I write to you regarding Royston Smith MP's letter of 29 July 2020.

He says that he wants "a city which has clean air and sustainable transport options", and then the only options he suggests to achieve this are more e-bicycles and relaxing rules on e-scooters.

How would e-bicycles and e-scooters help people traverse the city without expanded cycle infrastructure?

They wouldn't.

You just have to look at the yellow bicycles for hire by YoBike which were seen across the city in 2017.

Now, those bikes are completely gone from our city, while remaining in cities like Bristol which have more cycle infrastructure.

Introducing more affordable bikes and scooters doesn't make a city easier to sustainably traverse, and forcing people who have hired their first scooter or bike on to the road with motorists who (as far as I can see from these letter pages) don't care about anyone but themselves is a recipe for deaths and major injuries, placing an even higher burden on an already busy NHS.

The idea of introducing bicycles and scooters for easy hire - whether electric or otherwise - is a laudable one.

But it's myopic to imagine this will fix Southampton's issues without expanding cycle infastructure.

By introducing places it's safe to use them, e-bicycles and e-scooters could be a huge boon both locally and nationally, but the suggestion that they alone are the answer is a worryingly short-sighted view.

John Coxon

Through website