing investment to encourage cycling. In Guildford, several major projects are under way, including the Sustainable Movement Corridor, the Town Centre Transport Package and a report commissioned by Guildford Borough Council has proposed a more comprehensive Borough cycle network.  The Council has also supported the establishment of a Guildford Godalming Greenway, proposed jointly by G-BUG and Godalming Cycle Campaign.

As a result of the Covid crisis, more forward looking towns and cities across the UK are building protected cycle lanes and establishing low traffic neighbourhoods. The Government is providing support and funding for local authorities to reallocate road space for cycling and walking. £6.4m has been earmarked for Surrey, including two major projects for Guildford, as part of the second round of the Government’s Emergency Active Travel Fund, and there is further funding in prospect.

It is important that in all these projects, Guildford cyclists are consulted to ensure that the funding is well invested.

G-BUG is an inclusive and welcoming group working to make cycling in Guildford safer, more convenient and enjoyable. We are doing this by working closely with local authorities, businesses and the wider community. There are some positive signs of change in Guildford but there is a huge amount of work to do and we need your help!

First, please encourage others to join our group by asking them to provide their email address at our website www.g-bug.org/join. This allows us to increase our reach and mobilise more supporters for our campaign to improve cycling in our town, which in turn amplifies our authority with key decision makers.

Second, to take a more active role in G-BUG you could join our Committee.  You will have a chance to use your own experience of cycling in Guildford to improve the implementation of existing schemes, and to initiate new schemes. We would particularly welcome anyone able to represent particular interests such as schools and businesses, and anyone with experience leading cycle rides. Please email info@g-bug.org for more information.

If you are interested in finding out more and would like to get involved follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/guildfordcycling and LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/g-bug/ .

If you think this email might be of interest to someone you know, please do send it on.
Safe Cycling!

The G-Bug Team

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G-BUG

By on 27 November, 2020   /   Blog posts  

We need your help to secure funding for two major new cycling schemes for Guildford.

Surrey County Council (SCC) has been awarded £6.4M from Tranche 2 of the Department for Transport’s Emergency Active Travel Fund (EATF). SCC has identified 10 potential projects across the county, costing a total of £7.8M. Given the shortfall, it will be necessary to select which will actually go ahead. Following a backlash against some pop-up cycling schemes implemented in EATF Tranche 1, Dft now requires that Councils show evidence of support from residents before granting final approval.

Of the 10 projects, two are in Guildford:a cycleway along London Road from Boxgrove Roundabout to Burpham; and resurfacing of Dagley Lane between Shalford Park and Shalford Village (part of the Guildford Godalming Greenway). To secure funding for these projects in our town, it is important that we show that there is local support.

Full details on the two schemes and how to support them are given on our website: see the post for 24th November on the home page, or just follow this link:

http://www.g-bug.org/support-two-new-cycle-schemes-for-guildford/ 

If you think this email might be of interest to someone you know, please do send it on.

Thank You and Safe Cycling!

The G-Bug Team

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WSCC Kit Update – November 2020

By on 22 November, 2020   /   Blog posts  

I hope you are all keeping active and well during the current lockdown. Let’s hope it will soon be possible to meet up again on club rides.

In the meantime, here’s a quick update on club kit. The latest order has been delivered, with a handful of items still awaiting collection. In addition, we have some items either in stock or available from members, as follows:

Short sleeve jersey.   M, L, XL, 2XL.    £45.00
Long sleeve jersey.    L, XL.    £55.25
Gilet.   M, L, XL.    £50.40

These are all men’s sizes, but due to the very small sizing of the short sleeve jerseys it’s worth noting that the M and L sizes are much more likely to be a good fit for women members.

Due to an error made by Alé in fulfilling the latest order, there is also a potential opportunity for us to make some extra orders of the short sleeve jerseys and gilets. If you are interested in this, and none of the above sizes is right for you, please let me know as soon as possible and it might be possible to add your requirements to a special top-up order.

