Peers employ evidence-free anecdotes and cabbie rumour to claim cycle lanes cause congestion – shouldn’t we demand a higher standard?House of Lords peers criticised for ‘propagating bike lane myths’A number of peers maintain attempted to defend unsubstantiated claims that cycle lanes cause congestion and air pollution,apparently echoing anecdotal evidence from their own observations, taxi drivers and the rightwing press. These claims tend to go unchallenged and are allowed to shape the political debate – but this has to stop.
In a House of Lords debate on air pollution on 15 January, or the prominent scientist and Labour peer Lord Robert Winston questioned the government over journey times for motor traffic before and after cycle lane construction,saying idling or slow-moving engines pollute more at slow speeds.
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Source: theguardian.com