Funding has been secured for much-needed improvements along the Manchester Cycleway.
For several years the Council has explored ways to improve the area, both to improve its overall amenity as well as encourage more people to usethe route.
Now, more than £300,000 has been secured from the Government’s Safer Streets Fund to make a range of improvements.
They include:
Starting work on a Safer Streets scheme for the Manchester Cycleway that will deliver vital improvement and these improvements will be carried out along the existing greenway along the Manchester Cycleway (Fallowfield Loop), as well as the Stockport Branch Canal (Yellow Brick Road).
- Addressing personal safety and anti-social behaviour
- Providing a more open route
- Improving connections to surrounding neighbourhoods
- Revitalising the existing landscape to create more open and less intimidating environment for people using the routes
- Upgrading access points to make the entrances prominent and the route accessible, creating a more inviting route to travel
Previous consultation highlighted how much the area’s green setting and rural characteristics are valued by the people who use it, therefore steps will be made to ensure that this is preserved and celebrated through the improvement works.
Funding will also be allocated to improve the overall signage along the route. Feedback gathered by the Council in previous years made it clear that users of the Manchester Cycleway felt there could be a better sense of place when travelling on it, as well as making improvements to entry points to make the area more accessible.
Based on this, work will go ahead to carry out the following:
- Site clearance and landscaping
- Access point improvements with new entry markers and illuminated bollards
- New and replacement signs along the whole route, and linked to access point
- New fences, guard rails and barriers
Additionally, the funding will look at areas that need resurfacing prioritised such as where tree roots have caused the current surface to buckle or break up.
The first stage of the work will be site clearance and landscaping on the Yellow Brick Road section of the route, starting on 27 February.
Wider improvements are currently being reviewed and designs finalised ahead of being implemented from late spring/early summer 2023.
Find out more about highways and cyclings projects across the city
Councillor Tracey Rawlins, Executive Member for Environment and Transport said:
“We know how valued this walking and cycling route is for residents in south Manchester. Providing a green artery which cuts through the urban surroundings, the Manchester Cycleway is something we want to enhance and protect.
“We welcome the arrival of Safer Streets Funding which will let us make much-needed improvements to the area. Small steps like boosting the amenity of the route, and making it easier for people from all walks of life to access can go a long way in attracting people to walk, wheel or cycle.
“We have big ambitions for the Manchester Cycleway and we are excited to continue the improveme this popular route.”
