The results of a public consultation into the future of temporary pop-up cycle lanes are delayed due to the large number of responses received.
A high number of responses to the consultation has meant that it has taken Trafford Council longer than expected to analyse the thousands of answers provided.
This means the Council will be unable to publish the results and proposed next steps in the short term due to the extra work needed to go through each response. The work is not now likely to be completed before the upcoming pre-election period from March 28 which place specific restrictions on communications.
The cycle lanes, which are situated on the A56 Chester Road, Bridgewater Way and Edge Lane, Stretford, were installed during the Covid lockdown in 2020 to encourage social distancing and promote active travel like cycling and walking.
The six-week consultation, which ended on December 17, gave Trafford residents the opportunity to give their thoughts, views and ideas on the lanes. The Council received thousands of responses to the individual questions and is still analysing each and every one.
The consultation was not intended to be a referendum but was intended to gauge viewpoints from the public in identifying new and relevant information to consider when finalising a decision on the pop-up cycle lanes.
Cllr Andrew Western, Leader of Trafford Council, said:
“We understand this is an important issue and that the delay is frustrating both for ourselves as a Council and residents across the borough. This is such an important decision - more cars are now back on the roads and we have to assess how we manage this increased traffic while also supporting active travel.
“I would like to again thank everyone for taking part in the consultation and look forward to reporting back to the Council, businesses and residents with the results.”
Posted on Tuesday 22nd March 2022