Fears grow that high diesel prices could lead to more cyclists

[whole diary]

[grahame]

From (here)

People in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom) are terrified today after considering the possibility that high diesel prices could lead to an increase in cyclists.

With diesel prices in the UK rising above £2 a litre for the first time, many in the UK have started to consider the horrifying thought of more people picking up a bike. ...

Worryingly, a significant move from car, bus and train travel by large numbers of the public would be a significant problem for the government and the economy, as there's nothing apart from the basic VAT^▸ (Value Added Tax) on the purchase of cycles that generates income for the government in spite of the high cost of provision and maintenance of infrastructure on cycles, and to the NHS for the repair of cyclists damaged on the road.

from The Guardian

Cyclists could be made to have registration plates and insurance

Whitehall review is also said to suggest cycling speed limits, along with licence penalty points and fines

Registration is already required in Japan and North Korea.

[Red Squirrel]

I didn't follow the first link, in case it was another of grahame 's attempts to drum up trade for an ailing tech giant. But the second link is to a four year old Guardian article which is based on something from the Daily Mail!

[grahame]

I didn't follow the first link, in case it was another of grahame 's attempts to drum up trade for an ailing tech giant. But the second link is to a four year old Guardian article which is based on something from the Daily Mail!

It's not

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Original was obfuscated to - I admit - hide the initial humorous nature of the source. BUT many a true work is spoken in jest and someone in government will be asking "can we tax it?"

[Mark A]

*snip*  the high cost of provision and maintenance of infrastructure on cycles, and to the NHS for the repair of cyclists damaged on the road. *snip*

On the NHS front, the data shows that the burden from cycling is more than compensated for by the reduction in cardiovascular patients (etc) that the health service sees. A bit of a deep dive from the BMJ in 2024 is focussed on cycle commuting in particular.

https://www.bmj.com/content/368/bmj.m336