We welcome the plan’s ambitious goal to increase public transport use and active travel by two-thirds in 15 years which is appropriate and praiseworthy.

However we feel that the walking & cycling strategy has serious flaws and gaps –

​

• The city centre strategy shows no links to any long-distance routes (National Cycle Network, Trans Pennine Trail, etc.).

• It entirely omits any mention of existing off-road routes (Five Weirs Walk, Upper Don Trail, River Sheaf Trail, Canal Towpath, emerging Lower Porter Trail).

• This failure to recognise what are often community-led and promoted routes betrays a “not invented here” attitude in the Council transport team.

• It ignores the benefits of routes offering separation from traffic, good air quality, gentle gradients and contact with nature which are often more important incentives to regular active travel than simply speed and directness

• The Grey to Green scheme which embodies these features is repeatedly praised as an exemplar but only minimal extensions are then proposed whilst emphasis remains largely on main-road trafficked routes for walking wheeling and cycling.

Wayfinding issues –

​

• No off-road active travel routes are shown on maps or in text which suggests  they may also omitted from new signage and regular maintenance, a fear encouraged by current   poor maintenance (e.g., Five Weirs Walk at Blonk St and Washford Bridge to East Coast Road ).

• Council consultants have refused to include signage of off-road long distance routes in the pilot wayfinding scheme at Kelham Neepsend despite repeated community requests.

• No mention is made of integration with existing 50 “Connect” map columns aimed specifically at pedestrians and cyclists and incorporating  innovative heads-up mapping, walking times, key destinations and pictorial directions.