GM Cycling and Walking Commissioner welcomes government active travel plans

Greater Manchester Cycling and Walking Commissioner, Chris Boardman, has welcomed the Prime Minister’s recent announcement to invest £2 billion to support active travel.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has announced plans including thousands of miles of new protected bike lanes, cycle training for everyone and bikes available on prescription.

The new plan aims to build on the significant increase in the number of people cycling during the pandemic – with the weekday cycling peak reaching 200,000 trips in Greater Manchester, an average 16% increase on pre-lockdown levels.

The announcement comes following a report showing how Greater Manchester’s proposed cycling and walking network can help tackle the climate emergency, inactivity and traffic congestion.

Chris Boardman, Greater Manchester’s Cycling and Walking Commissioner said:

This is the biggest step forward for active travel that I have seen in my lifetime. For the past few months we’ve effectively had a global consultation by turning off traffic overnight and by doing this we showed that people will choose to ride bikes when they feel safe.

“The widespread commitments in this plan aim to build on that and demonstrate the bold leadership needed to achieve the active travel ‘revolution’ the prime minister has promised.

“Creating a true cultural shift where cycling and walking is the default way to travel and parents are happy for their children to ride to school, requires far more than simply building bike lanes and the variety of measures laid out in these plans reflect the importance of increasing access to bikes, making local roads safer and improving air quality. 

“Since 2017 and the publication of our Made to Move report, we’ve been leading the way for active travel nationally and we hope this announcement will unlock the investment and additional powers needed to enable our ten councils to realise the full potential of these plans.”  

Plans for active travel proposed by the Prime Minister include:

• Installation of more cycle racks in transport hubs and urban centres
• Funding for cycle training for children and adults in England
• Construction of thousands of miles of protected cycle routes in town and cities and establishing a new inspectorate to deliver higher standards for infrastructure
• Boosting investment through a long-term cycling programme and budget
• Strengthening the Highway Code to better protect cyclists and pedestrians
• Empower local authorities to tackle traffic offences
• Create more low traffic neighbourhoods to improve air quality
• Allow GPs to prescribe cycling in areas with poor health rates to encourage healthier living
• Increasing access to e-bike nationwide for older or less fit members of the community.