Derek

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Across Spain the Roman Way – Paul Gillingham

By on 5 November, 2020   /   Blog posts  

Just to let you know I’m giving a long-distance cycling talk, ‘Across Spain the Roman Way‘ this Saturday at 2 pm for Globetrotters Travel Club, London, which is available online. It is based on the bike ride my son Joseph and I did across Spain last year.

If you are free and would like to tune in, go to:  http://globetrotters.co.uk/local-meetings/london-meetings/lm-schedule.html  and click on to the Online Meeting for this Saturday (Nov 7th). It’s available to non-members, but you will need tickets for a small donation (£1 to £5). You don’t have to join the club. See the link.

The second talk is by a well-known traveller and expert on Morocco, Alan Palmer.

It’s my first Zoom talk, so fingers crossed!

Very best wishes,

Paul

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WSCC Rides – the Rule of 6 and “Spond”

By on 19 September, 2020   /   Blog posts  
With the reintroduction of the “Rule of 6” we have recommenced organising rides in groups of 6.

We want all WSCC groups to retain their own discretion when assessing what works best for them, and to take a pragmatic and common-sense approach to the organisation of riding activities.  Any rides we undertake in the current Covid environment need to take the following into account:

  • Most fundamentally, there must be no more than 6 on a ride.  This means that some form of pre-ride registration and booking is almost essential.  Where numbers interested in joining a WSCC ride exceed 6, provision should be made to run two or more rides in a way that takes precautions to ensure that these groups do not come into contact with one another (i.e. the rides should employ different routes and stops).
  • In keeping with the Government’s track and trace regulations, someone involved in planning any ride needs to keep an attendance and contact record (for 21 days).  This makes obvious good sense even if this is an informal ride with friends.
  • All riders should take facemasks – these will be required to go into cafés, pubs or shops anyway.
  • All riders should adhere to social distancing at all times, including when stopping on the road (it’s easy to forget this and pull up next to each other).
  • With the above in mind, those on a ride should have a plan for fixing punctures (where we often help each other) and/or sharing tools. Obviously if you need to help, put on your mask, wear gloves if you have them and use sanitiser before and after.
  • Whilst the weather is good, we should sit outside for coffee and lunch where at all possible.  Consideration should be given to how riders will deal with ill-health or an accident (consider carrying sterile gloves).
  • Riders should go solo if using a car to get to the start of a ride.
  • It remains up to each individual to decide, based on their own circumstances, whether they feel comfortable participating in group rides.

The WSCC Spond system for managing the Rule of 6

The “Spond” booking system has been taken up amazingly quickly by 50 members, and proved to be very effective.

We would now encourage the widest possible adoption of Spond to achieve this.  Spond is a software application designed specifically for sports clubs and activities.  It can be accessed either:

  • Through the creation of a user name and login on the Spond website ; and/or
  • Through a smartphone app

Spond is free, and simple to use.  It provides a seamless way to keep attendance records, share ride details and open up rides to all our members in the spirit of the club. It also substantially reduces the administrative challenges that face us all.

To deal with Wednesday’s rides, the club created a Spond account, and this has been successfully used to advertise and organise attendance on multiple G3 and G4 rides.  We have now rolled this out so that all WSCC members and ride groups have the opportunity to use Spond.  With this in mind we  have created a “WSCC” Spond account that includes 6 sub-groups, one for each of the club’s ride groups.  Members will then be able to opt to join one or more sub-groups and to receive and respond to notifications for rides in their chosen group(s).

All club members can be invited to sign in to a WSCC club page on Spond that will enable them easily to see what rides are available and how to sign up for them.  Similarly, those leading or planning rides can invite group members to attend rides (either by email or using messages on the smartphone app), and check who has signed up.  Spond easily allows the number of riders to be limited to the maximum of 6.

Please contact Laurie Mutch or John Child if you have any queries about how to join and participate in Spond.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me or any other member of the committee for help and advice during these challenging times or to share any concerns with us.

Derek
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