Issue - meetings

Forward Plan Ref: 2022/142

Contact: Sam Larkin, Transport Planner.

Report by Director of Transport & Infrastructure (CMDHM 5).

To seek approval for the draft Abingdon Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan.

The Cabinet Member for Highway Management AGREED to approve the Abingdon Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP).

This report presented the fourth Local Cycling Walking and Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP) to be considered for approval by the County Council. The Abingdon LCWIP was called for in Oxfordshire County Council’s (OCC) adopted Local Transport and Connectivity Plan (LTCP). The report and annexes presented a network of walking and cycling routes in and around Abingdon and set out high level proposals for improvements to the walking and cycling infrastructure. The improvements were intended for development over a ten-year period to 2032, enabling a model shift to sustainable and active modes of travel.  

The LCWIP was also well aligned with the County Council’s nine priorities as outlined in the Strategic Plan 2022-2025.

The Chair, Cllr Gant – Cabinet Member for Highway Management, invited speakers to address the meeting and responded to the points made in their statements.

The Chair agreed that it was important to make cyclists aware of the existence of cycle paths and to understand why some cyclists opted instead to cycle on carriageways.

The Chair reiterated that the actions in the LCWIP were iterative and could be brought forward in synergy with other things such as funding opportunities from Government or developers.

The Chair observed that some proposals set out in the LCWIP could risk a negative impact on air quality in the Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) by increasing vehicular queueing. The report suggested that these proposals may be deferred until such a time as local air quality was less problematic in central Abingdon. The Chair invited officers to elaborate on this point.

Officers explained that the latest Air Quality Annual Status Report from the Vale of White Horse suggested that in the following 12 months consideration may soon be given to revoking the AQMA in Abingdon. If designated pollution levels were consistently below a certain level then an AQMA was not required.

The Chair noted that travel to school data for private schools was not held at this time.

Officers explained that data on travel patterns to state schools was available in a readily available format via an online tool developed by the Department for Transport for estimating demand for cycling in an area. Data for private schools was not provided through that platform and there was not sufficient officer capacity to engage individually with private schools. The Chair asked officers to look at how the Council could encourage private schools to provide travel patterns data. 

The Chair commended the ambition of the LCWIP and thanked officers for the work they had undertaken on this proposal.

The Cabinet Member for Highway Management APPROVED the Abingdon Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan.