Want genuinely secure active travel parking? But don't have the time or inspiration to draft a finely worded letter?

We hear you, and here we are with an oven-ready template that's good to go. Just copy and paste, add your own personal flourish, and you can make your local council aware that there is a genuine need for secure cycle parking. 


Hi [Insert Name]

I'm writing to you to request secure cycle parking is installed at [insert Road, Borough, Post Code]. This is a vital piece of transport infrastructure and is taking away the choice from more of your local residents such as myself to take up sustainable transport.

Sustainable transport, which involves cycles, e-bikes, e-scooters and e-cargo cycles will benefit to the local area & residents in a number of ways. When more of us cycle, scoot or walk instead of taking the car this reduces pollution, reduces congestion and improves both our physical and mental health.

But that’s not just it. Contrary to popular opinion, adding cycle-friendly infrastructure such as parking improves the local economy. This article mentions a study which shows that people not in cars spend 40% more each month in neighbourhood shops than motorists. Furthermore, adding this type of secure infrastructure is also more efficient than adding parking for cars - you can squeeze in more vehicles (and people) than with standard a car parking space.

I also want to highlight that cycle parking can be much cheaper to install than a cycle lane, while still being available to the whole local community to use.

In terms of the action I would like you to take, please consider finding out more information on providers of cycle parking. I realise these things take time to implement, but if you liaise the transport department or active travel lead in the council I imagine they would be happy to assist and find a cost-effective solution.

Thanks for your time,

Your name

Spokesafe’s tips:

The above is just a template, so feel free to expand on anything we’ve missed. Any reference to the context in your local community is good, and feel free to mention local cycling campaign groups who may be able to provide more information once contacted.

You may also be able to find out how many people cycle in your area, recent or nearby schemes which have been successful.

We are also happy to speak to any council about potential solutions & can share our knowledge - just tell them to email us at space@spokesafe.com and our team will take it up. We’ve built a flexible system that should pretty much apply anywhere, with Hubs and Lockers and app-based access meaning anyone can use the infrastructure on our network.

Well done for asking your local council about more secure cycle parking. Now that you've ticked this off the list, how about you let Spokesafe know? Come on, it takes just 2 minutes...