Road safety and cycling boost after council secures over £11m in funding
PLANS: An image of the new off-road cycle facilities on Freetown Way
By Simon Bristow
Hull City Council has approved grant funding allocations of over £11m to deliver a series of investments on several of the city’s key routes to promote and encourage cycling and improve road safety.
The council has secured £8.757m from Active Travel England’s Active Travel Fund (ATF) and £2.99m from the Department for Transport’s Safer Roads Fund.
The ATF allocation will deliver two off-road cycle schemes, already approved by Cabinet, on Freetown Way and Preston Road, while the Safer Roads Fund money will go towards road safety improvements on the A165 corridor between its junction with Beverley Road, Ferensway, Spring Bank along Witham and Holderness Road to the boundary of the East Riding – subject to Cabinet approval to proceed to tender and the awarding of contracts for design and construction.
The acceptance of the funding was confirmed in a decision record, published by the council on Friday, August 18, and enables the three schemes to progress to their next stages with the aim of starting on site in 2024 and the works being completed by spring 2025.
Councillor Mark Ieronimo, portfolio holder for transportation, roads and highways, said: “We know from speaking to our residents, and through the responses to last year’s Traffic and Travel Survey, that improving and enhancing the city’s transport network is an important priority and, after a successful bid, we have secured the funding to deliver on this.
“We also know that our residents want us to provide the facilities needed to support greater choice when it comes to travel options. The plans for Freetown Way, for example, will see the current road layout return to two lanes in each direction, in line with the views expressed in the survey, as well as the installation of new off-road cycle lanes, thereby better accommodating both cyclists and vehicles.
“There will also be a range of pedestrian improvements.
“These schemes not only demonstrate our commitment to providing the facilities needed to encourage more people to choose sustainable modes of travel, like cycling, but they will also enhance the city’s highways and make them safer for the benefit of all members of the travelling public.”