£2m boost for Maidenhead transport and travel

Transport in Maidenhead has received a £1.956m boost aimed at improving the way residents, schoolchildren, businesspeople and visitors travel into and around the town.

The grant follows a successful Royal Borough bid to the Department for Transport's Local Sustainable Transport Fund and will be used to encourage smarter, sustainable travel choices, improve access to the town centre and enhance the efficiency of our traffic and travel arrangements.

While the borough as a whole will benefit to some extent, the primary goal - and the basis on which the money was granted - is to support the Maidenhead Area Action Plan to rejuvenate Maidenhead town centre.

Cllr Phill Bicknell, cabinet member for highways, transport and environment, said: "Windsor is benefitting from £10m of road improvements - including the Royal Windsor Way and Clarence Road roundabout revamp completed last year - and so I am delighted that we have now secured this very welcome boost for Maidenhead to help us tackle transport issues and support the vitality of the town."

The three elements which will help improve travel within Maidenhead are:
• Smarter Choices - the bulk of the funding will go on initiatives designed to encourage more people of all ages to use public transport, walking and cycling and enable smarter working practices
• improving access - measures to improve public transport, walking and cycling access, including a new express bus service between Maidenhead and Windsor and a transport interchange within Maidenhead town centre
• network management - improving the efficiency and co-ordination of existing traffic signals and providing variable message signing with real-time information on car parking and traffic conditions.

Cllr Bicknell added: "Smarter Choices measures have proved highly effective in changing the travel behaviour of adults, young people and children. We hope to build on lessons learned from the government's Sustainable Travel Towns and Cycling Demonstration Towns projects which led to an average reduction in car use of 9%, helping to reduce congestion and deliver environmental improvements."

The measures also help achieve a number of key manifesto pledges including:
• working tirelessly to deliver regeneration of Maidenhead town centre
• reviewing the roads system to improve access and footfall into the town centre
• integrating cycling into the borough's transport plans
• supporting bus users with more information and working with companies to improve services
• continuing to promote car sharing and reduce dependence on expensive carbon fuel journeys.

The original bid also sought a contribution towards the Stafferton Way link road which would help remove traffic from the town centre and which has to be in place before all of the opportunity sites identified in the Maidenhead Area Action Plan can be developed. However, although the Department for Transport recognised the benefits of the scheme in terms of supporting economic growth and delivering environmental benefits, it did not sufficiently meet the funding criteria.

Cabinet has granted authority to work up a detailed design for the Stafferton Way link road for consideration in the autumn. In the meantime the council will continue to explore funding options with significant levels of developer contributions already secured.

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