Thursday February 19th 2026
Cyclists on the South City Way
Written by Glasgow View Reporter, Liam Eunson
Over a 48‑hour period in September 2025, Cycling Scotland surveys recorded 5,287 bikes on Victoria Road as part of the South City Way.
This was out of a total of 32,894 travel methods recorded, meaning that 16% of people cycled their journey.
And, for the first time, the surveys showed bikes outnumbering cars at both rush‑hour peaks (8-9am and 5-6pm) on Victoria Road, averaging 334 bikes to 270 cars.
Across Glasgow, the survey data tells a similar story across other protected routes.
On Clyde Street in the city centre, 3,065 bikes were recorded over the two-day survey period, where the South City Way meets a new, protected on-street cycle lane. Bikes represented 12% of all journeys on at this location.
In the West End, 1,681 bikes were recorded over the two-day period on the bottom half of Byres Road, where phase one redevelopment works, including protected cycle lanes, are now complete. Garscube Road saw 1,636 cycle journeys recorded in the same period, where a 1km protected bidirectional cycle lane connects Maryhill to the city centre.
Across all locations, strong morning and evening peaks indicate that people are using these routes for everyday trips such as commuting to and from work.
The Cycling Scotland surveys also show that where protected lanes exist, almost everyone cycling chooses to use them rather than cycling on-road, with 98% doing so on Victoria Road and 96% on Byres Road.
This momentum is reinforced by long‑term fixed counter data, which shows cycling levels continuing to rise across Glasgow’s network.
In the southside, counters located at the junctions of Victoria Road with Calder Street and Alison Street on the northbound and southbound cycle lanes of the South City Way, recorded a combined 131,324 cycle journeys over the full month of September 2025, compared to 70,827 over September 2021 – an increase of 85%.
13,487 cycle journeys were recorded on the South West City Way route in September 2025, compared to 6,241 in September 2021 – an increase of 116%. This follows completion of the route extension in 2024.
At the eastern end of the city’s East City Way route, cycling levels grew by 81% from 1,246 cycle journeys in September 2021 to 2,257 in September 2025. This follows improvements made to several sections of the route, which is still under development and will ultimately connect communities in the East End to the city centre via Glasgow Green.
Taken together, the Cycling Scotland survey findings and counter data show that investment in safe, high‑quality cycling infrastructure is encouraging significantly more people across Glasgow to choose active, sustainable travel.
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