Eco-commutting (a walk on the wild side)

I have over the years tried various alternative transport arrangements to get me to and from work, including Diesel, Hydrogen assist, LPG and electric vehicles. This morning, or arther yesterday night I decided I would cycle into work today. Human powered ultimate in green living. And so it was that powered only by a single banana I set off for the first time this year to commute to work on the trusty iron horse.
What a bloody idiot. We've had no frost for weeks, and I pick the one morning when the thermometer has plummetted and there's ice on the ground as I set off. I'd only done half a mile when I almost turned back for some gloves - dressed in shorts and T shirt with a thin hoody top I was warm enough in myself but my hands were freezing. However all discomfort was forgotten as nature put on a dazzling morning display with the rising sun (it was just after 5 a. m.) setting the fluffy white clouds aflame and a lone stag appearing alongside the disused railway track I cycle down. Against the backdrop of Kelsey Lake with the mist burning off the still water, it was a sight to behold. If I was at all poetry inclined I'd write much better prose, but I'm not, so all I'll say is it was bloody beautiful, a moment frozen in time as I stopped to watch the stag, and he watched right back. It was almost like nature was tipping her hat in a thank you to me for not using the diesel car this morning, and worth the £2.20 I saved in fuel over the 20 mile return trip.
If I was younger and fitter and had more hours in my day I'd cycle every day, but practicalities mean that's not really on. The track is treacherous in the dark for a start, what with potholes and muggers at the City end, and during the summer stolen mopeds are raced recklessly at you as you try to avoid the broken bottle glass strewn across the paved section at that end. But leave the city behind, and travel the East Riding section and nature abounds. The whole track could be so different. It is a straight run, almost all on the level and the right of way extends from Hull to Withernsea. With a little investment a light railway or electric tram/monorail or similar could serve commuters and tourist to and from Withernsea, with a cycle track properly maintained running alongside, verges trimmed back a little and replanted with wild flowers, and the little copses and glades maintained and seeded....... it could be a real wildlife haven stretching from city to coast. As it is the city end is a mess, and the county end is a poorly maintained and haphazard haven which supports some wildlife purely by chance.
20 years ago I was posted to Bruche, near Warrington, where a similar old railway line had been sympathetically and sensitively transformed into a little paradise, and I never once visited it without seeing it teeming with wildlife and being enjoyed by cyclists, hikers, picknickers and families. So a message to Hull City and East Riding of Yorkshire Councils - get your acts together, get some lottery funding and do something with the goldmine on your doorstep. Even if it means getting the Community Service bad lads out here planting bulbs and trimming verges - do it, because it might just encourgae more to get on their bikes and enjoy the countryside.