The West of England councils have been awarded £24 million by the Department for Transport to work with employers, schools, colleges and universities to encourage people to try a different way of getting about.
Around £9 million of the Local Sustainable Transport Fund (LSTF) will be spent directly in South Gloucestershire.
South Gloucestershire Council will use the money to work with employers along key commuter routes to help improve sustainable transport choices for journeys to work and business. It will also be used to enhance and promote the use of public transport and encourage people to think about using alternatives to using a car, targeting people who move house, leave school or go to work, college or university for the first time.
Welcoming the bid, Cllr Pat Hockey, lead member on the Planning, Transportation and Strategic Environment Committee, said:
“We are delighted with the announcement which will help us fund transport schemes to improve options for walking, cycling and public transport in South Gloucestershire.”
“Working jointly with our neighbouring authorities and partners in the public and private sector will enable us to make the most of the funding to reduce carbon emissions and tackle congestion where it is needed most.”
The four West of England councils – Bath & North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire – successfully bid for £5million for the ‘Key Component Bid’ in 2011 which focussed on six key commuter routes. These routes encourage people to use sustainable forms of transport such as the bus, walking, cycling, or car sharing which is already showing positive results.
The joint West of England Sustainable Transport bid to the LSTF fund was submitted in August 2011 and was one of only eight submissions to be shortlisted straight through to the decision stage by the Department for Transport.
The total package including match funding from the councils and other partners is worth approximately £40 million.
Source: South Gloucestershire Council
