Trafford Council’s strategy for boosting active travel options in the borough is outlined in a new video.
Take a look to see how the Council and partners have been working hard to improve walking, wheeling and cycling routes.
The three-minute film was produced by contractor George Cox and features councillors and officers talking about recent, award-winning work on the A56 corridor.
Trafford Council oversees 516 miles of road and 743 miles of footpaths and cycleways.
Latest Transport for Greater Manchester figures show a 267% increase in cycling at the junction of the A56 and Talbot Road – the site of major active travel improvements – between July and September 2025 compared with the same period in 2024.
This increase can be attributed to safer and more inviting surroundings for travelling by bicycle.
In spring last year, better paths, crossings and segregated cycleways were completed along the A56 Chester Road, to make travelling through the borough easier, quicker and safer.
The work was funded from the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Cycling and Walking Challenge Fund and include cycle lane bollards for safety, wider buffer strips between cycle lanes and the main road, plus better pedestrian crossings and bus stops.
The traffic island between the M60 and Barton Road was also remodelled, to keep three lanes of traffic as well as a new cycle lane.
Cllr Aidan Williams, Trafford Council’s Executive Member for Climate Change said:
“This improvement work has made a real difference to active travel options, as we continue to encourage people to walk, wheel and cycle, for health and air quality.”
A further active travel scheme for Seymour Grove, Old Trafford, is set to start later this year.
The borough’s roads have become safer over the past decade. In 2024, the most recent figures available, 189 people were injured on Trafford roads including the M60. This total compared favourably with 260 in 2015 and a nine-year high of 323 in 2017.
A vast majority of injuries were slight, and fatalities per year were in single figures. While collisions have declined overall, car occupants are far more likely to be injured or killed than pedestrians or cyclists with those on public transport accounting for the fewest casualties.
Cllr Stephen Adshead, Trafford Council’s Executive Member for Highways, Environmental and Traded Services, said:
“We are delighted to be able to make key improvements to Trafford roads where funding allows, keeping our residents safer and more active as they get around from place to place.
“This video provides a compelling snapshot the work of the Council and partners and we thank George Cox for producing it.”
Trafford’s roads, footpaths and cycleways are maintained by the Council and the One Trafford partnership.