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Government announces £10m cycling investment

Government announces £10m cycling investment

News Release issued by the COI News Distribution Service on 09 November 2009

The Government's Cycling Demonstration Towns, the Peak District National Park and sustainable transport charity Sustrans are set to benefit from a £10m package of cycling improvements, Transport Minister Sadiq Khan announced today.

The funding - which is the remaining allocation of the Government's £60m cycling budget for this year - will deliver new parking provisions, designated routes and a range of other enhancements aimed at encouraging more people to cycle.

Results from an evaluation of the original six Cycle Demonstration Towns (Aylesbury, Brighton & Hove, Darlington, Derby, Exeter and Lancaster) show that they are working. The survey found a 27 per cent increase in the number of cycle trips as well as strong evidence of new cyclists taking to the road and demonstrable health benefits.

Transport Minister Sadiq Khan said:

"The new money for the Cycling Demonstration Towns and the Peak District National Park represents a great opportunity for people to join the cycling revolution. By getting more people cycling, we can help tackle congestion and pollution, as well as helping to promote health and fitness.

"I have been hugely pleased with the Cycle Demonstration Town project and these results prove that when you provide the right facilities and support, more people will get on their bikes.

“I am also pleased to announce that we will be providing Sustrans with £6m this year to install cycle parking and build cycling and walking links to schools, making it easier for children, and others living nearby, to travel on foot or by bike.”

Phillip Darnton, Chairman of Cycling England, said:

“This is fantastic news for our demonstration programme. Cycling England and the Department for Transport set out in 2005 with six cycling towns to show that investing in cycling can deliver real impact – in tackling congestion and pollution, and improving health. The results from the original six towns, and the promise shown by the new wave of 11 additional cycling towns and one cycling city alongside other cycling demonstration projects such as the Peak District National Park, give us great confidence we can make a real difference to the travel culture of the UK.”

Also announced today by the DfT was a best practice guide for local authorities. The guide covers a wide range of sustainable travel initiatives that authorities can consider bringing forward as part of their third Local Transport Plans. It also aims to help them choose and deliver measures which are carefully tailored to specific locations and achieve sustainable transport goals.

Notes to Editors:

1. Funding for Cycling Demonstration Towns and Peak District National Park:
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2. The 11 newest Cycling Towns are Blackpool, Cambridge, Colchester, Chester, Leighton-Linslade, Shrewsbury, Southend, Southport, Stoke-on-Trent, Woking and York. The funding of these new areas built on the successes of the six initial Cycling Towns Aylesbury, Brighton and Hove, Darlington, Derby, Exeter, and Lancaster with Morecambe - which gained their status in 2005. “Greater Bristol” is the only Cycling City.

3. The full breakdown of funding from the DfT for the 18 Cycle City and Towns is:

· 2008/9 - £9.5 million

· 2009/10 – £24.5 million

· 2010/11 - £21 million

This funding will be match funded by the local authorities over the project period.

4. The full breakdown of funding for Cycling England is:

· 2008/09 - £20million

· 2009/10 - £60million

· 2010/11 - £60million

5. This programme of funding has been influenced by the very good value for money which cycling projects exhibit. The economic research Cycling England commissioned from consultants SQW is available on Cycling England's website: www.cyclingengland.co.uk

6. Sustrans is the UK’s leading sustainable transport charity. Its vision is a world in which people choose to travel in ways that benefit their health and the environment. It is achieving this through innovative but practical solutions to the UK’s transport challenges.

7. The Links to Schools programme provides infrastructure to support cycling and walking to schools in England by improving or constructing new cycling and walking links between the National Cycle Network and local schools. Local Authorities are required to match fund the grants Sustrans gives them.

8. From 2005 to March 2008, DfT provided £18.2m of funds to Sustrans to use the funding to manage the delivery of Links to Schools and cycle parking in liaison with local authorities and lever match funding from them. In 2008, DfT awarded a further three year grant to Sustrans worth £17.5m to continue this programme and meet the Ministerial commitment to fund links to a further 500 schools by March 2011. Sustrans estimates that the funds will deliver around 300 links to 700 schools. With the additional funds, Sustrans estimates that the funds will deliver around 30 further links to approximately 50 schools. Further information on the Links to Schools programme is available at: http://www.sustrans.org.uk/what-we-do/links-to-schools

9. The full results from the first 6 cycle demonstration towns: Analysis and synthesis of evidence on the effects of investment in six Cycling Demonstration Towns: http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/regional/ltp/localtransportinitiatives/demotowns/

10. Delivering Sustainable Low Carbon Travel: An Essential Guide for Local Authorities: http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/regional/ltp/localtransportinitiatives/demotowns

Press Enquires: 020 7944 3066 Out of Hours: 020 7944 4292 Public Enquiries: 0300 330 3000 Department for Transport Website: http://www.dft.gov.uk

Contacts:

Local Transport
Phone: 020 7944 3066
nds.dft@coi.gsi.gov.uk

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