Glasgow City Council has approved unfunded plans to build a City Network of active travel infrastructure priced at nearly half a billion pounds.
The council said the plans will add 270km of high-quality cycleways and improved footways along main roads and are intended to support a crucial shift to walking, wheeling and cycling as part of the wider effort to reduce the city's carbon footprint and improve air quality,
It said the City Network is based upon a vision that active travel becomes the first choice for everyday journeys and will be designed to ensure easy access to safe, segregated routes from homes, schools, key amenities and cultural destinations throughout the city.
It is planned that schools will be within 400 metres of the main active travel routes while no home is more than 800m from segregated cycling infrastructure
The council said the ultimate aim will be that anyone who cycles will be able to reach most of the city within 30 minutes and almost all of the city within an hour.
It added that the envisaged network would cost an estimated £475m and that work to engage with the Scottish Government has been underway on access to financial backing for the project. ‘Several national funds have been identified that could potentially support the development of the City Network.’
Anna Richardson, city convener for sustainability and carbon reduction, described the move as ‘a huge step forward’ for active travel in the city, which she said ‘must be an integral part of the city's efforts to reduce transport-related carbon emissions’.
She said: ‘Safety is the number one reason for people being discouraged from using active travel and in particular, cycling.
‘By having an active travel network of safe, segregated infrastructure that is easily accessible to every home and school across the city, we can provide a viable alternative for the millions of car journeys that are less than three kilometres.’
