Cycle Ipswich have got together with Living Streets, Ipswich Group to launch a charter for active travel. The aim is to bring together local businesses, organisations and people to show support for and commitment to active travel – cycling, walking and wheeling – as the healthy choices for everyday travel.
Enabling active travel will help Ipswich tackle its challenger of pollution, congestion and unhealthy lifestyles. The aim is to also make Ipswich a more pleasant place to live, work and visit.
Through signing up to the Charter, people, businesses, organisations and schools are committing to help Ipswich become a vibrant place to work, study, thrive and do business. The Charter asks decision makers in the town to provide a comprehensive, convenient and connected network of cycle tracks and footpaths that would enable people to choose active travel as the safe, natural way for most everyday journeys. Ultimately through encouraging people to walk, cycle or wheel instead of driving, road space would be freed up for those journeys where a care is really needed. Everybody wins.
But as anyone who walks, rides of wheels around the town will know, there is a lot to be done before everyone who can do so will feel safe and comfortable.
Leo Borwick of Cycle Ipswich explained: “We would like to see as many local businesses, organisations and individuals as possible lend their weight to this cause, to the benefit of everyone who lives, works and visits Ipswich”.
For Ellisons Solicitors signing up to the Ipswich Cycling and Walking Charter is an important part of committing to making positive change for the town as well as the environment and overall staff wellbeing.
Ian Seeley, Partner at Ellisons Solicitors who have signed up to the Charter, said: “We are continually looking at ways to make positive change and see the Charter as a commitment to improving Ipswich town centre by making it more accessible for those living in and visiting the town. It is also an opportunity to give our workforce healthy and environmentally friendly commuting options as we begin to return to the office in line with the government guidelines. We have two offices in Ipswich and we hope that by committing to the statements laid out in the Charter we will continue to have a positive impact on the town.
Signing up to the Charter is part of a wider initiative for Ellisons and it is important to us that our colleagues have safe spaces while they are cycling into work. For this Charter to be impactful we need to see a partnership between local government and businesses. The government needs to provide the safe infrastructure – pavements and cycle lanes – and businesses need to provide facilities within their office space – somewhere to store bikes, showers, changing rooms, lockers etc – in order for this to work.
Moving forward we expect to see fewer people in offices full time and with a renewed focus on colleagues physical and mental wellbeing, now is the perfect time to reimagine how we want our town centres to look and safer cycling and walking facilities feels like a good place to start.”
You can read about the Charter and sign up here.