The Government has reduced funding for active travel projects to local councils by nearly £200 million.
In a written ministerial statement, the Department for Transport confirmed that funding for projects, including improved cycling infrastructure and low- traffic neighbourhoods, had been reduced by an estimated £200 million.
Previously, the Government had stated that active travel investment would have a particular focus on boosting the number of children walking or cycling to school.
In the 2021 Spending Review, an additional £710 million was announced for segregated cycle lanes, to provide cycle training for every child, and deliver an e-bike support programme to make cycling more accessible.
It was announced that this package would also include funding to build hundreds of miles of high-quality cycle lanes and deliver walking schemes, as well as changes to The Highway Code.
An LGA spokesperson said: “It is very disappointing that the Government is set to cut future funding for active travel by nearly £200 million.
“Councils have been at the forefront in creating new schemes, have embraced the Government’s ambition that 50 per cent of all journeys in English towns and cities are walked or cycled by 2030, and for the UK to be net zero by 2050.
“Investment in cycling and walking is vital if we are to improve public health, tackle climate change and reduce congestion, and the Government should urgently restore this much- needed funding.”
