Active travel banner image

Active Travel

If more short journeys are made on foot or by bike, we can make our cities healthier, greener and more liveable places.

Resources for this topic

View documents, reports and other material.

Report

Inside track - The state of transport 2026

This report examines travel trends and the economic context across the Urban Transport Group’s Principal Member areas. It explores how devolution is beginning to deliver tangible outcomes, before looking at how travel trends have evolved over time, exploring the different patterns by transport mode.
Read more about Inside track - The state of transport 2026 Download file

Report

The pathway to a brighter transport future: Invest and grow

This report, published ahead of the Spending Review, calls on Government to provide long-term funding certainty and stability for local transport, addressing the long-term capital and revenue needs of UTG's members to enable them to continue their vital work of driving economic growth in their regions.
Read more about The pathway to a brighter transport future: Invest and grow Download file

Report

Inside track - The state of transport 2025

This report looks at travel trends and the local economies of city regions, and explores how devolution is beginning to deliver for urban areas. It examines how trends have changed over time and how these trends have played out across different modes of transport.
Read more about Inside track - The state of transport 2025 Download file

Report

Future Streets: Challenges and opportunities

Streets are often the most contested spaces in any town or city. There are a large number and wide variety of calls on street space (at least 160 legitimate calls), and they simply can’t all be met. This report seeks to help local highway and strategic transport authorities rise to the challenge of better street and kerbside management.
Read more about Future Streets: Challenges and opportunities Download file

Report

The Good Life: The role of transport in shaping a new and sustainable era for suburbs

We are a nation of suburbanites. However, the ubiquity of suburban living is often not reflected in transport policy. And there can be no decarbonisation of transport without specific measures to decarbonise transport in the suburbs. This report presents four foundations of suburbs for a new era – one which offers all suburbanites the promise of the ‘Good Life’ whilst addressing the climate crisis.
Read more about The Good Life: The role of transport in shaping a new and sustainable era for suburbs Download file

Report

What next for urban transport?

This report - published to coincide with the 2019 Autumn Party Conferences - identifies four urban transport challenges and four solutions needed to overcome them.

It also details what transport authorities need from Government to bring about these changes. 

Read more about What next for urban transport? Download file

Report

Number crunch 2019: Urban transport trends in changing times

This is the second in our Number crunch report series and provides an updated overview of the key trends over the last ten years, as well as taking a look at what the new and most recent data is telling us.

We are living in rapidly changing times. Big shifts are taking place in urban transport trends.

Read more about Number crunch 2019: Urban transport trends in changing times Download file

Report

Policy futures for urban transport

The latest edition of Policy futures for urban transport emphasises how a new deal on funding and powers is essential to keep the UK's cities moving forward.

The report sets out the 10 key policy changes that are needed to make cities healthier, fairer and more prosperous.

Read more about Policy futures for urban transport Download file

Report

Active Travel: Solutions for changing cities

This report takes a detailed look at how active travel schemes can transform cities for the better – from Bristol to Inverness and from post-industrial Northern cities to the heart of the City of London.

Over the last decade promoting active travel has moved from the fringes of urban transport policy to a much more central role in the planning of cities and their transport networks. This is because the promotion of active travel, and the creation of places and streetscapes where people want to walk and cycle, is such a good fit with where cities that are going places want to be.

Read more about Active Travel: Solutions for changing cities Download file

Report

Policy Futures

Policy futures for urban transport sets out how, with more focused governance in place, the city regions are delivering major investment programmes including on public transport, highways and active travel, and smart ticketing. The report says that - with the right national policy framework - further and faster progress can be made, including:

Read more about Policy Futures Download file

Report

The Case for Active Travel

This report sets out the fivefold economic benefits of greater investment in active travel: saving costs to the health sector; the economic value of active travel trips; the economic benefits of an improved urban realm; promoting inclusive growth; and direct employment and spend.

Read more about The Case for Active Travel Download file

Report

Horizon scan of implications of technological and social change

This report aims to provide decision makers with a guide to the implications for urban transport of transformative social and technological change and how they can best respond. 

The report (which was produced in collaboration with Arup Foresight) identifies four key overarching trends: 

Read more about Horizon scan of implications of technological and social change Download file

Report

A Healthy Relationship: Public health and transport collaboration in local government

This report sets out the findings of a survey of all Directors of Public Health (DsPH) in England. The survey investigated the extent of collaboration between public health and transport teams within local government since public health teams moved into top-tier local authorities in April 2013.

Read more about A Healthy Relationship: Public health and transport collaboration in local government Download file

Report

Changing Highways Policy

This report to pteg by Atkins focuses on the most important recent and forthcoming changes to highways policy and the implications of these for Metropolitan areas, including in respect of air quality, carbon emissions, technology, the Strategic Road Network, road maintenance, road safety, planning, freight, management of road space and parking policy.

Read more about Changing Highways Policy Download file

Report

LSTF Monitoring and Evaluation Guidance - Final Report

Building on the work of the Department for Transport, pteg commissioned AECOM to prepare additional guidance for PTEs and other Local Transport Authorities to assist in the monitoring and evaluation of Local Sustainable Transport Fund projects. The guidance provides a practical approach to developing cost effective and affordable monitoring and evaluation programmes.

Read more about LSTF Monitoring and Evaluation Guidance - Final Report Download file

Report

Cycling in the city regions: Technical report

This document reports the results of a series of modelling exercises intended to estimate the potential impact and value for money of a step change in the delivery of interventions to support and promote cycling in the six PTE areas. The purpose of this exercise is to support decision-makers in developing effective strategies aimed at increasing cycling levels in the metropolitan areas.

Read more about Cycling in the city regions: Technical report Download file

Report

Cycling in the city regions: Delivering a step change

This report explores the potential impact of a step change in the delivery of interventions to support and promote cycling in the English city regions outside of London. It finds that the greatest potential for increasing cycling in the UK can be found in the city regions.

Read more about Cycling in the city regions: Delivering a step change Download file

Press release

‘Green shoots of growth’ show the way for return to public transport

‘Green shoots of growth’ in the latest transport statistics demonstrate that public transport is continuing its strong return, with growing passenger numbers across bus, rail and light rail modes approaching pre-pandemic levels, according to a new report.
Read more about ‘Green shoots of growth’ show the way for return to public transport