Project to upgrade 1930s Melton Road cycleway to start

Work on the Melton Road cycleway is due to start on 29 April

A cycleway in Leicester dating back to the 1930s will be repaired in a £1.1m improvement project.

The eastern side of the Melton Road cycle tracks - between Troon Way and Lanesborough Road - is to be resurfaced during the work.

City mayor Peter Soulsby said the path was an "important section of our cycling network".

The project will be funded through a contribution from the government's Active Travel England scheme.

During the works, due to start on 29 April, the cycleway will be converted into a two-way route for bikers.

Existing crossings between Troon Way and Lanesborough Road will also be upgraded to toucan crossings.

The Melton Road cycleway was first built in the 1930s

Mr Soulsby said: "More than 18,000 people are estimated to make daily journeys by bike in Leicester, but one of the biggest barriers to regular walking and cycling is the need for safe and easy-to-follow direct routes.

"This latest scheme will revive an historic cycleway that has served cyclists well since the 1930s but, after 90 years, the old concrete track is now in a poor state of repair."

The cherry tree-lined cycle track was laid out in the 1930s, at a time when more people travelled by bike than by car, but the growing number of vehicles on the road meant cyclists needed to be kept safe.

Leicester City Council says while work is under way along the eastern side of Melton Road, cyclists will be diverted to the track on the western side of the road, which was upgraded last year.