Chief medical officer makes case for active travel

England's chief medical officer has said the case needs to be made for the health benefits of active travel, even though it "isn't always politically easy".

Prof Sir Chris Whitty told the Active City York conference the smallest changes to help people walk or cycle could transform people's health for the better.

But he said the weight of science and data needed to be thrown behind active travel as the issue had become increasingly politicised.

Sir Chris called on authorities to encourage people to make an early start, saying: "If people don't have the opportunity to get into the habit when they're children it will be very difficult to do so after."

Speaking at the conference hosted by City of York Council at the Barbican, Sir Chris said active travel could have the biggest impact on people in ill health.

He said people's perceptions about active travel including concerns over safety needed to be overcome.

"It's critical to think about the short distances and to build between the spaces that people care about," he said.

"That can be transformational, it's really important for people's physical and mental health."

The two-day conference saw active travel professionals gather alongside politicians for speeches and panel discussions.

Among them was Local Transport Minister Simon Lightwood, who said the government was moving on from divisive rhetoric.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, he said support of measures to boost cycling and walking had been framed as a war on motorists.

He said: "When we ensure that travel is more accessible we see healthier and more cohesive communities.

"It's about fundamentally reimagining how cities and towns work and who they serve."

He said mayors and council leaders had a "critical role" in delivering on local priorities.

Lightwood said the government was looking very carefully at how to tackle pavement parking, and said decisions on 20mph speed limits should be made locally.

His comments came as regional mayors including York and North Yorkshire's David Skaith backed a commitment to create a nationwide walking, wheeling and cycling network.

Improvements focusing on school runs will be prioritised as part of the wider project which aims to create more than 3,500 miles of safer routes across the country.

Chris Boardman, Active Travel England's national commissioner, said the body's £616m in government funding for the next four years would bring transport freedom and improve safety, including for children.