Cycling UK has called on the government to give clarity on how the revised National Restrictions for England, announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday and due to take effect on Thursday, will affect cyclists.
As we reported earlier today, under the latest rules designed to contain the spread of the coronavirus, cycling will be permitted for journeys such as commuting or essential shopping, as well as for daily exercise.
> What the new lockdown rules mean for YOU as a cyclist in England
The latter will only be permitted with members of your household or support bubble or, if you are on your own, with one other person who does not live with you, with the new rules more restrictive than the current “rule of six” regime.
But as in the nationwide lockdown earlier this year, to date there is little clarity on whether there is a limit on how long you can exercise for, or how far you can travel from home while undertaking it.
Alex Cuppleditch, Cycling UK’s head of volunteering, told road.cc: “As we prepare for a second lockdown in England, as per the earlier lockdown, cycling is still a legal and encouraged activity across the UK.
“With the new lockdown in England, there are still a number of question marks around issues such as amount of times and length of ride, which Cycling UK hopes to have the answer to in the coming days and will ensure is reflected via our advice pages for both groups and individuals.”
She added: “Cycling is still a safe and recommended activity, if public health advice is followed.
“Cycling UK is encouraging everyone out riding to respect and adhere to the guidelines across each of the home nations – if unsure what that means, check our website or road.cc for the latest updates.”
Later this week, once the latest set of regulations in England has passed through Parliament, we will be revising and republishing our article from earlier this year explaining exactly what the rules are in England, Scotland and Wales, and how they differ in each country.
34 thoughts on “Cycling UK urges government to give clarity on new lockdown cycling rules”
Oh God, don’t even ask the
Oh God, don’t even ask the question.
Miller wrote:
+1
Miller wrote:
Basic rule: never ask a question you don’t want an answer to.
exactly, there were no
exactly, there were no question marks that needed to be ironed out as far as I was concerned, this just gives them scope to add some completely nonsensical limitations to it
surely Cycling UKs position should simply have been, hey remember what you did between March and July this year, just stick to doing that again for 4 weeks
Miller wrote:
+ 1 – why do we even go there- what difference can it ever make ?
Absolutely crazy to get
Absolutely crazy to get involved in a conversation about it. There are no limits, other than some border limits, on how far you can cycle, so long as you sleep in your own bed at night. There was no limit last time either (despite some claiming a ‘1 hour’ limit – they were wrong), and the lockdown achieved what it needed to. Leave well alone and let people decide what’s right for them.
TimC340 wrote:
The problem is last time, there were all kinds of people saying all kinds of things were against the rules. Even my wife, who isn’t a cyclist but at least understands how much I love it was telling me I couldn’t go our for more than an hour or more than once a day.
Lots of people were saying what happens if you have a crash, is it ok for you to put additional strain on the NHS?
I’d quite like to know what the rules are before Thursday, assuming they tell me I can go as far as I like whenever I like.
From anywhere in the UK to
From anywhere in the UK to Barnard castle and back, obviously!
Cycle as far as you want,
Cycle as far as you want, just don’t put it on Strava for all and sundry to see.
I don’t think the average person has any idea of how far a reasonably fit cyclist can go. I remember the blue fits some were having because cyclists were travelling 12 miles from Sheffield !
No 5g and no cyclists here!!
No 5g and no cyclists here!!
I’ll be out doing a century
I’ll be out doing a century on Saturday.
Fuck em.
That’ll show ’em
That’ll show ’em
I still haven’t worked out
I still haven’t worked out the rules before the last rules, but then, does it really matter? They’ll be changed next week to something more logical like; you’re only allowed to ride more than 50m from your house if you are a libra and there is a “y” in the month unless your father is on furlough and your sister lives in Grimsby.
If you ask the question,
If you ask the question, someone in a suit will make up a set of rules for you and they may not be the ones you want hear. Sometimes its better not to ask – just enjoy the freedom of not having any rules.
Be aware that other outdoor
Be aware that other outdoor exercises are not even permitted such as golf, tennis and orienteering despite extensive mitigation of any risk factors by those taking part and extreme frustration at the latest restriction.
Cycling in comparison doesn’t seem to be assessed as any risk – just get on with it!
muhasib wrote:
orienteering? people can still go out into the woods/open spaces and run/walk to complete a course of their choosing, sure there will be no organised events, but I would expect all sportives to be shut down as well.
I don’t see much justification for shutting down golf, they could close the club house, and keep the courses open with onine bookings golf seems ideal for complying with the excercise alone, with people from your household or one other restrictions.
Yes we would like to get on with it, but cycling UK have asked this question and the risk is the reponse will come back as 1 hour or 2 hours
The procedures in golf have
The procedures in golf have been to arrive ready changed with shared facilities such as changing rooms closed and social distancing observed on the course.
