THE number of cyclists in York has dropped from pre-pandemic levels - and safety fears are being blamed. 

The city council's director of transport and planning James Gilchrist said cycling levels "appear" to have fallen but the longer term trend is "more encouraging".

"We are aware that safety concerns discourage many people from cycling," he said. "We are taking forward a wide range of projects to address this by improving cycle routes in York".

Cycling was so popular during lockdown when there was very little traffic on the roads, shops sold out of new bikes and were inundated with people wanting to put old bikes back in order.

The latest annual Sports England Active Lives Survey reveals 22 per cent of adults in York cycled at least once a week in the year ending November 2019, the last year before the pandemic. But only 16 per cent cycled regularly in the year to November 2021 and that was down on 2020.

John Skelton of York Cycle Campaign said "safety concerns are the main reason" why people don't cycle in York.

"York's cycling infrastructure was designed in the eighties and early nineties and there's nothing very much new since then," he said.

Many existing cycling lane markings had faded so that they are barely visible and have not been repainted.

"Part of the long term problem is that York doesn't have any local transport plan in which to state some strategy and policy for renewal and replacement in accordance with modern standards," he said.

He said the council had missed out on Government money made available during the pandemic because its schemes didn't meet Government 2020 standards.

Mr Gilchrist said: “In York, cycling levels appear to have fallen because of a decline in commuting, as a result of more working from home, and, in 2020 particularly, the fact that York’s students, who make up a high proportion of cyclists in York, were, by and large, not in the city but studying from their hometowns.

"We are still waiting for travel patterns to settle down. Whilst there would appear to have been a decline in cycling levels in York since 2014, we would note that, even in 2020, cycling levels were nearly 10 per cent above 2010 levels, so the longer term trend is more encouraging.

“City of York Council actively promotes cycling."

He said York's Local Plan contained a commitment to spend £4.9 million developing cycling infrastructure in York, and high levels of cycling would be important to manage traffic from development and all of York's major transport projects included cycle schemes.

"We are about to start developing a Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan for York and measures for cycling will be an important part of the Local Transport Strategy we are developing – because more cycling supports York’s ambition to become carbon neutral by 2030," he said.

"Delivering cycle schemes is a priority and we have increased the number of cycle route engineers and project managers in York to achieve this”.