The 'empowering' night time bike ride calling for women's safety on the roads

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

More than 100 women will take their bikes onto the dark streets of Manchester for a ride to raise awareness about cycling safety.

Participants will be making as much noise as they can through music, whistles and chants in a scheme that has been set up to address women's worries and gender disparity.

The ride will start from Manchester Metropolitan's All Saints Park at 4pm on Saturday 9 November. Organisers of the event are calling for a cultural shift to address the underrepresentation of women on the roads. READ MORE: Train operator under fire over cancellations unveils plan to get commuters moving - on buses This is the second year the ride will be taking place with 60 cyclists joining the group around the same time last year for its inauguration.

Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, Anna Smith, co-organiser and Station South Cycling Community Coordinator said: "The reason why we started this last year was because we came across a lot of women who said they completely stopped cycling in winter because of the darkness and that they don't feel safe on any of the roads and particularly parks or traffic-free routes. "We originally started to empower women, embrace the darkness and reclaim the night.