We’re all walking and cycling more – will we need so many cars after pandemic?

From: Ian Hallett, Harrogate.
Will more people cycle and walk in Harrogate once the Covid-19 lockdown is lifted?Will more people cycle and walk in Harrogate once the Covid-19 lockdown is lifted?
Will more people cycle and walk in Harrogate once the Covid-19 lockdown is lifted?
Read More
Tour de Yorkshire postponed due to coronavirus

LIKE most challenges, the current crisis also brings opportunities. The streets around Harrogate and Knaresborough are wonderfully quiet, and walking or cycling for daily exercise and necessary travel feels much safer and more pleasant, especially with the longer evenings.

The air is fresher, and that 
it’s a wonderful time to explore our surroundings from your 
own front door (while keeping your distance from others of course).

The scene in Harrogate during the Covid-19 lockdown. Photo: Simon Hulme.The scene in Harrogate during the Covid-19 lockdown. Photo: Simon Hulme.
The scene in Harrogate during the Covid-19 lockdown. Photo: Simon Hulme.
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The quiet roads are also perfect for building confidence cycling on the road for children and adults alike. In fact on a recent bike ride I could not help but notice that there were more couples and young families out cycling than there were cars.

Being able to enjoy our own town by foot or bike shouldn’t be something which ends with the current crisis. It should be something that’s part of everyone’s daily life.

Reducing our reliance on cars also keeps us fit and healthy – and that will always help keep pressure off the NHS, during Covid-19 and beyond.

With a bit of thought, we can all do something to make sure the ‘normal’ we return to after the end of this crisis is better than the ‘normal’ we left behind. I, for one, will be switching the car for the bike whenever possible.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Editor’s note: first and foremost - and rarely have I written down these words with more sincerity - I hope this finds you well.

Almost certainly you are here because you value the quality and the integrity of the journalism produced by The Yorkshire Post’s journalists - almost all of which live alongside you in Yorkshire, spending the wages they earn with Yorkshire businesses - who last year took this title to the industry watchdog’s Most Trusted Newspaper in Britain accolade.

And that is why I must make an urgent request of you: as advertising revenue declines, your support becomes evermore crucial to the maintenance of the journalistic standards expected of The Yorkshire Post. If you can, safely, please buy a paper or take up a subscription. We want to continue to make you proud of Yorkshire’s National Newspaper but we are going to need your help.

Postal subscription copies can be ordered by calling 0330 4030066 or by emailing [email protected]. Vouchers, to be exchanged at retail sales outlets - our newsagents need you, too - can be subscribed to by contacting subscriptions on 0330 1235950 or by visiting www.localsubsplus.co.uk where you should select The Yorkshire Post from the list of titles available.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.