Leaving the car at home should become the new norm in the Highlands
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
The Highlands (and Islands) is a place with the reputation that you ‘must’ have a car to get around.
Due to the vastly populated housing and rural positioning for many, a car is commonly felt to be an absolute must for both working and leisure purposes, but how many have assessed the situation thoroughly? There are both physical and environmental factors that have added to this perception, and of course, there is a time and place for a car, but are we overusing our motors when we don’t need to?
There have been many case studies on the matter and each shows examples of deterrents to using biking or walking as a way of commuting. These include worries about safety on the road, bad traffic, lack of routes in the area and poor weather. Poor infrastructure comes up timelessly, for example not enough shower facilities and poor bike parking.
For walking, findings show that people are reluctant to walk as a means of commuting for factors such as the hassle of carrying items, time limitations and fear of crime.
There are many active travel providers in Inverness and Loch Ness including the Loch Ness Hub in Drumnadrochit. The organisation would like to change the attitude to active travel in the area and make it easier for people to choose more sustainable means of transport where possible. The Loch Ness Hub offers bike rentals and has a wealth of information of local routes and path networks in the area.
In Inverness, Velocity is now an official active travel hub offering local cycle routes on the travel hub website as well as maps, route planning and adaptive classes for biking.
Both local organisations truly believe most barriers can be overcome and Velocity offers free workshops to assist with this. With great advice on how best to maintain your bike and offering free walking groups to gain confidence, this summer seems a perfect time to start to make small changes to a healthier environment, plus it keeps us fit too!
Emily Williams, CEO of Velocity and appointed biking mayor of the city in Inverness said: “I think there is massive potential to increase the number of people walking or cycling in the area. The council are progressing with some really exciting schemes, such as the Academy Street project and Riverside Way, which is a positive start to making Inverness a friendly place to walk or cycle. If they can deliver on their active travel strategy it will be transformational to how easy it is to travel by bike!”
We have seen the introduction of the Hi-Bikes that are dotted around the city in convenient locations that are easy to use once registered – and are much cheaper than the cost of rising fuel prices. When using our own bikes though, it can appear difficult to book bike spaces on trains, especially in the peak months so consideration is needed for this.
Russell Fraser, manager at Loch Ness Hub, said: “Undoubtedly, there is scope for safer cycle and walking footpaths in the area.
“I feel a great starting point would be developing the existing path networks. For example, further developing the Loch Ness 360 and Great Glen Way pathways for our more rural residents and visitors.”
In support of city developments, Emily concluded: “Cycling to visit friends, or the shops or schools should not only be available to those of us who are confident in traffic on busy roads. We need to reallocate road space to make better provision for walking, wheeling and cycling. If more people travel by bus or by bike there will be a reduction in traffic, but the infrastructure needs to enable this choice.”
To leave us with a positive spin, biking and walking offer great health benefits, and with continual work on better cycle path and walking path networks, Inverness and Loch Ness could become the capital of active travel as well as the Highlands.
An event dedicated to active travel including biking, walking, wheeling, and kayaking takes place on July 7 at the city's Torvean Park. This free event gives plenty of opportunities including taking any old bikes along for bike health checks. For more information go to www.visitinvernesslochness.com/active-ness
Sponsored by Visit Inverness Loch Ness
