Walking and Cycling Index Welcomed

An examination of Dundee people’s walking and cycling habits is being welcomed by a senior councillor. 

Walk Wheel Cycle Trust (formerly known as Sustrans), in partnership with Dundee City Council, has today published the Dundee Walking and Cycling Index, based on a survey carried out last year to capture local people's views on getting around their city by walking, wheeling and cycling. 

The Index notes that since the last report in 2023, Dundee has made progress in several areas to make walking, wheeling and cycling more accessible to as many people as possible. 

Multiple projects have been progressed and implemented city-wide, to ensure that people from all areas can benefit from improved active travel infrastructure and public spaces. 

Projects highlighted within the report include: 

• Completed construction on both the Bell Street Hub and the Broughty Ferry-Monifieth Active Travel Project 

• Progressing design work on Sustainable Transport Corridors on both Lochee and Arbroath Road as well as Eden Connections, connecting Eden project with the City Centre, Waterfront and neighbouring areas 

• Strathmartine Connections, creating new and improved active travel routes through the park connecting schools and the neighbourhood to the Green Circular and future active freeway on Macalpine Road 

• Being one of the first local authorities in Scotland to be fully committed to enforcing new legislation banning pavement parking  

• Union Street Transformation, which is fully pedestrianising a city centre street using an “exemplary” co-design process which has involved local stakeholders including the public. 

Councillor Siobhan Tolland, depute convener of City Growth and Infrastructure, said: “This year's publication shows that there is a marked increase in people’s perceptions of safety, which mirrors our work on 20mph zones, enforcing the pavement parking ban, and expanding our School Streets programme, 

“It highlights that 49% of residents now think cycling safety in their area is good; up 9% on 2023. Likewise, 71% of people think walking and wheeling safety in their local area is good; up 7%. 

“These statistics are encouraging but they also highlight a significant difference between perceptions of safety for these modes of transport. This is mainly down to people feeling unsafe sharing the roads with vehicles, reinforced by the fact that more vulnerable groups cycle less.