Labour’s active travel commitment is a positive step for people and planet
This week, the Transport Secretary announced that the UK government will invest “unprecedented levels of funding” in walking and cycling as part of their plan to reduce health inequalities and tackle the climate crisis.
After campaigning for increased investment in active travel in the run up to the General Election, we were encouraged to hear this news. This year’s Clean Air Day campaign – which took place on 20 June – called on the new government to ensure everyone has the option to walk, wheel, cycle or use public transport, in order to clean up our air and protect everyone’s health and the planet.
Cross-party MPs and clean air campaigners joined Global Action Plan to deliver the Clean Air Day petition to Downing Street. Left to right: Sian Berry MP, Yasmine El-Gabry, Afzal Khan MP, Stella Creasy MP, Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, Sally Newsom, Love Ssega, Ellie Chowns MP.
We delivered thousands of Clean Air Day petition signatures to 10 Downing Street in July, urging the new government to get on board with clean air, so it was great to see the Transport Secretary Louise Haigh echo many of the points raised by our campaign in this funding announcement.
Most notably, she recognised that increasing walking, wheeling and cycling would not only help to slow down climate change, but also have a positive impact on our public health crisis, reducing the strain on our health services.
She also highlighted the many co-benefits of increasing active travel investment, acknowledging that safer, greener transport routes are good value for the public purse, saving the NHS money and boosting local economies. They also improve local opportunities and road safety.
We commissioned an Opinium poll ahead of Clean Air Day 2024 which revealed that the public are deeply concerned about the impact of air pollution on their health and want to see increased government action and investment for clean air.
3 in 4 people in the UK feel their health is impacted by outdoor air pollution, and nearly 80% of the public believe that politicians should be making changes to decrease air pollution. 61% of people surveyed said they would like to see increased government investment in walking and cycling infrastructure.
This new commitment to boosting active travel is a positive step, but we must continue to hold the government to account on delivering ambitious policy and investment to tackle air pollution, so that everyone in the UK can breathe cleaner air for generations to come.
We will continue to advocate for action on air pollution by raising these issues in Parliament and demonstrating public support for clean air. You can show your support for more ambitious action by signing our petition, calling on the government to ensure everyone can safely walk, wheel and cycle and access affordable, reliable and efficient public transport.