Cyclists have slammed a picture of children in face masks protesting against pollution as “ridiculous propaganda” that “has no logic to it.”

Ham & High: Cyclists training in Regents ParkCyclists training in Regents Park (Image: Archant)

As reported in the Ham&High, a group of pupils and parents from Hampstead schools donned facemasks and staged a protest last week outside St Stephen’s former church, in Rosslyn Hill, to protest against pollution that was “choking them.”

They claim that the HS2 scheme and CS11 cycle superhighway will bring hundreds of extra cars and HGVs into the narrow streets of Hampstead and urged the schemes to be stopped.

But Justin McKie, of Regents Park Cyclists, who lives in Belsize Park, said: “I find it very distasteful that a photo of kids in face masks, which were in fact surgical masks and would do nothing to filter out pollution, was used in a propaganda fashion to protest at the CS11 scheme.

“Because of the adjustment made to CS11 plans, I do not believe that the mass displacement of traffic because of CS11 will happen. The issue is that hundreds of parents get into their cars every day to take their children to school. There needs to be an incentive for these people to use alternative methods of transport.”

https://twitter.com/Privatecarfree/status/842660871579062272

“It is also illogical. The aim of the Cycle SuperHighways are to encourage cycling and reduce pollution.

The picture and story caused a storm on twitter with parents and cyclists calling for reductions to the school run traffic.

Rosalind Readhead tweeted: “Kids exposed to roughly 2.5 more airpollution inside a car.”

Sandy Markwick‏ tweeted: “How many of these kids’ parents drive to school when could take bus or walk? CS11 not the prob

Read more in next week’s Ham&High, out on March 23.