Evans Cycles, ‘the UK’s leading specialist bike retailer’, recreated cycling’s highest ever modal share on Sunday [30 May], with cyclists making up 41% of all road users near Blackfriars Bridge, London.
Wishing to emulate the golden age of cycling during its 100 year history, where in 1949 cyclists made up 37% of all road users, Evans Cycles encouraged cyclists’ to saddle up on the opening day of Bike Week.
Using AI technology from Google, analysis showed cyclists on Sunday 30th May 2021 made up 41% of modal share near Blackfriars Bridge on Sunday – up 4% on the highest recorded 1949 national average, and 13% up on the period two weeks beforehand.
In 1921, a hard-riding touring cyclist and cycling advocate – F.W. Evans – opened a small shop on Kennington Road in south east London. As author of a pamphlet extolling the benefits of a new style of the ‘lightweight’ bicycle, Evans was focused on opening up cycling to the masses.
Riding a wave it had helped to create, the first F.W. Evans store began to grow as the number of cyclists on Britain’s roads doubled from 4.7 million in 1929 to just over 10 million in 1936. With there being around 6 cyclists to every one motorist by 1937, cycling levels then peaked in 1949 when pedal power made up 37% of all journeys (that’s higher than the cycling levels in the Netherlands today).
‘Fast forward to 2021, millions of repaired punctures and countless ‘new bike day’ memories later, and Evans Cycles is now the UK’s leading specialist bike shop.’
Although cycling levels in Britain have remained fairly consistent since the 1970s, recent figures have shown a sharp incline since the start of the Coronavirus pandemic. Presented with a unique opportunity for long-term positive change, the team at Evans Cycles challenged Britain’s riders to emulate the golden age of cycling during its 100 year history.
By monitoring CS6, one of the capital’s flagship pieces of cycling infrastructure, data showed that ‘if you build it, they will come’ – highlighting the potential for increased cycling across the country.
Evans Cycles partnered with the charity Cycling UK on the World’s Biggest Bike Ride. Taking place on Sunday 30th May, and kicking off the 2021 edition of ‘Bike Week’, London-based participants were encouraged to cycle over Blackfriars Bridge between 11:00 and 13:00 BST.
Using Google’s Video Intelligence API accessible on Google Cloud Platform, passing riders and traffic were automatically counted from video footage on the day.
Over an hour period, 326 cyclists passed the camera, over the same period Google AI calculated 404 cars, 30 buses, 20 taxis and 10 motorbikes. The cycling modal share of road users near the bridge was recorded as 41%.
Commenting on the achievement, Head of Retail at Evans Cycles, Matthew Atkinson, said “When F.W. Evans opened our first store on Kennington Road 100 years ago, he had a clear desire to open-up cycling to all.
“Unbeknown to him at the time, he was at the advent of cycling’s most popular period in Britain, and would go on to help influence modern cycle design for years to come.
‘’Now with over 50 stores across the country, Evans Cycles’ 700+ staff share a common goal in helping more people ‘Enjoy the Ride’. As shown by all those that took part in Sunday’s recreation, it’s not unimaginable to return to the glory days of 1949 as the boom in cycling continues this summer.”
