Team Blitz India
LONDON: Newly funded projects have been initiated to provide more people in the UK, especially in rural and deprived areas, the choice to travel by walking, wheeling or cycling, announced Active Travel England (ATE) recently.
Communities across England will benefit from £101 million of Government funding for high-quality walking and cycling routes.
This is aimed at improving the quality of local public engagement for new walking and cycling schemes, apart from free e-cycle loans, expanding trials of side road zebra crossings, and developing new active travel routes in national parks, Government agency ATE announced on March 23.
While the new funding will enable local authorities to deliver walking and cycling schemes, dedicated funding has also been issued to help councils undertake proper consultation with local communities.
Together, these measures will unlock sustainable transport options for millions more people across England and give people the choice to travel safely on foot or by cycle. It will particularly benefit people living in deprived or rural areas with almost half of funding going to deprived communities.
The schemes, funded by ATE, have been designed to benefit all communities, and local authorities will work closely with residents to ensure they are attractive and inclusive for all. ATE has also today announced a £200,000 expansion of trials into simple zebra crossings of side roads.
A survey in 2021 found that almost eight in 10 parents would feel safer about their child walking to school if there were zebra crossings on side roads. According to National Travel Survey, in 2022, 50 per cent of trips to school were by walking or cycling (children aged 5 to 16).
