Government gives Lincolnshire County Council £799,900 for new active travel and road congestion projects

It is the second round of a funding stream directed at projects which tackle traffic congestion and encourage people to choose walking and cycling for their day-to-day journeys.

Councillor Richard Davies, executive member for highways, said: “Through these two funding allocations, we're looking at an extra £900,000 to help further our plans to make walking and cycling easier in Lincolnshire.

“But the crucial thing is this cash won't just benefit walkers and cyclists. For every journey we can make active travel a viable option for, we'll take a car off the road, reducing congestion and pollution for all of us.”

Possible uses of the money include measures such as ‘school streets', where roads around schools are closed to motorists at peak times.

The council could also look to improve pedestrian walkways, create segregated cycle lanes, or implement low traffic neighbourhoods, where residential side streets are closed to through traffic.

Research cited by the DfT found that 78 per cent people in England supported measures to reduce traffic in their neighbourhoods, and 65 per cent supported reallocating road space for walking and cycling.

The council received £105,500 in the first round of funding and invested in new cycle parking across the county, pop-up cycle lanes in Lincoln, and the part-pedestrianisation of Horncastle Market Place.

Coun Davies said: “With no restrictive timescale to spend second round cash, we can consult on and amend plans with local people to ensure they have the most benefit for communities, and get the biggest buy-in.”

The council will publish information about potential new schemes soon. In the meantime, anyone can submit ideas for pavement widening, new cycleways or road closures at widenmypath.com.

Data from fitness app Strava recently revealed that more than 16,000 more cyclists took to Lincolnshire's roads in 2020, compared with 2019, including 2,000 more regular commutes each month.

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