£23m boost to transform school run across Greater Manchester
The Government says our streets will become safer and less congested
The school run is about to be transformed across the Greater Manchester as over £23million is set to be invested into walking and cycling routes.
The combined authority's been awarded £23,719,500 by the Department for Transport.
The investment will also boost local economies and generate around 16 million extra walking and cycling trips nationwide.
As well as economical benefits, there will be environmental gains with less congestion on the roads.
Transport Secretary, Mark Harper said:
“We want to make sure everyone across the country can choose cheaper, greener and healthier travel, while we continue to support our high streets and local businesses.”
A country wide package of £200 million, which was announced in February, will deliver a variety of schemes across the UK to make streets around schools safer.
The projects that have been awarded funding have proven they can provide attractive reasons for cycling and walking on local journeys, with local authorities working with people in the area to ensure maximal benefit to the community.
Safety and accessibility are at the heart of the improvements and creation of walking and cycling routes, allowing parents and children walking to schools to be safer and users of wheelchairs and mobility scooters to be included more.
National Active Travel Commissioner Chris Boardman said:
“By giving millions of people the freedom of choice to walk, wheel or cycle for everyday trips, this funding will help us improve public health, tackle climate change and give hundreds of thousands of children the independence to travel safely under their own steam.
“Now our focus is working with councils to get these schemes built swiftly. We’ll be working together to ensure the projects are well designed and effective, so that they bring maximum benefits to communities and help improve lives nationwide.”