A new £245m active travel plan for Dundee has been defended by cyclists after facing criticisms over how often the new infrastructure would be used.
Dundee City Council (DCC) has proposed to develop six ‘active travel freeways' with the assistance of external partners.
The areas proposed for the active freeways include:
  • Arbroath Road
  • Pitkerro Road
  • Macalpine Road
  • Harefield Road
  • Perth Road
  • Lochee Road
These active travel routes are intended to form part of a wider, £245m sustainable transport delivery spanning 10 years.
However, according to The Courier, some people have criticised the plans, saying that the new routes will see little use.
Despite this, members of the Dundee cycling forum have defended the plans, stating that the new routes will alleviate the fear of cycling on the city's busy roads.
Catherine Wykes, chair of the group, spoke to The Courier, saying that ‘people do actually want to be able to cycle,' but that concerns about cycling amongst busy traffic are dissuading more people from doing so.
‘It's quite a frightening thought, to be honest. So that's why it's needed, to give people somewhere safe to [cycle],' she added.
Ms Wykes also said that this ‘kind of pushback is fully expected' but went on to say that the people of Dundee needed to ‘imagine a different city'.
‘We've had a city where for decades we've only really built for driving, so it's natural that people will have thought that's the only way to really get about.
‘But we've looked at the sustainable transport delivery plan and it is evidence-based. We know that these things work, we know that if you give people safe, attractive routes people who might not have done otherwise start thinking about cycling and you do see the numbers going up.
"And we're not just talking about far-distant places like Paris and Copenhagen. We're talking about Edinburgh, Stirling, and Glasgow; they've all already started to move in this direction.'