Nearly £5 million of government funding has been allocated to the West of England (WoE) councils to encourage more sustainable travel across the region.
A further £6 million of local contributions from councils, businesses, voluntary and not-for-profit organisations means a total of over £11 million will be spent over the next two years to make it easier and safer for commuters to get to work, reduce carbon emissions and ease congestion during peak hours.
The money was granted to us and the three other WoE authorities (Bath & North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset) after a successful bid to Westminster’s Local Sustainable Transport Fund.
It will focus on improving key traffic hotspots that carry about 40% of people’s journeys to the workplace. In our district this includes Yate, North Fringe, Cribbs Causeway and Aztec West.
A business representative from the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) Board will be working closely on the project, helping to maintain the strong links between the councils and the private sector as they work together to tackle congestion.
This project is part of a larger, more comprehensive West of England wide ‘large project’ bid to the Local Sustainable Transport Fund. Initial proposals were submitted in early June and we are waiting to hear if this bid for a further £25 million (for spending up to March 2015) will be taken any further.
July 2011