Cycling boost for commuters using West Midlands train stations in £740k scheme
More than £740,000 is being spent on improving cycle facilities at train stations.
The funding will provide around 250 cycle spaces across London Northwestern Railway and West Midlands Railway stations.
The investment was made by the Department for Transport (DfT) which has awarded the train operators £371,000 for the Cycle Rail programme.
This was match-funded by the firm to deliver £742,000 worth of improvements across the network.
Officials have yet to publicly reveal which stations will have improvements made.
Jon Harris, integrated transport and accessibility manager for London Northwestern Railway and West Midlands Railway, said: “The Cycle Rail funding awarded to us will play a key part in helping our passengers make more sustainable travel choices when travelling to and from our stations.
“Rail travel is continuing to grow in popularity, with major improvements on the way over the coming years.
“We will be introducing news trains, more capacity and will have improvement projects taking place at many of our 149 stations.
“It is vital that we bring cycle facilities into this planning and make the railway as accessible as possible for everyone.
“Passengers may see our teams out and about at stations and on trains over the coming months, asking for feedback on their experience of using rail travel as part of their journey.
“We would encourage anyone with any ideas and feedback to get involved and let us know your views and what they would want to see.”
The funding will also go towards the Stations as Places travel planning programme, which aims to help people access the railway.
Cycling minister, Michael Ellis, said: “Cycling to your nearest station and catching a train to work is a great way to keep healthy, and help make our towns and cities vibrant places to live. But to make this a reality, I know that the right infrastructure needs to be in place. This latest investment will see many more stations become accessible for cyclists, so that greener travel options – whether as part of a longer or shorter journey – become the norm.”
