Worcester walking and cycling link plans backed

Worcester City Council expects work to start in March 2025

A new walking and cycling route in Worcester will be built, after plans were backed by councillors.

The scheme linking the city centre and Shrub Hill was approved by the city council's planning committee.

The initiative would see a new 5m (16ft)-wide link between Pheasant Street, near the Asda car park, Padmore Street and the existing Cromwell Street bridge over the canal.

Work would start in March 2025, the authority expected.

City mayor Louis Stephen said the application was "very much welcomed".

The project also includes improvements to the bridge and parts of Cromwell Street on the eastern side of the canal, to create an attractive new way of getting between the city centre and Shrub Hill without having to use a car or bus.

The planning application formed part of a wider regeneration of the area around the canal and Shrub Hill station.

In June, Worcestershire County Council revealed its new "vision" for Shrub Hill, which showed how it imagined the area would grow in the next 20 years, including 500 new homes and predictions of up to 5,000 new jobs.