http://www.number10.gov.uk/Page20260

hmmm…. ill wait and see if anything changes. doubt it. Real shame.

While much of the response was written in modern era Civil Service doublespeak, it suggests that the focus is more likely to be on easy win infrastructure changes at stations, namely building more bike racks.

No exactly what people are after, is it?

Sounds like one or two showcase services will get the benefit of the grants they're handing out, the rest will just be the same old same old.

I note the use of soft words like "encourage". In other words, make the right noises, set up a task force, claim a headline or two and job done – seems to be the way most policy is approached now. The Train Operating Companies are not going to do anything that doesn't create revenue / reduce costs without the regulator requiring them to. And retail trollies create more income than bikes do for them. So nothing will happen.

Please excuse my cycnicsm, but I don't see anything else in the response. Certainly approve of the petition though.

Had to read that a few times to understand what was written.
Good to know I can ride my bike half a mile to the station, leave the bike there and then walk 4 miles to work at the other end…
Wheres the appeal against the decision button?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAN_BEn5aKk

I once spent a very enlightening hour chatting to a consultant whose job was to lobby government and advise on environmentally friendly transportation. He was/is heavily involved with Crossrail amongst other things.

Regarding bikes on trains – from what I gather the (unofficial) stance of HMG is a 'Dutch' model where the emphasis is put on providing bike parks/secure storage at stations rather than making allowances for the physical transportation of bikes on the carriages themselves. If we commute by bicycle we should all move to having two bikes apparently – one at the home end, and another at the (for me, London) work end. I think the current situation whereby folding bikes are allowed on trains is wholly at the discretion of the rail companies and could be changed/removed without any discussion or consultation – the policy is that we should be grateful for that alone rather than pushing for the reinstatement of any form of guards van / area on the train specifically designed to hold more than a token number of bikes (not that they're allowed on SouthEastern trains at all between 7 and 10am, 4 and 7pm)….

A complete joke in my opinion. You'd have thought they'd be trying to encourage more people to stop driving to work / to and from the office etc but no, it's about putting the expense (two bikes?) and emphasis on the commuter rather than offering any meaningful way to help facilitate the use of bikes and trains for commuting.

Arrrggghhhh. And breathe…

(for what it's worth I think one of the best things they could do would be to introduce a similar scheme to/alongside cycle2work for public transport whereby you could pay for the cost of season tickets on bus/tube/train from your gross, rather than net salary. It'd help get more people on public transport but the cynical might argue that increasing numbers in anything other than token amounts might require some investment in infrastructure, heaven forbid)

Clearly what they are trying to say is that if you need to take a bike any distance they'd prefer you to drive…

Usual load of softly worded bilge, aimed at making you think they're doing something when in fact they aren't, won't and never will do becuase its too much like hard work to try and force these comapnies to do anything, or incentivise it in any meaningful way.