Have your say on Wiltshire-wide and Salisbury cycling and walking plans

People in Wiltshire are being asked for their views on two cycling and walking plans, one for the whole of the county and one for Salisbury.

The two Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCWIPs) set out proposals for cycling and walking networks in each area and highlight how these will be improved to create connected networks for pedestrians and cyclists.

The Wiltshire LCWIP is an infrastructure framework for the whole county, while the Salisbury document focuses on the cycling and walking opportunities in the city and the local area. LCWIPs for Chippenham, Devizes and Trowbridge are also in development, but in an earlier stage of the process, and in the future the council will also work on LCWIPs for Amesbury, Bradford on Avon, Calne, Corsham, Malmesbury, Marlborough, Melksham, Royal Wootton Bassett, Tidworth, Warminster and Westbury.

The aim of the LCWIPs is to provide an environment that will enable and encourage more trips to be made on foot or by bike, and help to improve air quality, reduce traffic congestion and also cut carbon emissions. Where relevant, they will also be used to inform the planning process, and future funding from the Department for Transport for cycling and walking schemes will be linked to each final plan.

Cllr Dr Mark McClelland, Cabinet Member for Transport, said: Cycling and walking can improve people's physical and mental health, reduce congestion, save money, improve air quality, and help to tackle climate change - and that's why it's important for us to have these robust and ambitious cycling and walking plans.

The Wiltshire and Salisbury LCWIPs will set out the cycling and walking opportunities in our county over the short, medium and long-term, so it is important that people take this opportunity to share their views on the plans.

In our Business Plan, we support the decarbonisation of existing transport and increased use of walking and cycling, and these LCWIPs fit firmly within that goal.

The consultation on the two LCWIPs ends on 16 September, and once complete, all responses will be collated and considered before the LCWIP is finalised.

To find out more, read the documents and take the online survey, people should go to: www.wiltshire.gov.uk/transport-town-cycle-networks.