Benefits of cycling

As a simple, affordable, and healthy mode of transport, cycling should be an appealing option for everyone to choose for their regular journeys. If safe and convenient cycle routes were available on important short-distance travel corridors, many more people would feel confident making the choice to cycle. With more people cycling around Bideford, it would mean the need for fewer cars and motor vehicles on the roads, which would help to ease congestion for those who do choose to drive, reduce air pollution, and help to make the streets of Bideford quieter, safer and more pleasant to live in.

Some of the benefits for those who to choose include the following:

• Healthier lifestyle - as it's primarily a form of transport, everyday cycling is one of the easiest ways to fit exercise into your daily routine. It's a low-impact type of exercise, so it's easier on your joints than running or other high-impact aerobic activities, but it still helps you get into shape.
• Reduced carbon footprint - as we face a future in which climate change is an ever increasing reality, choosing to cycle for local journeys helps to reduce your individual carbon footprint and the impact you have upon the streets of the local area. Twenty bicycles can be parked in the same space as one car. It takes around 5% of the materials and energy used to make a car to build a bike, and a bike produces zero pollution.
• Increased joy! Anyone who has ever ridden a bike knows the simple pleasure of cycling on a sunny day, moving along quickly with little effort and enjoying that feel good factor. Any mild-to-moderate exercise releases natural feel-good endorphins that help counter stress and make you happy,which is probably why four times more GPs prescribe exercise therapy as their most common treatment for depression compared to three years ago.