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:
http://nds.coi.gov.uk/clientmicrosite/ImageLibrary/Detail.aspx?ClientId=202&NewsAreaId=28&MediaDetailsID=922&SubjectId=37
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