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£1.25m drive to boost park cycling
PEAK District chiefs are to be given £1.25m of Department of Transport cash to promote cycling because of the national park's unique position at the centre of the country.
Transport Ministers have already set aside 100m to promote the use of bikes for commuting and leisure in towns and cities across Britain, York already being involved.
But it has now been decided that the Peak District should become the first rural area to improve its facilities for cyclists because of its proximity to major urban areas.
Cycling England, an independent body funded by the Department of Transport, has agreed to provide the cash so it can as trial its Cycling Towns and Cities idea in the countryside.
The Peak District National Park Authority said it would aim to invest the money in several projects, building new cycling trails and improving those which already exist.
Cash will also be spent on programmes which will encourage families to go cycling regularly as a leisure activity and educate the public about the health benefits of cycling.
Cycling England said one of the main objectives of the nationwide project was to give commuters and visitors a genuine alternative to travelling for either business or pleasure by car.
It is now hoped that the introduction of the scheme in the Peak District will help reduce the traffic congestion and environmental pollution which can choke some popular destinations.
Experts said the Peak District was chosen because 32 per cent of the UK population lived within 60 miles of the national park, making it an ideal test bed for several projects.
Cycling England said the area already had 58 miles of dedicated off-road cycle trails and figures showed that more than 30,000 people already used the park's cycle hire centres.
The project will be managed by the Peak District National Park Authority and director of operations Richard Campen said: "Cycling England believes the Peak District National Park can become a flagship project demonstrating a model that other rural areas can use to encourage more people to go cycling on a regular basis.
"The national park is a huge asset and this project gives us a real opportunity to develop a generation of cyclists who cycle regularly, with all the health benefits that brings.
"There are lots of potential opportunities to extend the proposed scheme by working with public transport providers and local authorities in neighbouring urban areas. We would be interested in talking to anyone with serious ideas about projects that could be developed. For example, it would be great if a visitor or commuter could catch a train in Manchester, get off in Buxton and then ride straight down a cycle trail into the national park."
The Department for Transport said the standard amount of funding for cycling initiatives in English local authorities is around 1 per citizen, per year. In contrast, Dutch towns such as Amsterdam are currently spending around 10-20 per year.
It is hoped that if projects such as those in the Peak District and in York city centre prove a success, more councils will draw up plans and apply for funding for their own projects.
The 1.25m grant must be spent by 2011 and work is expected to begin on new cycle trails in the near future.
Park chiefs plan to draw up a detailed business case outlining to Cycling England the planned improvements to cycling routes and the promotional work to encourage more people to take up cycling in the national park.
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Friday 10 February 2012
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