Orienteering used the example of golf to explain their sport to government to get permission to restart last time and clubs had been organising events of up to 30 people with full preregistration for track and trace and a minute between starters. Given it takes place over a couple of hours in a large outdoor area seems to not incur much risk of infection especially as the sensors used are touch free. There are a few permanent courses but the main activity has always been running a course laid out for that day only.
I suppose the only consolation to take is that beer is 99p a pint in Wetherspoons until they close on Wednesday and what’s left is poured away.
Go to work, don’t go to work,
Go to work, don’t go to work, ride your bike to work, stay at home, don’t ride your bike, take exercise, go to work, stay at home . . . . . . .
Lukas wrote:
STAY ALERT
hawkinspeter wrote:
NO! We don’t need any more lerts.
Matt, is that you? https://m
Matt, is that you? https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LaldozNHHhE
I’m very unhappy at Cycling
I’m very unhappy at Cycling UK for this bizarre bit of campaigning and they really didn’t think this through at all. The last time this question was posed to Michael Gove, he said something along the lines of 30 minutes to an hour.
Cycling can really help with mental and physical health and there is absolutely no reason at all that the activity time should be limited.
I suspect that they simply wanted to be seen be making a statement. As a long term member I am going to complain and get them to put some better thought into their campaigning.
First of all – if that is
First of all – if that is what Cycling UK think the rules currently say about who you can meet up with, they haven’t read them properly. They say:
You can exercise or visit outdoor public places with the people you live with, your support bubble, or 1 person from another household
..which clearly states that you can ride with someone else even if they are not in your bubble or your family.
Second of all – I couldn’t agree more with most of what is posted here. Why on earth would you ask a question to which you almost certainly do not want the answer? It is pretty unlikely that the govt are going to reply to say, “oh, 5-6 hours and around 100 miles sounds about right to us”.
Sorry – I stand corrected.
Sorry – I stand corrected. They do seem to have read the rules after all, I just didn’t read the way it was drafted carefully enough. My second point still stands though – not a clever bit of campaigning at all!
It would have been better for
It would have been better for cyling UK to make a statement that bike riding of any time/distance is allowed, but point out that rides should be self sufficient with no stopping to buy food or drink, and put that position to the government.
Whatever arbitrary numbers come back, you can guarantee that some people would have wanted to ride further. 2 hours / 30 miles sounds like quite a long distance to non cyclists, but most cyclist would consider it a short ride
This is the slippery slope
This is the slippery slope though, I dont agree you should be stopped from buying food or drink either,albeit drinking sources can be found if you listen to old audaxers.
But if I’m allowed to drive,and theres no set distance,to a supermarket to buy essential food (among other things) why could I not go shopping for essential food on my bike ? because I mucked up my nutrition & bonked,or my household partner were diabetic & needed something sugary real quick.
What, no emergency stopping
What, no emergency stopping at a garage for overpriced emergency water?
And not forgetting the need for “fuel”
Why do rides have to be non
Why do rides have to be non-stop? Cafes are open for takeaways, so you can have a quick coffee and a bit of flapjack to fuel your ride.
This may sound a stupid
This may sound a stupid question but just how does the Government or who ever knows how long you’ve been out, where you’ve been or come from? I certainly have no intention to giving them details of my rides! That’s private stuff! This where the whole system is just a complete waste of time, no thought at all has been put into it! Any opinions?
They don’t. The rules are
They don’t. The rules are based on trust and not enforced.
CheshireBoy1966 wrote:
Who cares? If you get stopped, just put your Cummings mask on.
Last time there was an
Last time there was an unwritten rule of “one hour per day” exercise….this time it was announce by the Blonde clown that “Unlimited Outside Exercise” was allowed….now last time …..many of my customers were heading out on their one exercise per day…..like 3-5 hrs out there…and this week many who are now back in lockdown and WFH from Thursday have asked for their bikes and indoor trainers to be checked/serviced….a few are looking for some long day winter rides…could be good for training but what about feeding was my comments to them….still more work coming in on top of the service book already well filled…… whatever you do….stay safe and get out there….. solo or meeting with another cycle buddy…. However last time…I was out with one cycle buddy when that was allowed then passed 2 other groups of 2 who we rode with previously, unbeknown we were out on the same roads…..then we became the Rule of Six group….until this week….lol…..
huntswheelers wrote:
Possible to carry enough calories for a 100mile ride, no problem. Cake stops are not essential, although highly desirable. Carrying water is normally the limitation, but now we are into the colder weather that gets a little easier.
What a bunch of punctured
What a bunch of punctured inner tubes