Cyclists in Cambridge. Although the government remains committed to half of all urban journeys being walked or cycled by 2030, a 50% reduction in the money for active travel in England was announced in March. The government faces a legal challenge to its decision to cut investment in walking and cycling in England , over claims that the move bypassed legal processes and risks scuppering commitments over the climate emergency and air pollution.
Lawyers acting for the Transport Action Network (TAN), a campaign group, have written to the Department for Transport (DfT) to formally seek a judicial review of the cuts announced in March by Mark Harper, the transport secretary.
The action comes at a perilous time for Harper and his team, who are expected to face heavy criticism later this week when the National Audit Office publishes a report on the DfT’s wider strategy for walking and cycling.
Although Rishi Sunak’s government remains officially committed to a target established under Boris Johnson that half of all urban journeys should be walked or cycled by 2030, Harper announced a 50% reduction in the money for active travel in England in March.
According to TAN, whose lawyers at Leigh Day, have sent a pre-action legal letter to Harper, outside London the funding dedicated to active travel in England will be only £1 a head per year over the rest of the current parliament, against equivalent figures of £23 for Wales and £58 in Scotland.
Harper’s announcement in March, justified on the basis of the turbulent […]
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