Better cycle routes 'best tribute' to Geraint Thomas' win

An artist's impression of one of the proposed routes

It will be the "biggest tribute" to Tour de France winner Geraint Thomas if Welsh Government back a plan for new cycle lanes in Cardiff, a senior city councillor has said.

Cardiff Council is bidding for £20m from Welsh Government for five new paths, segregated from other traffic.

Caro Wild admitted that while parts of the city are "wonderful" to cycle in, getting west to east can be "dreadful".

Welsh Government were asked for comment.

Cardiff council has proposed five new cycle routes radiating from the city centre to Heath, St Mellons, Cardiff Bay, Danescourt and Caerau.

Cardiff, where Mr Thomas grew up, is planning to invest £6m in the proposal, but has bid for £20m from Welsh Government funds.

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The government has earmarked £60m over three years for walking and cycling schemes.

How a new cycle route could look like near the Sherman Theatre in Cardiff

Mr Wild, a cabinet member for transport on the authority, said the biggest tribute that could be made to the Tour champion would be "to build world class cycle lanes".

He told BBC Wales there seemed to be a "really big increase" in the number of people cycling in Cardiff.

"Where cities have done it, around Europe and in London recently, they've found they're wildly popular," he said.

"If you want more people active, and a real legacy, that's the kind of stuff you need to do - enabling people to go about their daily journeys and get kids using these things."

He admitted it was a "bit of a postcode lottery in Cardiff" for cyclists.

"If you live in certain places its a wonderful place to cycle, if you're near the Taff Trail. If you're coming from the west or east of the city its pretty dreadful."

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In the past cycle infrastructure "hasn't been particularly well joined up, and that's for lots of reasons to do with where bits of funding comes from and how you do your designing, consultation and stuff like that".

This scheme, he said, would involve "fully segregated, connected cycle lanes, segregated from traffic by a curb and wide enough for people to go both ways on".

The lanes were initially called cycle superhighways, but Mr Wild says they will be given a different title.

"They're not meant to be something that is superfast, sporty, they are everyday parts of the road that people can use," he added.