New £22.5M cycle plan for Birmingham announced

A new £22.5million cycle plan for Birmingham is set for approval as it prepares to go forward to councillors. 

The new route spans a 6km stretch from Longbridge to Selly Oak, joining an existing route into Birmingham city centre. Designed to help cut dependency on cars, the route is also set to be safer for pedestrians and cyclists. 

The project is set to be reviewed at an upcoming meeting, and is to be funded by £14.5M from theDepartment for Transport, and £8M from local sources. 

The council said “Transforming the city’s transport is fundamental to meeting the challenges of the next decade and beyond. Economic, population and housing growth will create additional demand for travel.” 

Birmingham’s population is increasing at pace, with the city required to build 100,000 homes over the next decade – more than any other UK city. Birmingham’s rental market is therefore also surging, with city centre accommodation in high demand. Rents for new build apartments in the city have increased by 50% over the past five years alone.