Fewer cycling weekly in West Yorkshire than in 2020

The first coronavirus lockdown was characterised by shortages at bike shops and councils across England reorganising their streets to encourage walking and cycling.

But new figures from the Department of Transport shows the proportion of people regularly cycling has decreased compared to the year which marked the first lockdown.

The annual Active Lives Survey measures how often individuals exercise and is carried out continuously throughout the year.

According to the survey, 6% of adults in West Yorkshire biked at least once a week in the year to November 2021, down from 8.1% the year before.

This was also a drop from 8.2% in the year to November 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic.

Sustrans, a campaign group for better walking and cycling, said the figures show there is still a need to make active travel "safe, accessible, and welcoming".

"During the pandemic, when there were fewer cars on the road, the public took to their bikes.

"It’s sad to see this return to expensive and pollutant car-use, especially as the urgency for alternatives has only increased, alongside the cost of living."

The National Travel Survey, also compiled by the Department for Transport, shows people in England on average drove 300 times in 2021, a rise on 295 the year before, but still far fewer than the 380 trips taken by car in 2019.

Analysis by the AA suggests that even the rising cost of fuel may not push drivers to swap four wheels for two.

In July the organisation polled more than 15,000 drivers, finding that just 2% had switched to walking or cycling as a result of higher fuel prices.

Across England the proportion of adults cycling once a week or more fell to 9.1% in 2021, having remained between 11% and 12% since 2016.

This was driven by fewer people cycling for leisure in particular – in the year to November 2020, 8.5% of respondents were doing so weekly, but this fell to 6% in 2021.

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: “The Government is investing a record £2 billion over this Parliament to enable more walking, wheeling and cycling through better infrastructure, cycle training and active travel prescriptions.”