www.wiltshire.gov.uk
TravelWise Communities
What is TravelWise Communities?
- TravelWise Communities aims to improve sustainable access to services in Wiltshire.
- The number of cars in the UK has increased by 78% in the past fifteen years, and most of us will have experienced traffic congestion, with the delays and annoyance this causes.
- Increased car use doesn't just cause congestion: it's less healthy than walking or cycling, it's expensive, and it pollutes our environment.
- Leaving your car at home one day a fortnight will reduce the pollution you create on your journey to work by 10%.
- Sharing a lift with someone making the same journey as you means that together you will reduce not just your car emissions, but also your fuel bills by a half.
- Walking for ten minutes to and from the bus stop or train station each day will give you over an hour and a half extra exercise every week.
What we do for you?
Working with your community we can help provide advice and even resources to help with a wide variety of schemes that will improve life for Wiltshire residents. Whether you want assistance to identify your community needs, or help with a scheme that you already have in mind, we have the expertise to make it happen.
We can:
- help you with surveys tailored to your local needs
- assist with processing the results into useful information
- advise you on what the priorities for your community are
- provide support for funding bids
- facilitate focus groups, workshops or meetings,
- help with publicity, and
- advise you on what other assistance is available.
By helping people get to goods and services, or bring the goods and services to the people, resident's quality of life will improve no matter where they live, irrespective if they live in the middle of a town, or in the middle of no where! It’s all part of the County's integrated transport strategy designed to make things happen in a well organised, logical, and efficient way.
Who can apply for help?
Travelwise will work with any group, formal or informal, that wants to make a difference to sustainable travel. ‘Micro-communities' especially are welcome, whether informal groups of two or more people, groups of friends in a village, a group of pub regulars, etc., in fact anyone who has found a common need to get better access to goods or services. They can also be formal groups such as neighbourhood associations, housing associations, church groups, Woman's Institutes, Parish Councils, etc.
What might be involved in getting your scheme off the drawing board?
- Assess your scheme against an initial assessment criteria to identify its viability.
- Assess numbers and types of journeys, including what they might be if the project takes off, as well as what they are like now – this will enable the project to be monitored for success. This might involve using travel diaries, and identifying appropriate travel, like lift sharing, home delivery systems, etc.
- Publicise and promote the scheme to draw in local support and raise awareness in the area
- Create an action plan.
Recent successes
Car Clubs
- Q. Do you occasionally need a car but don’t want to own one?
- Q. Are you running two cars but could manage with one most of the time?
- Q. Do you have a small car and could use an estate now and then?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, then a car club is your answer.
Why bother? Well, just imagine using a car you didn’t have to worry about servicing or maintaining, that didn’t cost you a penny for insurance or tax and transformed from a hatchback to a people carrier whenever you wanted.
Too good to be true you might think? Well not really, because car clubs make all this available now!
Car clubs are a great new way to get access to a car without actually having to own it. Not only will you find it a convenient service to use, but also there is a range of vehicles you can choose from and above all, it can save you money.
In Wiltshire there are two car clubs, one in Salisbury Hour Cars, the other in Bradford-on-Avon.
For more information about car clubs, visit Car Plus.
Trowbridge Walking Forum
A group of retired and semi-retired volunteers living in the Trowbridge area have developed a pack of Doorstep Walks - these are walks of less than 2 miles in and around the town. They hold weekly walks, including longer ones of up to 4 miles too. Most involve a rest stop, usually at a pleasant local pub for a light lunch or quick drink, or at a teashop for a well-earned piece of cake and good cuppa!
These walks are free to go on, and every walk has at least 2 trained first aiders, and someone trained to act as a lead co-ordinator responsible all walkers' wellbeing. Attendance varies from a dozen or so up to over 30 on the more popular walks. It has to be said, apart from the benefits of getting used to regular walking and getting good exercise, the social side of making new friends cannot be under estimated.
For their latest list of walks, contact their Chairman, Charles Luckhurst on Trowbridge 01225 753735.
