Local authorities serving South Essex have been awarded over £3m towards an innovative project that aims to promote sustainable transport and employment.
‘South Essex Active Travel’ will see jobseekers, young people, students and volunteers offered targeted travel advice and sustainable transport incentives to better connect them with 12,100 jobs and 10,500 education and training opportunities that will be available in South Essex over the next three years.
A total of £3.323m was awarded to the project by the Department of Transport’s Access Fund after Southend-on-Sea Borough Council led a funding bid with Essex County Council and Thurrock Council to develop their work in using sustainable transport as a tool to accessing learning, jobs and skills. Additional benefits of the project include improving air quality, reducing carbon emissions, and alleviating traffic congestion.
Funding will be allocated from 1st April 2017 and will be used to develop new active travel initiatives, expand walking and cycling services in Southend-on-Sea, Thurrock and Essex. It will build upon existing award winning projects such as Southend-on-Sea’s Ideas in Motion, Cycle Southend and Thurrock’s Beat the Street.
In a letter to the Councils, Pauline Reeves, Deputy Director, Sustainable Accessible Travel at the Department for Transport said: “Transport Ministers felt that the South Essex Active Travel proposal was a particularly strong bid that will deliver against the fund’s primary objectives of supporting the local economy by supporting access to new and existing employment, education and training as well as active promotion of increased levels of physical activity through walking and cycling.”
The bid to DfT was supported by Opportunity South Essex, a private/ public sector body governed by a Board made up of the six local authorities in South Essex (Essex County Council, Thurrock Council, Southend-On-Sea Council; the District Councils of Basildon, Castle Point and Rochford) and nine Businesses Leaders including Stobart Group, Port of Tilbury, DPW London Gateway, Olympus Keymed, Southend Business Partnership, c2c, Chamber of Commerce, Pixelwork Limited and PROCAT.
Kate Willard from the Stobart Group, and Chair of Opportunity South Essex, says: “This funding award is fantastic news for the sub-region and the Partnership very much looks forward to supporting the delivery of the proposed schemes.”
Cllr Tony Cox, Executive Councillor for Transport, says “We are delighted to have been awarded this money, which will help us to make a real difference to the prospects of hundreds of people in Southend-on-Sea and across South Essex as a whole, by linking them up to education, training and jobs that they might otherwise have considered out of their reach.
“This award is recognition of the track record that Southend-on-Sea, and South Essex authorities’ have in successfully delivering innovative projects that positively engage our local residents and businesses.”
The participating councils will now start setting up the programme by recruiting staff and talking to partners about how they can get involved with the aim of starting to deliver the services from April.
‘South Essex Active Travel’ will see jobseekers, young people, students and volunteers offered targeted travel advice and sustainable transport incentives to better connect them with 12,100 jobs and 10,500 education and training opportunities that will be available in South Essex over the next three years.
A total of £3.323m was awarded to the project by the Department of Transport’s Access Fund after Southend-on-Sea Borough Council led a funding bid with Essex County Council and Thurrock Council to develop their work in using sustainable transport as a tool to accessing learning, jobs and skills. Additional benefits of the project include improving air quality, reducing carbon emissions, and alleviating traffic congestion.
Funding will be allocated from 1st April 2017 and will be used to develop new active travel initiatives, expand walking and cycling services in Southend-on-Sea, Thurrock and Essex. It will build upon existing award winning projects such as Southend-on-Sea’s Ideas in Motion, Cycle Southend and Thurrock’s Beat the Street.
In a letter to the Councils, Pauline Reeves, Deputy Director, Sustainable Accessible Travel at the Department for Transport said: “Transport Ministers felt that the South Essex Active Travel proposal was a particularly strong bid that will deliver against the fund’s primary objectives of supporting the local economy by supporting access to new and existing employment, education and training as well as active promotion of increased levels of physical activity through walking and cycling.”
The bid to DfT was supported by Opportunity South Essex, a private/ public sector body governed by a Board made up of the six local authorities in South Essex (Essex County Council, Thurrock Council, Southend-On-Sea Council; the District Councils of Basildon, Castle Point and Rochford) and nine Businesses Leaders including Stobart Group, Port of Tilbury, DPW London Gateway, Olympus Keymed, Southend Business Partnership, c2c, Chamber of Commerce, Pixelwork Limited and PROCAT.
Kate Willard from the Stobart Group, and Chair of Opportunity South Essex, says: “This funding award is fantastic news for the sub-region and the Partnership very much looks forward to supporting the delivery of the proposed schemes.”
Cllr Tony Cox, Executive Councillor for Transport, says “We are delighted to have been awarded this money, which will help us to make a real difference to the prospects of hundreds of people in Southend-on-Sea and across South Essex as a whole, by linking them up to education, training and jobs that they might otherwise have considered out of their reach.
“This award is recognition of the track record that Southend-on-Sea, and South Essex authorities’ have in successfully delivering innovative projects that positively engage our local residents and businesses.”
The participating councils will now start setting up the programme by recruiting staff and talking to partners about how they can get involved with the aim of starting to deliver the services from April.
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