Welsh government commits £75m investment to get more people walking and cycling

Saturday, 20 March 2021 00:01

Active travel schemes in Wales announced today will receive a funding boost of more than £53m this year as part of further efforts to encourage healthy travel - with more than £20m to follow. The dedicated budget for active travel has risen from £5m since the start of this Welsh Government term, which Lee Waters has described as evidence of the Welsh Government’s commitment to delivering the vision in its new transport...Request free trial

Active travel schemes in Wales announced today will receive a funding boost of more than £53m this year as part of further efforts to encourage healthy travel - with more than £20m to follow.

The dedicated budget for active travel has risen from £5m since the start of this Welsh Government term, which Lee Waters has described as evidence of the Welsh Government’s commitment to delivering the vision in its new transport strategy.

‘Llwybr Newydd’ was published yesterday and pledges a bold increase in the number of people using public transport, walking and cycling.

44 larger schemes and packages of schemes in local authorities will be funded through the first tranche of the Active Travel Fund this year, worth £47m. Included in this sum is also a £14m ‘core allocation’ shared among all local authorities.

A further £20m will be allocated later in the year to support more schemes.

In addition, pupils will be helped to get to school through the Safe Routes in Communties grant – now worth £6.4m. This will support 21 schemes across Wales and has a focus on creating safe walking and cycling routes around schools.

The investment in active travel forms part of funding package worth more than £210m to support the new transport strategy.

Lee Waters, Deputy Minister for Economy and Transport, said:

“Over the past five years we’ve been able to dramatically increase the amount we spend on active travel, and this shows our commitment to taking forward the vision we outlined in our new transport strategy.

“Before the establishment of the dedicated Active Travel Fund, active travel projects not focused on schools had to compete for general local transport grant funding, without a set budget. The Active Travel Fund has grown since 2018 from its initial £10m to £70m for 2021/22.

“Continuing our funding to create safe routes to schools is particularly important as we know that embedding healthy travel habits early leads to lasting benefits.

“Our investment will lead to better connected towns and cities and contributes to efforts to tackle the climate emergency, cut congestion, improve public health and clean up our air quality.”

Notes to editors

Funding refers to the 2021-22 financial year.

A full list of schemes, broken down by local authority, is available here: https://gov.wales/active-travel-fund-grants-awarded-2021-2022 / https://llyw.cymru/teithio-llesol-grantiau-ddyfarnwyd-yn-2021-i-2022

Llwybr Newydd can be seen here: https://gov.wales/llwybr-newydd-wales-transport-strategy-2021 / https://llyw.cymru/llwybr-newydd-strategaeth-drafnidiaeth-cymru-2021

Selected schemes can be seen below:

The Cardiff Cycleways project will receive almost £5m in funding, with a further £1.2m provided to create safe routes around four schools.

In Carmarthenshire £1.8m will progress work on the ‘Llanelli Masterplan’ through the provision of a new pedestrian and cycle bridge, and new and improved paths.

Conwy Council will receive £490,000 for a 4km off-carriageway cycle link between Towyn and the south of Kinmel Bay.

£800,000 has been allocated to Flintshire Council for the continuation of the A5104 Chester Road cycle facility, as well as the Sandycroft to Broughton link.

Llandrindod Wells will benefit from a shared use path linking Waterloo Road to Ddole Rd Enterprise Park through the allocation of £433,000, while a further £500,000 has also been allocated to Powys County Council for scheme development for Newtown Bridge (3^rd crossing).

Access at Newport train station and to the city centre will be improved through the delivery of a new pedestrian and cycle bridge across the railway, with a funding commitment of £8.9m.

A new footbridge will also be installed at Ystrad Station in Rhondda Cynon Taf, providing connectivity over the railway line with a Welsh Government contribution of £1.8m.

Over the course of this Welsh Government term active travel spend has increased from a dedicated annual budget of £5m - through the Safe Routes in Communities grant - to the current level of £75m. This growth has been driven by the establishment of the Active Travel Fund.