Cycling in Edinburgh

"When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race" -- H.G. Wells

As the weather continues to get warmer and the days get longer, more and more people are getting on their bicycles for exercise, commuting, shopping and for fun!

Not sure how to join them?

The City of Edinburgh Council has several maps available for free on their website, outlining popular cycle routes in various sections of the city.

SPOKES is Edinburgh and the Lothian's cycle campaign group. They have cycle maps for sale and host meetings and events throughout the year.

The Bike Station is Edinburgh's cycling recycling hub. They adopt unwanted and broken bikes, fix them and get them back on the road. They have adult bike sales every Saturday morning.

The Edinburgh Bicycle Cooperative is a nation-wide bike sales and repair shop, located on the Meadows in Edinburgh, that also host events.

If your bike is in need of a spring clean and repair, the Bicycle Works is a dedicated repair shop in Edinburgh. They are linked to the Tri Centre, Scotland's only dedicated triathlon store.

Leith Cycle Co. offers bike sales and servicing, as well bike hire for use around the city.

Connections with any of these groups and companies will keep you updated on cycling events around the city and Scotland, as well as updates within legislature, policy and infrastructure.

So get out there and embrace spring -- on two wheels!

Latest news:
The latest SPOKES meeting in March featured Transport Convener and Councillor Gordon Mackenzie and Active Travel Action Plan Project Manager Phil Noble. The city has signed up to the Charter of Brussels 2009, which commits the city to support 15% of model share trips by cycling by 2020. The Active Travel Action Plan will reflect commitments proposed by the team in order to make this possible. Changes are already visible along the Union Canal, as paving of the path out to Riccarton has been complete, and paving of the path to Tollcross has just commenced. Councillor Mackenzie presented an outline of cycling items which will be discussed in the action plan -- including plans to make a cycle lane from King's Buildings to George Square and one linking Leith and Portobello. There is also discussion with public transport services to look into increased capacity for bicycle carriage on buses and trains. The Councillor fielded many questions and noted several suggestions by SPOKES members to consider for the action plan, the draft of which should be made available in May to the public for questions and comments; this will be uploaded on the SPOKES website as well as others.

-LO