Agenda item

Briefing Note of the Director of Transportation and Highways

The Business, Economy and Enterprise Scrutiny Board (3) received a briefing note and presentation of the Director of Transportation and Highways that gave an update on the Local Cycling and Walking infrastructure Plan, a Plan that provided a strategic approach to identifying cycling and walking improvements as part of a long-term approach to developing local cycling and walking networks over a 10-year period as part of the Government’s strategy to increase trips on foot or by cycle. The Cabinet Member for City Services, the Deputy Cabinet Member for Public Health and Sport and the City Council’s two representatives on the West Midlands Combined Authority Transport Delivery Committee, attended the meeting for this item of business. The West Midlands Walking and Cycling Commissioner also attend the meeting for this matter.

The key outputs of the Plan were:

•  a network plan for walking and cycling which identified preferred routes and core zones for further development

•  a prioritised programme of infrastructure improvements for future investment in the short, medium and long term

•  a report which set out the underlying analysis carried out and provided a narrative which supported the identified improvements and network

•  to ensure that consideration was given to cycling and walking within both local planning and transport policies and strategies

•  made the case for future funding for walking and cycling infrastructure

The Plan offered opportunities for walking and cycling to benefit people who lived, worked, studied or visited the city and the Coundon Cycleway, which improved connections to primary and secondary schools and shops along the corridor and was connecting onwards to the city centre, where new cycle parking had been provided, including at both the railway and bus stations, was an example of this opportunity. Access to bikes for visitors and residents had been improved by the West Midlands Cycle Hire scheme, which covered the city centre and both university campuses. Opportunities for walking had also been improved through campus improvements and as part of the city centre public realm, including a new pedestrian wayfinding system. 

The Department for Transport supported the development of Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCWIP) with funding awarded to the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) to prepare a regional Plan prioritising cycle routes for development across the region and further funding for the City Council to develop and implement the Binley Cycleway via the Transforming Cities Fund. Additional funding had been provided from the Local Authority Capability Fund, to develop a more detailed LCWIP for Coventry in 2022 which would be informed by the draft Transport Strategy.

Coventry’s draft Transport Strategy included ‘Gear Change: A Bold Vision for Walking and Cycling’, a national strategy focusing on a long-term shift towards active travel. Gear Change included a commitment to ensure that by 2030, 50 per cent of all journeys in towns and cities would be made by walking and cycling. The Strategy noted that although Coventry was a relatively compact city, the number of people walking and cycling was not as high as it could be.  A lack of convenient and safe routes for cyclists was likely to be a barrier to higher levels of uptake. The Coventry Household Survey in 2021 found that only 52 per cent of residents agreed that it was easy to travel around Coventry by bike, this was significantly fewer than the number who felt it was easy to walk, drive and travel on public transport.

Walking and cycling contributed to all of the Strategy objectives: supporting the city’s economic recovery and enabling long-term growth; delivering a sustainable, low carbon transport system; ensuring equality of opportunity; and maximising health and wellbeing.

The LCWIP would help to realise the Transport Strategy’s aim to reduce the city’s reliance on car travel, by identifying the opportunities to significantly improve conditions for those who walk and cycle through measures including developing Core Walking Zones, Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, School Streets and a network of dedicated cycleways within the city. It would also identify opportunities to improve connectivity by cycle to neighbouring areas of Warwickshire and Solihull, including key development sites such as the proposed Gigafactory and UK Central. Longer commutes by bike would be enabled by the expansion of the West Midlands Cycle Hire scheme with more e-bikes and an expanded network of docking stations.

The Plan would follow a process of scoping; information gathering; network planning for cycling; network planning for walking; prioritising improvements; and integration and application.

The next steps were to invite the respondents to the Transport Strategy consultation to sign up for the cycle newsletter to receive updates on the development of the Local Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy. Opportunities to participate would also be promoted via council channels to residents, community and business groups and other interested stakeholders, including neighbouring authorities, National Highways and others. It was important that the process had broad engagement with people who already walked and cycled, but also those who would like to be able to in the future if conditions were improved. This approach meant not only looking at how to get along busy corridors, but also how to cross them and how to make adjoining areas more pleasant for residents, businesses, and visitors. This also extended to improving routes through green spaces for recreation but also to connect to local services.

The Board questioned officers, received responses, and discussed the following issues:

·  Foleshill Transport Package and Local Plan - would address the removal of heavy goods vehicles from Foleshill Road and Longford Road to using Keresley Link Road and A444, making walking and cycling safer along residential roads.

·  Safer cycle routes and footways and quality bus travel to incentivise use.

·  Educating the public to consider alternative forms of travel.

·  Electric and hydrogen buses - options for the future.

·  Planning process would determine cycle connections for new developments in Eastern Green.

·  Charter Avenue and Canley cycle lanes – funding secured for permanent cycle routes that would link up to a wider network. Communication and consultation with residents’ key.

·  E-scooters – part of the future Transport Strategy, but there needed to be decision from Government on their legal usage

·  Towpaths – engagement of users to be considerate and integrate with all users of the facility.

·  Brookstray/Eastern Green area – external funding being sort to improve existing path. Consultation with residents and Ward Councillors to determine future requirements for path use.

·  Making Walking and cycling an attractive offer to secure public buy-in.

·  Pedestrianised streets – sign-posted for pedestrian use at specific times.

·  The need for decent lighting - to ensure safety and make walking and cycling routes attractive.

·  Restricted access to streets to create safer cycling or walking environments.

·  The links within the Stratetgy with Planning Policy.

·  Learning and gaining feedback from current schemes to inform future of schemes

·  Coundon Cycle Lane – first of its kind. Recognised regionally as a high- quality provision. Monitoring feedback.

·  Existing cycling and walking routes – asset management for maintaining existing and new footways/cycleways.

·  Footpaths – consideration of quality of footways and lighting provision to ensure safe and attract use.

·  Public consultation – positive outcomes of co-created schemes.

·  Public Health – walking and cycling promotes health and wellbeing. Communication of public health message for active forms of travel important.

·  Emergency Active Travel Fund – fund for cycling, parallel fund for footways (for making footpaths usable and safe during Covid). Active Travel Fund third round currently underway. Future funding for footways not yet known.

·  Section 106 Agreements - opportunity for developers to include maintaining existing paths/roads in any plans/proposals.

·  Binley Cycleway - £8m Scheme, 7 Kilometre route from Coventry University to University Hospital, funding secured for the project from WMCA (national government funding devolved through the Combined Authority).

RESOLVED that the Business, Economy and Enterprise Scrutiny Board (3):

1) Notes the update provided.

2) Agrees to engage with the Plan development going forward.

3) Makes no further recommendations to the Cabinet Member.