Cycling Group Turns Other Cheek

Here's one I don't know WHAT to make of: The European Cycling Federation, last week snubbed by Budapest City Hall, which decided to renege on its commitment to host the ECF's 2013 Velo-City conference, is now showering the Hungarians with praise.

According to a Tuesday press release from the ECF, in its use of EU transport subsidies, Hungary spends about twice as much on cycling as the average country. My first question is, "Where's all the money going?" Maybe there are some fantastic cycling routes in the hinterland that I'm not aware of. But judging by the main ones, as in the government's self-declared top-priority routes -- the Eurovelo 6 and the circuit around Balaton -- the money has not yielded great results.

The second question is, "Why is the ECF showering Hungary with praise just now?" As I noted in my previous post, Budapest last year had won the honor of hosting the ECF's biannual conference, Velo-City, in 2013, but last Friday, the Tarlos administration renegged on the deal, citing an unspecified legal problem.

Then, just as the ECF scratched Budapest from the Velo-City conference page on its website, here comes a press release with the organisation's president, Bernie Ensink (right in photo), shaking the hand of Hungarian Tourism Minister Endre Horvath (sorry: Doctor Endre Horvath -- other guy in photo), and a message congratulating him on Hungary's outstanding record on cycling spending.

Of course, we have to recognise that Budapest City Hall IS NOT the Hungarian government (even if they're both run by the same party). At any rate, it sure seems sporting of the ECF. It can't be a small effort to identify a host city for an event as huge as Velo-City (400-500 guests, EUR 400,000 cost). At present, according to ECF's site, the host application process is reopened and starting from scratch. Maybe ECF is hoping the public kudos they've bestowed on the Hungarian government will inspire Budapest City Hall to rethink its withdrawal from such a prestigious cycling event.

Conference Veto a Bad Sign

Budapest won't host the Velo-City bicycling conference in 2013, according to a notice posted on the Hungarian Cyclists Club website on Friday.

Club President János László explained in the notice that the conference owner, the European Cycling Federation, and Budapest City Hall could not agree on a legal matter in the hosting contract. Details weren't given but the consensus among speculators at criticalmass.hu is that the new regime at Budapest City Hall simply doesn't consider bicycling enough of a priority.

Velo-city, held every two years, is the biggest conference in Europe dedicated to the promotion of cycling as a lifestyle and means of transport, gathering hundreds of transport planners and experts from city administrations and advocates from civil society. It routinely features top international speakers in the field of sustainable transport, with recent examples being Janette Sadik-Khan, of New York's Transportation Department; former Bogota Mayor Enrique Penalosa and Danish urban planner Jan Gehl.

For host cities, Velo-City is a chance to demonstrate work they've done and commitment they've made to mainstream cycling into their transport networks. Recent hosts have included Copenhagen, Brussels and Munich.

The Hungarian Cycling Club has been working to get the conference in Budapest for some time. The city made the short list to host in 2011 but lost to Seville. It won the bid for 2013 and, as of this writing, was still down on the ECF's website as the "decided" host for that year's event.

But these plans were made during Budapest's previous administration, and now that a different mayor is in charge, István Tarlos, the plan is off. The event apparently costs around EUR 400,000 to pull off, which is not a minor expense. Admission and exhibition fees bring in revenue but the city has to guarantee full coverage -- as it should. Hosting Velo-city is a privilege; it's an excellent promotion of the city's livability and progressive approach to urban transport.

However, the Tarlos administration apparently doesn't think it's worth the effort. I can remember well when Mayor Demszky gave a similar rebuff to cyclists back in 2005, announcing that it wasn't worth investing further in bike paths when existing ones weren't used. In the ensuing years, the crowds at Critical Mass grew into the tens of thousands and and everyday cycling grew increasingly popular, despite lack of help from City Hall. The mayor eventually changed his tone, in words at least. We didn't get as much investment as we wanted, but it was clear that the mayor came to respect cyclists as a tenacious and estimable lobbying group.

Local bike bloggers are already looking forward to this spring's Critical Mass, and how we can reassert ourselves in city politics. A couple writers mentioned setting on a focussed, concrete political aim: like getting cycling lanes or tracks around the nagykörút. This is a good idea, one I've favoured for years. I'm also hoping the new mayor's indifferent attitude toward cycling will provoke a turnout that's impossible to ignore.