Interesting news that doctors in England will be able to prescribe bicycle riding, in an attempt to counter the obesity pandemic and help people get their bodies in a position where they can deal effectively with Covid-19 infections (https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/jul/26/doctors-to-prescribe-bike-rides-to-tackle-uk-obesity-crisis-amid-coronavirus-risk). One of the things that clearly inhibits people adopting this form of transport is a feeling that cyclists are very vulnerable our crowded roads. The government suggest that they will counter this by putting in cycle lanes (they have a massive way to go before matching provisions in the Netherlands) and creating low traffic areas. They intend to focus on deprived locations where obesity is a serious problem. This doesn't fit with earlier reports, that money set aside by to encourage cycling in the UK, had largely gone unspent, after vigorous opposition by politicians in well-heeled areas of major cities. Is it to be poor people on bicycles and the rich to their private gymnasia?
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