Wiltshire Council awarded £375k to fund active travel

The authority said the funding will help to reach its carbon-neutral goal for 2030

A county has been awarded £375,000 to spend on walking, cycling and wheeling infrastructure developments.

Wiltshire Council has been given a total of £375,000 by Active Travel England (ATE).

The funding will enable the authority to move forward with new schemes, and then apply for further funding for construction.

The authority says the plans will help to improve air quality and decarbonisation in the county.

The funding comes from two government-funded schemes: £275,000 from ATE's Capability Fund, and £100,000 from the Active Travel Fund 4 extension.

This is on top of the £978,000 the council has already received as part of Active Travel Fund 4, awarded in the financial year 2022/23.

The larger grant will be spent on the development of walking and cycling in Melksham, Calne and Royal Wootton Bassett, along with feasibility studies, development and designs for the following routes:

• A3094 Netherhampton to Hospital cycleway in Salisbury

• Cycleways linking Trowbridge, Westbury and Warminster

• The Town Path walking and cycling link in Salisbury

• A338 City Centre to Hospital cycleway (via New Bridge Road and Downton Road) in Salisbury

• Development for priority schemes in Chippenham, Trowbridge and Devizes, as identified in the towns' walking and cycling plans

The additional £100,000 will enable the delivery of accessibility improvements at Roundstone Street and The Halve in Trowbridge as an extension of the Future High Streets Fund (FHSF) project.

This will join up existing cycling and walking infrastructure, and will see three pedestrian crossings installed, along with segregated shared-use paths, and improved signing and wayfinding.

Councillor Tamara Reay, cabinet member for transport and assets, said: "We're committed to enabling residents to live healthier lives and improving walking, cycling and wheeling routes in Wiltshire.

"This is part of our Business Plan commitment to improve the air quality and support the decarbonisation of transport in our county.

"That's why this funding is so welcome - it will be spent on both installing new infrastructure to make it easier for people to choose to leave their cars at home, as well as planning for more new projects, which will then put us in a good position to successfully bid for more funding.

"We have pledged to make the council carbon neutral by 2030, and we're also doing all we can to help make the whole county carbon neutral too," Ms Reay added.