Council hopes more people will cycle or walk to work despite low figures in Northampton

A senior Northamptonshire County Council member hopes more people will cycle or walk to work as the coronavirus lockdown eases despite the current low levels.

Just one in eight Northampton workers currently walk or cycle to work - showing how much has to change as the Government pushes commuters away from public transport and cars.

Cabinet member for highways and place, Jason Smithers, said: “The current lockdown has seen many residents of Northamptonshire discover walking and cycling as a way of staying physically and mentally fit.

"As people return to work, it is my hope that this will continue and there will be a marked improvement from the current survey results.

“In March the council cabinet approved additional funding to work up walking and cycling schemes in a number of our main towns, and this is intended to be the start of a significant investment in our spending on walking and cycling schemes across the county.”

Office for National Statistics figures show that 12 per cent of people in Northampton either cycled or walked to work in the three months to December – two per cent opted for a bike while 10 per cent took the journey on foot.

That is according to a survey of employment circumstances across the UK, which shows Northampton had one of the lowest proportions of commuters by bike or on foot across the 99 authorities that had data for both.

The vast majority of people in Northampton travelled to work by car or van – 85 per cent of those surveyed.

The ONS says the results must be interpreted with caution as there may have been a small sample size in local areas.

The Government has announced emergency funding and measures to make the roads more cyclist and pedestrian-friendly, including plans for pop-up cycle lanes and distributing bike repair vouchers.

A county council spokesman said the Department for Transport will allocate it 'a sum of money' from the recently announced £250m fund for walking and cycling.