STONEHOUSE Town Council is appealing for ideas that will help cut congestion and pollution in the town by making it safer to walk and cycle around the town.

Anyone who lives, works or visits Stonehouse is being asked to help identify locations that could be improved to make it easier to walk or cycle locally.

The online Active Travel consultation tool https://stonehouseactivetravel.commonplace.is/ is being used to identify locations around the town where perhaps pavements could be widened, cycle ways could be created or vehicles could be slowed down in residential streets, particularly around schools.

At the height of the coronavirus lockdown restrictions, there was a significant decrease in the number of vehicles on the roads in Stonehouse and, with quieter roads, came an increase in walking and cycling and a reduction in noise and pollution.

Town councillor John Parker, chairman of the Stonehouse Community Climate Action Forum, said: “With social distancing measures looking set to be in force for the foreseeable future, the town council is looking at how it can improve the way that residents, workers and visitors can move around the town safely and comfortably.

"We want to encourage more people to walk and cycle, where possible, as it has a such a positive effect on physical and mental health as well as the obvious environmental benefits.

“We are very interested in where local residents think improvements could be made and this consultation will form the basis of our discussions with Gloucestershire County Council regarding its allocation of funding from the Government’s Active Travel Fund.”

The closing date of the online consultation is September 28.

See the interactive map at https://stonehouseactivetravel.commonplace.is/