Cycling in Salisbury
The Cycling Opportunities group in Salisbury (COGS) works closely with Travelwise on promoting increased cycling throughout and around the City. Recently they have helped organise the National Festival of cycling County launch and a full week of activities, from dawn cycle rides to Woodhenge for the Solstice, to city family cycle rides.
Pictured below, left to right are the winners of the Spire FM / COGS / Travelwise Bike to Work Competition during the launch event held at Salisbury's Guildhall Square. All 5 received brand new mountain bikes. In return, they pledged to cycle every day to work, and had to report on their progress via mobile phone to the Spire FM Morning Breakfast Show and Afternoon Drive-Time programme. The winners were:
Mark Murphy from Emmeries in Wilton, Jenny Mears from Sarum Physio in Devizes Road, Salisbury, Andrew Moore from Trennon Furniture in Wilton,Mike Cook from the MOD at Bulford, and Sandra Bolt who works at Innotet Supplies, Old Sarum, Salisbury. Ceri Jones from Spire FM is pictured centre carrying out a live interview with Andrew.
Walking in Salisbury
10 Doorstep Walks exist taking in routes around Salisbury and Wilton. 7 start in the city, branded "Into-City Walks", and aim to encourage walking to work or to the shops. Another starts from the District Hospital, and 2 start from Wilton. Since 1997, over 200 packs have been distributed.
There are also 8 "BusWalks". The idea is simple - take the bus out, walk back to Salisbury or Wilton. 1600 packs have been printed, sponsored by Wilts & Dorset Bus Company. The walks are used by families and groups and have proved very, very popular.
Other walks beyond Salisbury have also had walk packs produced, including 1 at Tisbury and 1 through Amesbury/Durrington/Bulford.
As part of the National Walking for Health initiative, as in Trowbridge, group walks, led by trained leaders are held. A quarterly programme is produced and includes 3 walks each week with a BusWalk on Monday's, a lunchtime walk in the city on Wednesday's, and the ever-popular Doorstep Walks on Thursday's.
The Salisbury walks have increased beyond the original walk packs themselves, and there is plenty of scope for more walking in other areas of Salisbury and Wilton, and beyond. If you are interested in finding out more about the walks, or can offer help in arranging them, please contact Pam Rouquette, the Co-ordinator for Walking for Health in Salisbury, via the hotline number below.
The Cycling & Walking Hotline - 01980-623255, or Travelwise via email travelwise@wiltshire.gov.uk can provide you with further information on these and other walking and cycling initiatives across Salisbury & Wiltshire.
Fun for Adults Cycling in BoA
Travelwise and Richard Craft have identified that many adults may want a gentle help to get back on their bikes, after years away from the saddle. Richard is a retired primary head teacher, and is a keen cyclist. He represents Sustrans in the area, helping them maintain the cycle route Number 4 that runs through West Wiltshire, and is an active member of many promotions that encourage people to start cycling again. He is happy to offer adult refresher training courses 1 on 1.
What we do for you?
Working with your community we can provide advice and resources to help with a wide variety of schemes.
Whether you want assistance in conducting a transport needs assessment to find out what your community needs are, or help with a scheme that you already have in mind, we have the expertise to make it happen.
We can help you to survey your local community with questionnaires tailored to your needs; we can assist with processing the results into useful information which can clarify the priorities for your community and provide support for funding bids; we can facilitate focus groups, workshops or meetings, help with publicity, or advise you on what other assistance is available.
Click the links below to find out more about some of the schemes that have happened in Wiltshire or elsewhere in the UK.
Other websites
- Countryside Agency Health Walks Initiative
- Cycling Opportunity Group, Salisbury
- Trowbridge Walking Forum Information (pdf 119Kb)
- The Benefits of Walking with TWF (pdf 56Kb)
Contact Details
By Post
Planning and Environment Group
Wiltshire County Council
Environmental Services Department
County Hall
Bythesea Road
Trowbridge
Wiltshire
BA14 8JD
By Email
By Telephone
01225 771634
By Fax
01225 713207
Opening Hours
Monday to Friday 9am - 5pm
