City awarded ‘game-changing’ £29m boost for improved transport links
Stoke-on-Trent has been awarded £29m of Government funding to improve transport links across the city.
Plans for the funding from the Transforming Cities Fund include a revamp of the area around Stoke-on-Trent train station, where a new transport hub is to be created that will offer local commuters and visitors to the city better access to taxis, buses and cycling, while also improving walking routes to and from the station.
Further works are planned at Longton train station, with the installation of lifts, facilities to support cyclists and new passenger-waiting shelters.
Bus passengers will also benefit from priority routes across the city for the first time as part of plans to cut congestion and bus journey times on the city’s roads.
Funding from the £29m pot is being used to upgrade the city centre bus station to accommodate these new travel routes.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “The Transforming Cities Fund allows cities across the UK to better connect their communities and open up access to jobs, housing and services, and this multi-million-pound investment will make it quicker and easier to get around Stoke-on-Trent, providing a real improvement to the everyday lives of residents.”
Cllr Daniel Jellyman, cabinet member for regeneration, infrastructure and heritage, said: “This announcement is great news and a real game-changer for transport and connectivity in the city. The investment is coming at a critical time as we emerge from the coronavirus pandemic and power up Stoke-on-Trent for years to come, and it will give the city a real shot in the arm. It’s very encouraging that the government are supporting what we are trying to achieve in the city and it’s a real endorsement for the future of Stoke-on-Trent at a national level that we have been given this money.
“A lot of hard work has gone on behind the scenes to make this bid a success and I’d like to thank everyone involved. However, the hard work really starts now as we aim to deliver the scheme in the timescales set by government.”
