Runcorn is set to receive £17.5m to fund new green travel infrastructure such as pedestrian and cycling routes.

The East Runcorn Connectivity scheme will develop connections between the town centre and locations including Runcorn East rail station, Sci-Tech Daresbury and the new Daresbury Garden Village residential development.

The investment has been signed off by the Liverpool City Region (LCR) and will also 'improve and upgrade' existing infrastructure such as pedestrian crossings and road surfaces, as well as install new cycle routes and widen footpaths along the A56.

Steve Rotheram, Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said: "This new scheme in East Runcorn will create new, green transport connections across the area, joining up new and existing developments such as Sci-Tech Daresbury the new Daresbury Garden Village."

He said active travel was a 'key part' of his plan to build a 'London-style public transport network' that was faster, cheaper, cleaner, better connected and gave people a quality and efficient alternative to driving their car.

He added: "The more people we can encourage people to walk or cycle, particularly for short journeys, the faster we can hit our net zero targets, reduce congestion on our roads and improve the quality of air we breathe."

Plans for further phases are in development at Halton Council and are expected to be submitted to the city region's ruling Combined Authority later this year.

Funding for the project is to be drawn from the city region sustainable transport settlement (CRSTS), a pot of £710m set aside for major transport infrastructure projects across the LCR.

Construction is set to begin this summer, with plans for completion by autumn 2026.

The new link in Runcorn is part of wider plans to deliver a 600km network of walking and cycling routes across the six boroughs of the Liverpool City Region – Halton, Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral – with more than 260km set to be delivered by the end of 2026.

Cllr Stef Nelson, Halton Borough Council’s executive board member for environment and renewal, added: "It’s great to see investment in schemes which encourage sustainable modes of transport and enable network resilience in the borough. I look forward to seeing this scheme up and running and leading on to a wider project at a later date."

Active travel refers to person-powered transport such as walking and cycling.  Government figures state walking currently accounts for 5 per cent of the total distance travelled in England. Around 49 per cent of trips in towns and cities under five miles were made by car in 2021, with around a quarter of all car trips in England covering a distance of less than two miles.