South West cash for cycling and walking schemes

The government said safety and accessibility would be at the heart of the work

Communities in south-west England are set to benefit from £23.1m of government funding for cycling and walking schemes.

The government said the schemes were aimed at helping local economies and transforming the school run.

Money from the Active Travel Fund will go to local authorities in Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Dorset.

The investment will see 49 schemes delivered across the region.

The government said Barnstaple and Ilfracombe in Devon would see an unused railway track converted into a walking and cycling route to connect rural communities.

The plans are aimed at helping to ease congestion and improving people's mental and physical health and wellbeing, which in turn is hoped to relieve pressure on the NHS.

The country-wide £200m package was first announced in February of this year,.

'Cheaper, greener, healthier'

Transport secretary Mark Harper said the government wanted to make sure everyone across the country could choose "cheaper, greener and healthier travel".

He said: "This £200m investment will improve road safety, ease congestion across the South West and on public transport, and ultimately improve the health and wellbeing of the millions of people choosing active travel."

National Active Travel commissioner Chris Boardman said the funding would help to "improve public health, tackle climate change and give hundreds of thousands of children the independence to travel safely under their own steam."

The government said safety and accessibility would be at the heart of the work, meaning safety for women and children walking to school would be improved and people in wheelchairs and mobility scooters would see street designs become more inclusive.

Funding allocations

Cornwall Unitary Authority - £500,000

Isles of Scilly - £11,000

Plymouth Unitary Authority - £2,480,000

Devon County Council - £1,825,000

Torbay Unitary Authority - £237,366

Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole Unitary Authority - £3,780,000

Dorset Unitary Authority - £1,978,000

Gloucestershire County Council - £5,365,000

North Somerset Unitary Authority - £417,640

Somerset County Council - £1,583,322

West of England Combined Authority -£3,641,803

Wiltshire Unitary Authority - £978,000