Funding secured for active travel scheme in Buckingham

This follows the council being successful in securing significant funding from Active Travel England.

Known locally as the Railway Walk, the new off-road path will provide a pleasant respite from the hustle and bustle of the town centre streets, while also providing a key north-south route across Buckingham. It has been a long-standing local aspiration, included in the 2017 Buckingham Transport Strategy.

Working with Buckingham Town Council, the University of Buckingham and local stakeholders, the project will involve upgrading a mile of existing footpath on a disused railway line in the town. The upgrades will include:

• New wayfinding signage
• Introduction of solar studs
• Path surfacing improvements and path widening
• Accessibility enhancements, including improvements to ramps and resting points
• New dedicated crossing points on the Tingewick Road and A421 at the northern and southern extents of the path, to support onward travel

Steven Broadbent, Buckinghamshire Council’s Cabinet Member for Transport, said:

“The key objective of this exciting project is to upgrade the existing path to become a fully-fledged greenway route – making it fully accessible for walking, wheeling and cycling, whilst recognising its treasured status as a green corridor for the town.

“We will develop and deliver this scheme with the local knowledge of partners, including Buckingham Town Council and the University of Buckingham.

“Once completed, the Railway Walk will form a key part of the walking, wheeling and cycling network envisaged for Buckingham as part of the town’s Transport Strategy. It will link to the existing active travel route along the A413, providing access to the new railway station in Winslow.

“The Railway Walk will also form part of the Buckinghamshire Greenway – the vision for a continuous north-south active travel route running the length of the county. Future branches to the north and west will provide routes to Silverstone and Brackley respectively, with the route running southwards towards Steeple Claydon.”

The Railway Walk scheme will cost a total of £1.7m, of which £1.43m is funded by Active Travel England, with the remaining funding coming from Section 106 developer contributions from a local development site.