A CYCLING campaigner has said there is “a silent majority” of people who favour measures to make it easier to walk and cycle around Colchester, despite figures showing a drop in usage of the Station Way cycle lane.

A Freedom of Information request submitted by High Steward of Colchester, Sir Bob Russell, resulted in Essex County Council releasing data which showed the Station Way cycle lane was being used by 44 per cent fewer cyclists compared to three years ago.

In July 2020, the average usage sat at 478 cyclists per day, but in a 479-day period from May 2022 to August 2023, daily usage fell to 265 cyclists per day, according to County Hall’s own figures.

But chair of Colchester Cycling Campaign, Stuart Johnson, has said good weather and vastly reduced numbers of cars during the spring and summer lockdowns of 2020 contributed to a sharp rise in the number of cyclists using cycle lanes across Colchester.

Gazette: Here to stay - it was announced last month the cycle lane to North Station was to be made permanentHere to stay - it was announced last month the cycle lane to North Station was to be made permanent (Image: Newsquest)

He said: “The main issue is the baseline figure being used from July 2020; a lot of people were furloughed, a lot of people were working from home, and traffic on the roads was mostly down, so people felt safer cycling on roads than they do now.

“There happened to be good weather in the lockdown in the spring and summer, and the roads were so much quieter.

"Unfortunately, what’s happened is that the amount of traffic has picked up again, so we are not surprised that the current numbers of cyclists are lower than they were in July 2020."

Mr Johnson added he was still encouraged by the number of cyclists currently using the North Hill cycle lane given the route has not been fully joined up across Colchester.

“Towards the end of August there were 300 cycling trips per day – we think that’s very encouraging because the routes at the moment don’t join up properly.

Gazette: 'Silent majority' - Stuart Johnson has said the majority of people want to see improved cycling infrastructure'Silent majority' - Stuart Johnson has said the majority of people want to see improved cycling infrastructure (Image: Colchester Cycling Campaign)

“The next thing is the need to make the lane permanent and make sure it joins up areas like Mile End and the hospital through the city centre.”

Official polls from YouGov, Mr Johnson said, also showed an appetite for improved cycling infrastructure.

“When people do actual surveys, like on YouGov, 77 per cent of people support measures to support cycling and walking.

“There’s a silent majority of people wanting to make our streets safer.”