Ned Boulting on cycle lanes ahead of visit to Horsham

ITV's Ned Boulting, who will appear in Horsham next month, said in some places, too many cycle lanes have been installed too quickly for people to be supportive.

But he said London had successfully intorduced many new cycle lanes and he called for other regions to follow suit.

He said: “I think if we are honest in the wake of Covid I think possibly the active travel community might have gone too far too fast and not brought the general population with us.

“Perhaps it was a little bit overwhelming.

“The evidence is overwhelmingly in favour of making these changes.

“Where I live in London where the changes have been quite profound, I think we are at a tipping point with the numbers of people driven to bikes by the economic crisis. There is a really compelling argument to not drive a car.

“There is a real sense of seeing rush hour bikes consistently outnumbering cars. And it feels like it is here to stay with the latest generation of road users seeing bikes as the best way to get around.

“It’s the old adage of ‘if you build it they will come’.

“But it will not happen overnight.

“And when did widening roads reduce congestion?

“Add two lanes and they fill up. Getting people out of cars and on to bikes frees up space for cars. I find it mind boggling that it’s not easier to explain.”

Ned commentates on football and other sports for ITV. But he spends much of his summer commentating on the Tour de France for ITV4.

On the challenge of getting more people on two wheels, he said: “It’s absolutely vital that cycling does not become this niche activity.”

Ned Boulting will appear on his one-man cycling stage show, Re-Tour de Ned on November 3 at the Horsham Capitol.

Re-Tour de Ned takes the audience through the history of the Tour de France including bringing to life the 1903 origins of the race and re-enacting 2022 winner, Jonas Vingegaard, filleting fish in a Danish fish factory. Reasonably accurate impersonations, a recount of the story of The Little Mermaid and confirmation of why you wouldn’t want Wout Van Aert at your wedding are all included as Ned’s show highlights the trepidations and triumphs of the world’s biggest cycle race.

Ned said this show is for all fans of cycling, from those who ride often to those who simply like to watch it from time to time.

He said: “This show is for anyone who has seen the tour on the box. I’m not bothered by the level of expertise. That’s down to my journey as well.

“The point of the show is to have fun. The days are getting shorter and it’s a question of bringing us all a bit of July and the Tour de France back into our lives”

Asked about people’s shared love of cycling and France, Ned says this is central to the joy and importance of road racing.

He said: “This is why road racing is distinct and better than any other sport. You cannot separate it from the landscape. That’s not the case when you are watching a hockey match, for example.

“The Tour de France relies on France. It draws its inspiration from the French landscape and that determines the race. For the majority of people that’s the only bike race they will watch all year. And for many people that act of watching France unfold is as important as the bike race itself. When I started commentating I did not quite appreciate quite how important that aspect is so in recent years I’ve started to embrace the 12th century churches on the route.”

To book tickets for Ned Boulting click HERE