The Mayor of London has just launched the consultation for a 2050 infrastructure plan. Lots of indicative diagrams for new orbital train networks, underground ring roads, new bridges over the river, cross-city rapid rail lines and extensions to the tube. Nothing much for cycling though. A few mentions of planning to upgrade the existing cycle infrastructure, but no pictures of an aspirational 2050 network, or a narrative explaining how a number of piecemeal projects link up to a cohesive vision. (I think, I only scanned the document.)
Just wondering if anyone had any thoughts/research on why cycling tends to get left out of these grand visions? There have been a few recent proposals for utopian schemes released by the Mayor, such as elevated cycle routes strung alongside train lines. These were generally received as quite impractical and relatively expensive ways to support cycling. But I can't see why they are less plausible than proposals for completely new underground road and rail.
Any thoughts on why or how different modes of transport gain the institutional-societal capacity to produce bigger dreams, and why this isn't happening with cycling?
https://www.london.gov.uk/priorities/business-economy/vision-and-strategy/infrastructure-plan-2050
Pete