Active Travel Fund

Walking and cycling is becoming more and more popular in Essex. Whether because of health and wellbeing, concern for the environment or just plain enjoyment, many of us are choosing to leave the car at home and jump on our bikes or pull on our walking shoes instead, especially for shorter journeys.

But we can go further. With over 90% of Essex residents recently telling us that they are concerned about traffic congestion, air pollution and road safety, creating safer, green, healthier routes is something we need if we are to support people in using their cars less.

The Active Travel Essex programme is looking at how we can help and encourage people within our towns to make that change to walking or cycling. Many journeys currently being made are very short, and the reasons people jump in their car are varied, but, through creating safer routes and investing in interventions that make it easier to get around by foot or cycle, we can support people in making that change.

And as more people moving away from their car, this helps reduce congestion, so supporting those people and businesses for whom the car is a necessity.

£7 million of investment into five schemes

Supported by £7million of government funding, the programme, developed with the advice of local councils, councillors, businesses, cycling, access and other local interest groups will see new cycling and walking routes delivered in Braintree, Brentwood, Chelmsford, Colchester and Wickford throughout 2021/22.

Alongside this, we are also looking to support the creation of School Streets – a programme in which measures are introduced to reduce car use at the school gates, and Liveable Neighbourhoods – where through-traffic and rat-running is tackled though introducing measures which reduce and restrict cars from certain areas.

The ambition underpinning each scheme is to reallocate road space, creating more room for walking and cycling. These schemes will change the way that you, the local residents, use and think about your streets and spend more time in them.