Transport User Voice – February 2017 – Don’t let England’s major roads be barriers
30 January 2017
Cyclists, pedestrians and equestrians want road schemes designed with them in mind, rather than ‘fighting’ for adaptations later.
That is one of the key messages in our latest report Cyclists, pedestrians and equestrians: a summary of priorities for Highways England’s network.
Between now and 2020 the Government will invest substantial sums improving England’s motorways and major ‘A’ roads, and planning for the five years after that is already underway. We believe it is important to understand the priorities of cyclists, pedestrians and equestrians in relation to these roads and to take their views properly in to account.
From our discussions with organisations representing cyclists, pedestrians and equestrians it became clear that many issues were common to all such as safety, journey experience, crossings and physical separation from road traffic. There were also distinct issues for each user type and these have also been explored in the report.
We are recommending that any new road scheme or major upgrade should incorporate crossings for cyclists, pedestrians and equestrians as well as segregated, multi-user paths with minimal diversion from the intended route.
We are also calling for a set of minimum standards to be developed for infrastructure designed to aid journeys for these road users.
We will now work with Highways England and the Department for Transport to ensure that these issues are fully considered in future investment decisions.
Click here to read the report.