Manchester City Council is to set out a bold and ambitious strategy which seeks to dramatically increase the number of people using Active Travel across Manchester.
The Council’s view that everybody in Manchester should be able to walk, wheel or cycle as part of their everyday lives – for school, work, shopping and socialising, in safety, comfort and happiness.
As a result the Council has been developing the Manchester Active Travel Strategy and Investment Plan (MATSIP) to achieve this goal.
A target has been set to make walking the natural choice for short journeys and that the mode share of people cycling in the city will double by 2028.
As part of the strategy the council wants the default speed limit in the city to 20mph, and reduce 40mph speed limits to 30mph by 2028 where justified and consistent with road safety.
It also wants to enable at least 70% of primary school and 40% of secondary school pupils to walk or cycle to school by 2028 and to remove all access barriers to walking and cycling paths which prevent access to non-standard cycles by 2024.
Councillor Tracey Rawlins, Executive Member for Environment and Transport said:
“Active Travel is one of the most important policies in recent memory that Manchester City Council has proposed.
“We know how important it will be in not only creating a greener and less polluted city – contributing to our goal of becoming zero carbon by 2038 or earlier – but in shaping our neighbourhoods to become more vibrant and safer, as well as improving health across generations.
“School safety also plays an incredibly important part in the work we are doing. Providing safe and accessible spaces for our young residents is something the Council is eager to work on as in many areasschools lie at the heart of our communities.
“Most importantly, this work will be inclusive and we will work hard to make sure that every one of our residents is represented. Our city is for everyone to enjoy and it is crucial that no one is left behind for any reason. We must work tirelessly to identify barriers that get in the way of active travel ensure that Active Travel works for everyone.
