Sheffield region mayor Dan Jarvis and the four council leaders have agreed to the £ 50million offer as part of a package of programs through the government upgrade fund.
The offer includes updating and modernizing bus and tram shelters with more live information displays and replacing a fleet of community buses with electric vehicles.
The investment plan also includes coin-operated machines, contactless technology on all buses and trams, and additional seating and support in shelters.
The plans also include “increased priority to buses on the roads” and more money invested in the provision of bicycles and walking to encourage “sustainable travel”.
The vast majority of the funding, $ 16.5 million, would be spent on improving bus travel times.
In Sheffield, SCR bosses want to tackle congestion along the Chesterfield Road bus lane, described as one of the ‘busiest traffic hot spots’.
The addition of additional public transport capacity, improvement of existing highways and bus routes are planned.
In Doncaster, plans have been made to reduce congestion along the A18 while in Rotherham the money will help the council’s own priorities already established, including improving the priority of buses on key routes and improved traffic lights at Warren Vale.
In Barnsley, improvements are planned along the A635, including the borough’s ‘busiest roundabout’, as well as dedicated bus lanes and traffic light improvements.
Another £ 15million would be spent on better transport shelters.
Transport bosses want to improve or replace 1,500 bus shelters that are 20 years old and up to 100 tram shelters,
Other parts of the plan include more seating for passengers, boarding accessible by raising sidewalks and installing tactile paving, replacing electric power with solar panels and battery power, providing passengers with more information on local travel, including active travel routes and upgrading shelters to reflect the communities in which they are located.
Just over £ 5million will be spent to improve connectivity along the Trans Pennine Trail. Transportation officials said the route had “doubled in the past 18 months” and needed upgrading and investment to support the growing use of commuters and recreation.
Around £ 640,000 would be spent on 20 payment machines across South Yorkshire to improve passenger access to speedboat ticket payments.
Martin Swale, Acting Director of Transport for the Sheffield City region, said: “This Leveling Up Fund offering proposes to build on what is already underway, but seeks to increase the investment so that more passengers , in more communities, on buses and trams can enjoy the benefits of an improved public transport system.
“The recent Bus Review deliberately assessed the bus system from a passenger perspective and gathered significant amounts of evidence through different forms of stakeholder engagement. The feedback from the passengers was clear. South Yorkshire’s current public transport system is not fit for the 21st century.
“The Bus Review provided the MCA with a strong case for change and in July 2020, we responded to the Bus Review with an ambitious plan of cutting-edge analysis to explore opportunities to make public transport better, simpler and easier.
“At the heart of the response is the MCA’s determination to make public transport a more attractive option for people. “
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Source: www.thestar.co.uk
This notice was published: 2021-06-07 17:00:58
