TOUR DE MILTON KEYNES: CYCLISTS’ TOURING CLUB GIVES RESIDENTS TOP TIPS FOR NATIONAL CYCLE TO WORK DAY

To celebrate National Cycle to Work Day (August 5th), Milton Keynes housebuilder Barratt and David Wilson Homes has teamed up with a local cycling club to provide residents at its Fairfields development with some top tips on how they can commute by bicycle.

BN – cycling_uk_mkctc_ – The MK CTC group on their bikes
BN – cycling_uk_mkctc_ – The MK CTC group on their bikes

The Vespasian Road development is less than five miles from the centre of Milton Keynes, and less than four miles from Milton Keynes Central Station. Therefore, residents at the development have an excellent opportunity to travel to work in a healthy, sustainable and easy manner.

To assist with this, Milton Keynes Cyclists’ Touring Club (CTC) have put together some top tips to help residents with commuting on the bike.

Milton Keynes CTC’s top tips are:

Red is the way

Milton Keynes is a paradise for cyclists. There is Redway system of cycle-pedestrian paths that is unique in this country, and will get you anywhere without encountering a single car.

The Redways are quiet and safe, and cross the big roads by under or over-passes. They will get you everywhere in town and many are quite beautiful, making your commute a perfect time to enjoy your surroundings.

The Redways are, however, quite confusing, so you need to explore them when not under pressure and become acquainted with the geography before rushing off in a hurry. Once they become familiar they are simple to navigate. Redway maps are available online at https://getaroundmk.org.uk or in hard copy from [email protected].

What will I need?

Once you are up and pedalling, you don’t need any special clothing or equipment to ride a bike. In Copenhagen and all over the Netherlands, for instance, everyone cycles to school and to work wearing their normal clothes for the day.

Extra equipment such as Lycra and drop handles can be great, but not necessary. You can carry an almost limitless amount on a bike. We recommend starting with a back pack, but keep it as light as possible. If you find a back pack isn’t quite large enough for all your items, carriers are cheap and can be fitted to most bikes.

Get ahead of the game

Finally, it is important to plan ahead when commuting on a bike. Not only do we recommend having a trial run along the Redways to learn the route, but it is also an opportunity to time yourself at a comfortable pace to see how long it will take to arrive at work.

It is also worth seeing where you will be able to leave your bike for the day whilst at work. Some people may be able to leave their bikes within the office, some may need to leave theirs locked up in a public area.

Alison Raine, Sales Director at Barratt and David Wilson Homes Northampton, said: “These tips from the Milton Keynes CTC are a great way for our residents to get pedalling during National Cycle to Work Day.

“Milton Keynes is a fantastic place to cycle due to the Redways, and our Fairfields development is ideally located to make the most of them.”