Pedal on Parliament: Cyclists ride in memory of Emma Burke Newman

A group of cyclists pedalled from Glasgow to Edinburgh in memory of Emma Burke Newman, who was killed while cycling in Glasgow this year.

A dozen men and women headed off from George Square, early on Saturday morning for the capital to join thousands more for the Pedal on Parliament (PoP) event, calling for safer streets for cycling.

Led by the feeder ride organiser, Graeme Cook, they paused to pay tribute at Emma’s white bike memorial, on Broomielaw, close to where Emma died in January in a collision with a truck.

The Glasgow feeder group ranged in age from twenty-somethings to cyclists in their seventies.

They travelled east on roads and cycle paths through the city, passing towns in Lanarkshire and West Lothian before reaching the streets of Edinburgh around lunchtime.

Adam Otterson, 23, from Bishopbriggs, was attending his first Pedal on Parliament.

He said: “The main push for me to do this was seeing Emma’s white bike.

“I ride past there all the time and realised it could be me. I’m here to highlight safety for cyclists and meet other like-minded people.”

David Brennan, 49, from Torrance, helped organise the first PoP event in 2012.

He said: “The roads didn’t feel safe and there was little investment from the government for infrastructure and it wasn’t taken seriously.

“There was a similar event in London, and we wanted to do something here.

“Eleven years later things have improved but there are still problems. Some local authorities are still not investing.”

Tricia Fort, 72, from Glasgow has been cycling since the age of seven. She and her husband George did the ride through, from Glasgow to Edinburgh.

It is her fourth PoP which has become a family event with her son and granddaughter also at the Edinburgh event outside the Scottish Parliament.

Tricia said: “Everyone should be able to enjoy cycling”.

At the rally, some of the Glasgow cyclists met with a group of Emma’s friends who had travelled to Edinburgh.

Among the speakers, calling for action and investment to make cycling safe, was Shellie Holubek, a family friend of Emma Burke Newman.

Photo by Iona Shepherd

She said: “Emma Burke Newman was a star in every sense. She was a brilliant student, a warm and loving friend. Her smile was luminous.

Shellie added: “Her bike represented her freedom. To think Emma’s light has been extinguished is too much to bear.

“That she died on her bike was a real injustice, she was unjustly taken from us.”

Shellie called on all politicians, government and councils in Scotland to re-commit to “safer streets for all".

Of the Scottish Government, Humza Yousaf, Anas Sarwar, Partick Harvie, Glasgow City Council and many more, she demanded “no backpedalling”.

Sally Hinchcliffe, from Pedal on Parliament, said: “When we started Pedal on Parliament in 2012 with the support of the parents of Andrew McNicoll, killed on the streets of Edinburgh, we didn't think we'd still need to be here, over a decade later, standing in solidarity with the parents of another young cyclist killed on the streets of a Scottish city.

“Much has changed in that time, but so much remains to be done, and every moment's delay risks more injuries and more bereavements.”