County to get a £1.8m slice of pie to build walking and cycling lanes

STAFFORDSHIRE is to benefit from a £1.8million emergency active travel grant for fast-track plans for new walking and cycling lanes.

Communities across the county will benefit from the government funding to make roads safer for pedestrians and cyclists.

The area has been allocated its share of the £250million announced earlier this month to fast-track plans for new walking and cycling lanes.

This includes £25million which will fund vouchers for cycle repairs, to encourage people to get their old bikes out of the shed and resume cycling.

Following unprecedented levels of walking and cycling across the country during the pandemic, these plans will help encourage more people to choose alternatives to public transport when they need to travel, making healthier habits easier and helping make sure the road, bus and rail networks are ready to respond to future increases in demand.

Measures to boost greener, active transport could include:

▶ Pop-up bike lanes with protected space for cycling; ▶ Wider pavements;

▶ Safer junctions;

▶ Cycle and bus-only corridors.

An updated Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy will be launched by the Prime Minister in the summer, with further measures to transform cycling and walking to deliver the government’s aims to double cycling and increase walking by 2025.

Moorlands MP Karen Bradley said: “People across this country have played their part in helping to defeat coronavirus – with many playing their part by avoiding taking public transport.

“It is vitally important that we continue to stay alert. These new walking and cycle lanes will help to ensure we can control the virus by avoiding overcrowding on public transport, while keeping our roads free from becoming too congested.”