AS vice-chair of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal Society, having a professional background in epidemiology and public health, and as a keen cyclist, your report on the 'Pandemic surge in cycling and walking' ticked all my boxes. Could I take the opportunity to add a couple of points to your report?

The first is the obvious need that comes with increased use of the towpath for a heightened sense of social awareness by towpath users.

Previous correspondence in the Keighley News has reported antagonisms between cyclists and walkers on the improved stretch of the towpath into Skipton. Cycling isn't the only potential source of conflict between users. There is the problem of dog walkers that leave little presents of plastic bags along the way, and there is the problem of runners – and occasional walkers – with headphones that block out the sound of the bell of an approaching bike (not to mention the music of bird life). In all cases, as I can testify from my daily cycle ride, it is a significant minority of users that fail to act socially responsibly; but it is their isolated behaviours which tend to stigmatise all of the members within their user group, leading to much wider and completely unnecessary antagonisms between these groups.

The second point is the issue of funding.

Responsibility for maintenance of both canal and towpath rests with the Canal & River Trust. Since its conversion from British Waterways, the trust receives a diminishing level of central funding. Your report quite rightly identified the important role that the canal towpath can play in an integrated transport system. May I add to this the critical role that the towpath does play in improving health and wellbeing. I regularly describe the section of the towpath which runs past our house as 'the best free gym in the world'. But nothing is genuinely free; and the bulk of the revenue collected by the trust currently comes from boaters – another major source of antagonism, as boaters feel that they pay for the upkeep of the towpath. It has been gratifying to see organisations such as Sustrans making a contribution on behalf of cyclists and it has been good to see an increasing awareness from local councils of the general contribution that canals and their towpaths can make to improving the quality of life of communities living close to the towpath (you only have to count the number of photographs that appear each week in the Keighley News featuring the canal to appreciate this). What I would ask is that the canal towpath is seen as an integral component of the public health agenda as much as it is of an integrated transport agenda.

And, of course, we should never forget how much we owe to Barbara Castle, who spent her formative years in Bradford and was later MP for Blackburn on the Leeds and Liverpool Canal, for the continued existence of the British waterway system. As Minister of Transport at the time that canals were in commercial decline, she saw their potential as "leisureways" and ensured their continuation as such (for canal enthusiasts she is thought of as the anti-Beeching). At a time when politics is dominated by short-term expediency, it is important to remember the legacy of those rare politicians with vision.

Colin Thunhurst, trustee, Leeds and Liverpool Canal Society

* Email your letters to alistair.shand@keighleynews.co.uk