Plan to get more bikes on road wobbles as UK tackles obesity

LONDON (AP) — A plan by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to get more Britons cycling has got off to a rocky start, with a website offering bicycle repair vouchers crashing at launch.

The “fix your bike” vouchers worth up to 50 pounds ($65) are offered as part of the government’s 2-billion-pound plan to boost active travel. Johnson is simultaneously leading a crackdown on obesity, after a report published last week by Public Health England found that being overweight or obese can dramatically increase the risk of hospitalization and death from the coronavirus.

Johnson himself - who was hospitalized in intensive care with COVID-19 in April - admitted Monday that he was “too fat” and has long struggled with his own weight. In a video released to launch the government’s anti-obesity strategy, Johnson said he had lost at least 14 pounds after recovering from coronavirus, and urged Britons to follow his lead.

The government launched its offer of bike repair vouchers Wednesday, but a Transport Department statement said the website had been taken offline “following high levels of interest.”

Officials said the vouchers are being released gradually to ensure cycle repair shops can cope with the demand.

Government figures show there has been a surge in cycling following the coronavirus outbreak, with bike usage on roads in July nearly doubling that in March. Officials want to do more: family doctors in some areas are being encouraged to prescribe bike rides, with patients given access to bikes.

Britain is among countries with the highest obesity rate in Europe, and researchers leading a large-scale coronavirus symptom study said Tuesday that lockdown conditions have worsened the country's obesity problem.

Data released Tuesday by the team behind the Covid...