Is Fix Your Bike fixed now? 50,000 more vouchers made available on govt scheme; Styles' new bike-theme style; Dygert apologises for social media conduct; Campaigners call for park traffic ban; MP suggests LTN referendum + more on the live blog

As many of you who tried to get one when the first wave were released back in July will know, £50 Fix Your Bike vouchers were like gold dust, and when you did get them many bike workshops were experiencing unprecented demand, and admin issues which prevented them from claiming the cash back. 

As the news came trickled through from Government this morning that another 50,000 vouchers have been released, 'collect & return' bike repair company havebike have welcomed it... but also say there should be another extension, and further speedy improvements to improve the infrastructure that people will be riding their fixed up bikes upon should be rolled out. 

havebike's CEO Nick Brown said: "We value any Government support that seeks to encourage and enable cycling to get more people back on bikes that are in a roadworthy condition. As we've seen bicycles can help NHS and other key workers make essential journeys during this lockdown and also provide the wider public with a great way to exercise and improve mental health.

"While we welcome the Fix Your Bike Voucher scheme, we would like to see continued investment and rapid progression in the installation of cycle lanes and Low Traffic Neighbourhoods. The vouchers are extremely popular and very hard to get hold of, so we would welcome another extension to the scheme.

"We also feel there's a very important job to do in terms of educating people on the costs associated with getting your bike serviced. While £50 goes some of the way to fixing a bicycle, it doesn't cater to some of the more common worn or defective parts that often need replacing."

Will Fix Your Bike work more efficiently this time around? Hopefully it will contribute to plenty more winter bikes being given a second lease of life. And as always, if you managed to nab a voucher do let us know how you got on in the comments.

He may have eight England caps, played for Manchester United and been a mainstay in the Premier League for most of the past decade but Ben Foster sure knows how to have a day off from football. His YouTube channel, The Cycling GK, has plenty to keep us cyclists interested including his Specialized Tarmac SL7. Not a bad life these professional footballers have...

These photos of a pop-up cycle lane in Bridgend were sent to us over the weekend by a reader called Cycling Pete and have no shortage of issues for cyclists. Pete told us: "It's so useless and unable to be cycled in, it's only purpose is to narrow the road, and fire cyclists in to a width restriction.

"It's difficult to see how anybody can use it, so presumably demand will be recorded at zero! It actually makes cycling along that section of road more dangerous!"

How you're meant to get in or out the lane with a barrier at one end and cars parked at the other remains a mystery to us...

If cycling books are your sort of thing then this might be the perfect memento to the strangest of seasons. 'Cycling in the Time of Covid, a review of the tumultuous 2020 season' is a 230-page reflection on the season just finished. The book includes writing from La Course en Tête and may be just the thing to tide you over until 2021.

Joe and Jill Biden head out on a bike ride this morning in Cape Henlopen State Park pic.twitter.com/fwQLYQ55O2

— Tyler Pager (@tylerpager) November 14, 2020

#1084🚴‍♀️💞 bikes to New Scots- its been a challenging time for our community, staff & volunteers 😷 but we are 100% committed to supporting as many people as we can safely & with humanity providing freedom of movement & a free means of travel! & we need your help more than ever 💞 pic.twitter.com/MTyQmCrfGi

— Bikes for Refugees (@Bikes4Refugees) October 18, 2020

Bikes for Refugees is a simple concept: people donate their old or underused bikes to help those more in need so they have a cheap and accessible transport solution. Since 2016 the charity has provided more than 1,000 bikes to refugees in Scotland. The 1,000-bike milestone was hit in January and is testament to the work of Steven McCluskey and a team of volunteers who collect the bikes and refurbish them before passing them on to those in need.

"When I’m asked [about Bikes for Refugees] I less and less describe the project as a bike project, and instead describe it as a project which is about supporting people’s resettlement, supporting their social inclusion and integration," McCluskey told The Scotsman.

It's one of the peculiarities about professional cycling that teams come and go and team names change from year-to-year. For 2021 Astana will join Ag2r Citroën, Bahrain Victorious and Greenedge Cycling as the revised names in the WorldTour peloton. Canadian company Premier Tech have sponsored the team since 2017 but will take on title sponsorship for 2021. One of the consistent titles in the peloton, it is the first time Astana will have a co-sponsor for the first time in their 15-year history.

Support our campaign to make sure our parks are for people not through traffic https://t.co/hGyjIfIAqu

— London Cycling Campaign (@London_Cycling) November 15, 2020

The London Cycling Campaign has called for better traffic management in London's parks to create a safer environment for cyclists. While some areas of Richmond Park have been shut off from motor traffic the Queen's Road was heavily congested with through traffic this weekend. 

This tricyclist was repeatedly close passed by drivers as heavy traffic flowed in both directions. Campaigners have said the park is no longer safe for vulnerable road users and have encouraged people to make their voices heard by responding to The Royal Parks’ Movement Strategy questionnaire on Richmond Park which launched today.

Very upsetting to see this tricyclist having to be passed by so many motorists using the Queen's Road as a rat run, breathing dangerous fumes in what's meant to be a park 😥 We will be launching our action to pressure @theroyalparks tomorrow. Stay tuned. pic.twitter.com/1kHsAAxTHt

— London Cycling Campaign (@London_Cycling) November 15, 2020

Richmond Park reopened to through traffic in August allowing rat running drivers to use the road as a shortcut. Campaigners described the move as "reckless and drastic" at the time and now hope that the consultation can end through traffic in the park for good.

You can make suggestions and add your thoughts to the consultation by following this link...

We are thrilled to welcome @Harrytanfield94
to the team, a long time friend, we are committed as an organisation to getting him back to where he belongs.

Head to our website to read more 👇https://t.co/wU79JYEz9A… pic.twitter.com/PSDOhRTs1h

— Ribble Weldtite Pro Cycling (@RibbleWeldtite) November 15, 2020

Harry Tanfield has dropped down to UCI Continental level to secure a spot with Ribble Weldtite next season. The 25 year-old spent the past two seasons at WorldTour level with Katusha-Alpecin and AG2R but has been the victim of a tricky transfer market, with the coronavirus pandemic making it harder to find a contract. Tanfield recently rode his first Grand Tour at La Vuelta a Espana but was forced to abandon on Stage 15. It will be his first time riding at Continental level since 2018 when the strong time trialist won the opening stage of the Tour de Yorkshire from the breakaway.