The opportunity of the roads being quieter is being seized by Connecting Leeds to improve walking and cycling routes around Leeds, and you are invited to share your ideas on their interactive map.
The immediate issue is ensure pedestrians and cyclists can maintain a safe 2m disatance from each other. This has already seen pavements widened with new barriers in the city centre and wider cycling lanes on routes such as Kirkstall Road.
Connecting Leeds, the project to improve public transport in Leeds, is now asking residents to help identify problem junctions and other barriers to safe walking and cycling commutes.
A spokesperson explained:
“We want to hear your ideas for making our streets better for walking and cycling and maintaining social distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic, and also to assist with the recovery. Whether it’s a dangerous pinch point that needs addressing, a new cycle route, or inspiration for creating quieter residential streets, we want to hear your ideas.
“We also want to use this opportunity to keep the benefits we have experienced of seeing less polluting vehicles and traffic on our roads. Especially now in helping meet our goals for tackling the climate emergency and improving health, through cleaner air and active travel.
“This means looking at short, medium and long-term schemes to deliver these goals. Prioritising on safety, active health and reducing carbon, but matched with the available resources, budget and capacity to deliver these ideas.”
Ideas already posted on the map in South Leeds include extending the 20 mph limit to Beeston Road and Old Lane in Beeston, reducing the limit to 10 mph in dead end back-to-back streets where children play out, and resurfacing Town Street in Middleton so that cyclists don’t have to use the pavements to avoid potholes.
You can add your comments directly onto the map or agree with other comments already on the map to give the idea greater weight.
What would you like to see changed? Have your say at leedscovidsuggestascheme.commonplace.is
It is all very well suggesting making changes to this and that but where is the money to come from to pay for the alterations. Due to Covid-19 the council has even less money than it usually has, the country is facing an enormous bill to pay for the pandemic. Tax of all sorts is bound to be steeply increased to try and pay this bill, so I ask again where is the money for this scheme going to come from?
The road between Leeds Valley Estate and the roundabout at Pontefract Rd/M1 J 44 desperately needs a foot/cyclepath and the overgrown bushes to be cut back. I regularly have to step out into the road to avoid the bushes at the side of Arla.
Whats the point waste of money if you ask me council tax will go up, 2 big park an rides in south leeds….more air pollution.. cant ride bikes or walk because we have all will have lung disease….everthing benefits north leeds and the city centre………joke……