New initiative to encourage cycling in the borough
Around 250 new cycle parking stands have been installed across the borough to encourage people to ditch cars for greener ways of travelling.
The stands are in town centres, parks and open spaces to provide safe places for people to lock up their bicycles while out and about.
The cash for the initiative has been secured from the government’s Emergency Active Travel Fund. The fund was put in place to support local authorities with schemes which encourage walking or cycling.
Councillor Karen Shakespeare, cabinet member for public realm, said:
“We welcome this funding from the government, which is being put to very good use.
“During lockdown we have seen a lot more people out across the borough cycling, and we are keen to continue to encourage this as we begin to start moving back to some kind of normality.
“This brings obvious health benefits to individuals, but also helps reduce congestion on our roads and improves air quality.
“Having extra parking facilities for bicycles will help encourage people to travel in more environmentally-friendly ways. It will give them somewhere to lock up their bikes when they get there, whether it is for shopping in our town centres or enjoying our parks and green open spaces.”