However you choose to travel, getting around Calderdale and surrounding districts could soon be a lot easier, as members discuss the introduction of the Calderdale Transport Strategy 2016-2031.
Across the country the way people are travelling is changing. Rates of car use and ownership have declined in many cities and more people are choosing to cycle or walk to work. The use of rail travel is also an increasingly popular mode of transport in Calderdale, and smart technology is transforming the way people are using transport.
The draft Transport Strategy is a new approach for Calderdale, reflecting these changes in travel behaviour, building on national and international best practice and adapting plans to complement the projected population and demographic changes in Calderdale.
At the meeting of Calderdale Council’s Cabinet on Monday 14 November, members will review the draft strategy and make recommendations to full Council.
The Strategy focusses on a number of aims for the borough – enabling growth, improving connectivity, enhancing the environment, and people’s quality of life. It looks at how transport can support these aims, helping to deliver new jobs and homes, helping link people to opportunities and improving the quality of life for all of Calderdale’s residents and workers.
To deliver the strategy, six programmes would be developed:
- A bus and rail programme – addressing network gaps, ticketing and service quality;
- A cycling programme – integrating on and off road routes;
- A highway efficiency package – investing in new technology to better manage signal changes to keep traffic flowing smoothly, reducing travel times and improving air quality;
- A new parking strategy – managing demand and supporting development while balancing the needs of businesses;
- A walking programme – giving walkers a voice to help tackle the barriers to walking;
- A behavioural change programme – working with public health to support more sustainable modes of travel
Calderdale Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Economic Development, Cllr Barry Collins, said:
“This document proposes a generational shift in Calderdale’s transport policy, placing it squarely within our ‘quality of life’ agenda and, wherever appropriate, prioritising sustainable modes of travel.
“Connectivity improvements are already scheduled across the local transport network, including the multi-million pound programme to reduce travel times on the A629 and our work on the borough’s cycleways and footpaths.
“The new strategy builds upon these schemes, taking account of changing travel choices, projected population growth and the Council’s own public health aspirations to begin creating a more sustainable transport system for the future.”
The Calderdale Transport Strategy 2016-2031 will be discussed at the meeting of Calderdale Council’s Cabinet on Monday 14 November at Halifax Town Hall from 6pm.