Current status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 30 November 2016
To ask the Scottish Government what measures it has used to encourage cycling in Glasgow.
The Scottish Government provides grant funding to Sustrans, Paths for All and Cycling Scotland to implement measures across all local authorities to encourage cycling.
Since 2014-15, Glasgow City Council has received £3.5 million from Sustrans for Community Links projects which fund extensions and improvements to shared use paths across the city. And in August I announced the winner of the first Community Links PLUS design competition which will see Glasgow receive an additional £3.25 million for a Community Links PLUS project called the South City Way – a fully segregated, on–road cycle path, that will provide a link from Queens Park along Victoria Road to the Merchant City.
Through the Smarter Choices, Smarter Places programme, managed by Paths for All, the Council has received just over £1 million over the last two years for various behaviour change projects which encourage people to use walking and cycling and public transport rather than private car for everyday journeys.
Funding from Cycling Scotland for Bikeability Scotland cycle training in schools across Glasgow has enabled 34% of primary schools to deliver on-road cycle training to P6 and P7 pupils. And the first ever Cycle Friendly Campus Award in Scotland was given to Glasgow Caledonian Cowcaddens Campus following a small grant from Cycling Scotland to enable the university to increase cycle parking, training, maintenance classes and personalised travel plans to encourage its students to cycle to and from its campuses.
Finally, since 2014-15 the Council has received £3.5 million through the Cycling, Walking and Safer Streets element of the local government settlement to deliver improvements to paths and road safety improvements across the city to further encourage more people to cycle.