Challenge launched on rejected active travel plans

A challenge has been launched against a decision to reject plans aiming to encourage cycling and walking in Guildford.

The £6m active travel scheme would have created segregated footpaths and cycleways, but was rejected over concerns cyclists would endanger pedestrian safety.

The plans for London Road, a major route into Guildford from the A3, were rejected by Surrey County Council’s cabinet, against officers' recommendations.

The decision has been called in by the communities, environment and highways select committee deputy chair, Lance Spencer, and means the select committee will scrutinise cabinet's rejection of the plans.

Designers said the project would improve safety, encouraging more people to take up cycling and walking and help hit net zero carbon emission targets, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Opponents said the scheme did not go far enough and would create narrow bottlenecks for lorries with the unintended consequence of even more traffic.

According to Mr Spencer, the decision "failed to consider" wider ramifications including the potential loss of £6m of funding from Active Travel England.

He said assessments found stretches along the London Road scheme to be short of safety standards for cyclists and pedestrians and that no alternative ideas had been put forward.

Mr Spencer claimed comments by cabinet members made clear the rejection "was solely on the grounds that the scheme would not be sufficiently safe for disabled pedestrians" but claimed "no evidence in support of that view was presented at the meeting other than hearsay".

The committee will consider evidence and witness statements at a meeting on Tuesday as part of its review before deciding whether to refer the decision back to cabinet for reconsideration.

The council's leader Tim Oliver said: "Having considered the safety concerns raised by the Surrey Coalition of Disabled People around shared spaces at bus stops and on the pavement, alongside both the strength of feeling from the local community and the findings of an independent technical review about the scheme, cabinet members decided not to proceed with this part of the proposal."

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