Talking about transport in Cambridge 15th April 2025 - Part 6: A War on Trees?

On the Oxford-Cambridge boat race being held near Ely in 2021 and the staggering police presence. Disturbingly, the police had lists of who lived where in order to check up on people who said they were trying to get home. Also, bizarrely enough trees seem to be a target for these people trying to tell the rest of us how to live.
Brian is an indefatigable campaigner against the problem of potholes that infests Cambridgeshire's roads and pathways. In my view he is a keen cyclist, although he says he isn't! He is also very familiar with the problems caused by inadequate infrastructure and the failure by councils to address real issues rather than the imaginary ones that just happen to serve their agenda. I thought it would be good to get the perspective of a cyclist on transport around Cambridge and I am very grateful to Brian for sitting down with me for an afternoon to talk about these matters.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boat_Race_2021

Birthgap - Childless World PART 1 (English Version)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A6s8QlIGanA

"SNP cuts down millions of trees to build wind farms on public land in huge blow to environmental credentials
The Scottish Government confirmed that it had greenlit plans to chop down millions of trees since 2000 in order to build massive turbines for renewable energy."
https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/snp-cuts-down-millions-trees-30510623

"Cambridgeshire council plan to chop down orchard of 500 mature trees – to make way for a ‘green bus lane’"
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11887559/Cambridgeshire-council-plan-chop-orchard-500-mature-trees.html

"On around 3 April 2025, the Whitewebbs Oak was felled by unidentified contractors in Whitewebbs Park. This was a beloved ancient tree. With a 6.1m circumference, it was one of only 60 similarly ancient English Oak (Quercus robur) trees in the whole of London."
https://www.change.org/p/justice-for-the-whitewebbs-oak-0a72e3de-f66e-440a-a9e4-a0dfb7f0513c?recruiter=37854545&recruited_by_id=811b86c0-3743-0130-f4d1-3c764e04ae02

Utter madness:
"A roundabout and underpass in Cambridge could be removed under plans to improve walking, cycling and public transport to the east of the city. The proposals have been drawn up by the Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP).
The scheme involves removing the roundabout and junction of East Road and Elizabeth Way as part of the Cambridge Eastern
Access project. The large central sunken area will then be filled in to create a four-way junction on a single flat surface with no roundabout."
https://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge-news/plans-remove-roundabout-underpass-cambridge-26420278

Information about Cambridge's well connected and very influential cycling charity can be found here:
"Camcycle (the Cambridge Cycling Campaign) is a local charity which has been working for more, better and safer cycling in the Cambridge area since 1995."
https://www.camcycle.org.uk/about/

https://www.facebook.com/CambridgeCyclingCampaign/

Information on the Greenways around Cambridge can be found here:
https://www.greatercambridge.org.uk/sustainable-transport-programme/active-travel-projects/greater-cambridge-greenways

"Guidance Cycle infrastructure design (LTN 1/20)
Guidance for local authorities on designing high-quality, safe cycle infrastructure"
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cycle-infrastructure-design-ltn-120

"Cambridgeshire County Council fined £6 million for breaches after guided busway deaths"
https://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge-news/cambridgeshire-county-council-fined-6-31437841