Plans for new local cycling and walking routes in three areas of Northumberland approved

Cabinet members agreed to the development of Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCWIP) in Ponteland, Ashington and Blyth – designed to create more environmentally-friendly links for work, education and leisure purposes.

In Ashington, there will be improvements made to the corridor that links the town centre to existing infrastructure via industrial and residential sites, the Northumberland Line station, Northumberland College and existing infrastructure in North Seaton.

Blyth will benefit from the installation of a new Toucan crossing on Renwick Road to the south of Waterloo Road.

This will link Lynn Street on the west side to Bondicar Terrace on the east side, together with the provision of a new three-metre wide shared-use footway/cycleway from Bondicar Terrace up Waterloo Road – with a new parallel crossing on Waterloo Road.

There are also plans for improvements to the north-south corridor in Blyth, with a proposed town centre ‘gateway’ at Waterloo Road/Renwick Road roundabout, to make a direct route across Blyth to South Beach.

In Ponteland, the Callerton Cycle Route will connect the village area to the Newcastle city boundary line, which will allow access to the Callerton Parkway Metro Station for onward journeys.

Coun John Riddle, chairman of the Northumberland Cycling and Walking Board, said: “Infrastructure is one of the barriers to residents using more active means of travel and I’m so pleased we can start to make progress on these safer and more efficient routes.”

Funding for the developments will come from the LCWIP fund within the council’s capital programme and top-up funding from two other sources.