Birmingham City Council is the latest to consider a cycling ban in the city centre

A number of areas in Britain have introduced cycling bans to increase pedestrian safety (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Another one council considering one bicycle ban in parts of the city center to prevent the “dangerous combination” of pedestrians and bicycles.

Birmingham City Council has become the latest in a series of local authorities to consult on tackling cyclists in pedestrian areas, alongside Colchester, Bedford and Grimsby.

Cycling guru Professor David Cox, former chairman of Cycling UK and leader of the charity’s Bike West Midlands Network campaign group, described the proposal as “counterproductive to Birmingham’s transport strategy”.

A community safety executive report to the council says an increasing number of food and mail delivery cyclists are moving “quickly and without concern for other pedestrians.”

Much of Birmingham city center is car-free - and now bicycles may be banned in some of these areas (Getty Images) — Much of Birmingham city center is car-free – and now bicycles may be banned in some of these areas (Getty Images)

The report recommends that the municipality should consider restricting the use of bicycles and e-bikes in pedestrian areas with particularly high footfall.

It suggests new restrictions could be introduced as part of the Public Safety Protection Orders (PSPOs) currently in force in the city.

Professor Cox, who has been cycling around the city center for 50 years, said the council should focus on tackling the specific problem of couriers on e-bikes.

He said: “Instead of doing anything about it, they want to ban all bicycles. This will have consequences for people who use the bicycle as a mobility aid, and for people like me who are elderly.”

The city center has been “completely neglected” in terms of cycling infrastructure, Prof Cox claimed.

Birmingham City Council has become the latest in a series of local authorities to investigate tackling cyclists in pedestrian areas (Getty Images)

Martin Price, policy director at travel campaign group Better Streets for Birmingham, said the solution is a “network of safe, segregated cycle routes within the city centre”, and for delivery platforms to “take responsibility for their couriers”.

At least nine cities and towns across the country have introduced cycling or skateboarding bans similar to the one proposed in Birmingham. The Guardian reports.

According to Peter Blakeman, chairman of the Cycling Campaign for North Bedfordshire, Bedford has fined 738 people for cycling in pedestrianized areas in recent months.

Write an open letter The Bedford IndependentAccording to Mr Blakeman, the result has been a “major drop in the number of residents cycling into the city”.

In Grimsby, councilor Ron Shepherd told people to “get off their bikes and walk along the relatively short stretch of pavement” if they wanted to avoid a fine for riding in the city centre.

Birmingham City Council said: “We are considering measures to try to reduce the number of fast cyclists through a small part of the city center which has high footfall and is unsafe to cycle due to the potential for near misses and collisions.

“Before any decisions are made, we will seek everyone’s views through a consultation on the best way to tackle this issue.

“This does not affect the council’s commitment to prioritizing pedestrians and cyclists as part of its ongoing developments and its transport plan.

“Appropriate restrictions may need to be introduced in this pedestrian area to restrict all bicycles, some bicycles, manage the direction of the bicycles to provide a safe flow of movement, or take no action in this matter. ”