Mallaig Pool and Leisure gains £10,000 for bike scheme Spean Bridge business recognised by AA again

The first winners of the £2million Smarter Choices Smarter Places Open Fund have been announced by Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity Michael Matheson, and included is the Mallaig Pool and Leisure charity and social enterprise group.

Mallaig Pool and Leisure is to get £10,000 towards its ‘On your Bike Mallaig’ project, which involves the development of an active travel hub in Mallaig, along with the delivery of organised bike rides and bike maintenance sessions to encourage more people to utilise cycling and walking for their everyday journeys.

Community awareness and engagement will be increased by targeting the communities of Mallaig, Morar and Arisaig.

The open fund provides match funding grants between £5,000 and £50,000 to public, third and community sector organisations that seek to transform people’s everyday travel behaviour to more sustainable modes of transport.

The scheme opened in June 2018 and so far 11 winners having been awarded a total of £210,000 across rural, urban and island locations.

The open fund is delivered in partnership with Paths for All, which continues to receive innovative applications which will encourage people to adopt greener and healthier travel options.

Mr Matheson announced the first recipients of the money during the Transport Scotland Bus and Active Travel Summit in Edinburgh recently.

He said: ‘I’m proud that the funding from this government has supported a variety of organisations across Scotland.

‘Even in its first few months the fund is already creating new opportunities for people to walk and cycle for everyday short journeys and to choose sustainable options for longer journeys.’