Launch of second phase of public consultation for…

Launch of second phase of public consultation for a new high-quality cycleway

Bradford Council, in partnership with the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, has today launched the second phase of public consultation on more detailed plans for a new high-quality cycleway in the city.

The West Bradford Cycle Superhighway Extension is an ambitious proposal to extend the existing Bradford Leeds Cycle Superhighway to Thornton village by building a new, largely segregated cycle route along Thornton Road. 

The proposed cycle route would run along Sunbridge Road and Thornton Road, passing Girlington, Crossley Hall and Lower Grange.The new route would make it easier and safer for residents in the west of Bradford to cycle or walk when making short, local journeys or travelling in and out of the city centre. It would also provide improved walking and cycling access to key destinations, located close to the route, such as the University of Bradford, Bradford College and the Bradford Royal Infirmary, as well as better connecting the area with routes to Shipley, Leeds and south Bradford and other planned improvements in the city centre.

This will reduce car congestion and lower carbon emissions, contributing to Bradford’s ambition to become the UK’s leading clean growth district and a zero-carbon economy by 2038.

Commenting on the latest proposals, Councillor Alex Ross-Shaw, Portfolio Holder for Regeneration, Planning and Transport, said:

“We are striving to become the UK’s leading ‘clean growth’ district, and to make it easier for everyone to have good quality options to get about. Making Bradford more sustainable is crucial to the city’s future success, however, our cycling infrastructure needs to be better to enable people who want an alternative to the car to cycle from the west of the city.

Thornton Road is one of the city’s major transport routes, with over 23,000 vehicles driving along it every day. It provides a connection from the city centre to residential, education, and employment areas in west Bradford, but isn’t a popular option for people who want to walk or cycle. The cycle route would provide a missing link in the strategic cycling network across the district and we think that a significant number of people would choose to walk and cycle along this route if we make it easier and safer to do so.” 

Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, said:

“The West Bradford Cycle Superhighway proposals are part of an £80 million package of investment aimed at transforming the city and making it easier for people to walk, cycle and use public transport.

“This is a great example of how together we are making Bradford an even better place to live and work in the lead-up to the City of Culture in 2025.”

Bradford Council and the West Yorkshire Combined Authority have carefully considered the feedback from a previous round of public consultation last summer. Now, the team want to know what people think of the more detailed designs.

Several elements of the scheme have been amended following the first phase of public consultation:

  • The route will now follow a section of the quieter Sunbridge Road from the city centre. 
  • There will be additional landscaping along Thornton Road. 
  • The designs have been amended in line with the updated Highway Code to give people travelling by bike priority at major junctions. 
  • Thornton Village will be covered in a later consultation.
  • A spur to Bradford Royal infirmary has been removed due to concerns about the gradients along this section.

The scheme is being delivered through the Combined Authority’s Transport’s Transforming Cities Fund programme, which is aimed at making it easier for people to walk, cycle and use public transport. 

The consultation is open for six weeks, from Tuesday 30 August to Tuesday 11 October. Members of the public will be able to have their say by visiting https://www.yourvoice.westyorks-ca.gov.uk/thorntoncycle and completing a feedback form or by:

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