Is the 'birthplace of the bike' cyclist friendly?
They are proud in south-west Scotland of the pioneer of two-wheeled travel, Kirkpatrick Macmillan.
A plaque in the village of Kier celebrates him as builder of the first bicycle, a bridge is named after him in Dumfries and a sculpture was recently unveiled in his honour in Stranraer.
However, modern-day cyclists fear the area - which promotes itself as the "birthplace of the bicycle" - is selling them short.
They have highlighted "missing links" in routes for riders which they say, if filled, could transform travel.
Sally Hinchcliffe, convener of Cycling Dumfries, organised a "riding of the missing links" on Friday to highlight all the "gaps in the cycle network".
The hope is that it will become an annual event to show where progress "has or hasn't been made".
She said there were a range of issues which faced cyclists.
"Sometimes it's just a crossing where you have to wait ages to get the light," she said.
"Sometimes it's where the path just ends and then you're dumped out onto the road.
"There are places where there are busy, busy roads - like the Annan Road and the Lockerbie Road - where there's just nothing for bikes at all.
"And there's the Morrisons roundabout on the Brooms Road, which is where so many people have told us they've been knocked off their bikes."
She said there was frustration that the routes provided did not join up properly.
"It's a mixture of inconvenience, disconnection and places where it's actually really quite dangerous to cycle," she said.
Sally said there were some simple fixes that could provide big wins for cyclists but need not have an adverse effect on other road users.
"Some of them actually would have no impact at all on cars," she said.
"In other cases, for every person you get out of your car and onto a bike, it just cuts down traffic.
"It cuts down the need for parking spaces - we're not going to have to build more car parks."
She said things like the school run could become "easier for everyone" the more cars you took off the road.
At present, though, she said there were too many obstacles put in the way of cyclists - including a national cycle route on the Whitesands which did not join up with the town centre.
"We're just not welcoming people into the birthplace of the bike," she said.
"And that's just a shame for everyone."
Cycling Dumfries hopes its highlighting of these missing links - contained in a detailed report - can encourage action from Dumfries and Galloway Council.
"We've seen so many reports come and go and they just sit on a shelf," said Sally.
"We just want to remind them that they've got this great report that we've done for them and that hopefully they can start to think about what they can do to close the gaps."
A council statement said increasing levels of "walking, wheeling and cycling" were important in meeting its transport targets and objectives in its latest five-year plan.
"Improving connectivity and sustainable travel in the region is a long-term process which requires a strategic approach," it said.
"We rely on feedback gained through engagement with members of the public, businesses and other community groups to decide which projects move from design concepts through to build completion."
It said many of the issues detailed in the "missing links" report had already been identified by the council and it was working with others to "find appropriate options for each area".
