Cycle policies take a battering

Date: 23/10/1997

Entre Nous has in recent weeks revealed that both the European Commission and European Parliament seem rather more committed in theory than in practice to the idea of encouraging staff to leave their cars at home and cycle to work.

Up until now, however, it seemed that the main reason why attempts to bring in bicycle-friendly policies had met with somewhat limited success was simple bureaucratic incompetence.

But things have now taken a decidedly sinister turn with evidence emerging of attempts actively to sabotage the two-wheeled endeavours of eco-friendly Eurocrats.

Last week, Enrique Lopez Vega - chef de cabinet to European Parliament President José María Gil-Robles - was hit on the head by a barrier as he tried to cycle into the new European Parliament car park.

The blow was so serious that Lopez was actually knocked to the ground. To make matters worse, Parliament security guards who witnessed the incident apparently offered no assistance and appeared totally unconcerned by what had happened.