Active Travel
We know from the Department for Transport that over half of car trips are less than 5 miles and around a quarter are less than 2 miles.
In 2017, to help ensure that money was spent wisely, government asked local authorities to write Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCWIPs). Work on the Wokingham Borough LCWIP didn’t start until 2021 and regrettably was not prioritised by the administration of the time. It sat dormant for many months until I was able to finalise and publish it when the Lib Dem led partnership administration took over the council last year.
In 2022 all local authorities were assessed on their technical capability and leadership approach towards enabling walking and cycling. We have been rated at level 2 on a scale which runs from zero to level 4, one of only 2 authorities in Berkshire rated above Level 1 (the other being Reading, who started their LCWIP in 2017)
The first tangible recognition of our rating was the award of £606k from government to develop, consult and design a high quality active travel route between the BP garage at Winnersh, along the Reading Road to Broad Street Wokingham. This route will connect the existing shared routes along the Winnersh Bypass and Lower Earley Way, a continuous safe route of over 10km, which we will look to upgrade further as and when we can.
Our LCWIP lays out a vision for high quality walking and cycle routes across the borough, initially connecting major residential, education, employment and leisure centres and then branching out to give all residents easy access to a safe route. You can read it at myjourneywokingham.com/cycling/local-cycling-and-walking-infrastructure-plan-lcwip/ . This can’t be achieved overnight. European countries which are now reaping the benefits of large-scale active travel have taken decades to do so.
We have a plan and are getting started, but with Wokingham’s very low level of funding from central government we need Department for Transport funding to do the heavy lifting. The government tells us it remains committed to its target of 50% of all journeys in English towns and cities being walked, wheeled or cycled by 2030, but in the most recent budget reduced by 2/3rds the investment for the next 2 years which it had previously promised. This is despite the National Audit Office in their recent report highlighting that every £1 spent on active travel is expected to deliver a benefit of £4.30 in return.
In these circumstances, I intend to pursue a 2-track process – find affordable practical changes which we can implement quickly, whilst continuing to seek out funds from government, developers and other bodies, and where possible within the council, to begin the larger schemes we need for the future.
Within the LCWIP we have identified a number of small improvements which can be implemented rapidly, and we are looking at which we can implement this year. We are expecting to obtain new legal powers later this month which will enable us to implement safer “School Streets”, on which we are already working with a selected group of schools. We are designing new schemes in Arborfield/Shinfield, Woodley and Winnersh/Wokingham Town and I am hopeful that we will agree joint investment with Network Rail for a new accessible bridge over the railway in Wokingham early next year.
In stringent financial times, when it may feel that no political party is able to differentiate itself, I am proud that Wokingham is pursuing a progressive agenda that will reduce congestion, clean up our air, reduce CO2 emissions and help people adopt a healthier lifestyle.
Councillor Paul Fishwick, Executive member for Active Travel, Transport and Highways.