New Forest's loss means gain for five other national parks as they share £2.7m DfT cycling cash

Three months after the Department for Transport (DfT) withdrew £1.5 million in funding for cycling from the New Forest National Park Authority (NFNPA), transport minister Robert Goodwill has announced it is funding £2.7 million for cycling projects in five other national parks in England.

The DfT withheld the money, part of a £3.6 million grant made in August 2013, after the NFNPA decided to scrap a planned £2 million cycle hire scheme and visitor centre, instead proposing other projects.

One of those, costing £1.25 million, had been strongly criticised by cycling campaigners as being little more than routine highway maintenance, and in November, rejecting that and one other planned project, Mr Goodwill said the DfT had “taken the decision to reallocate this money to other schemes.”

It appears that Dartmoor, the Norfolk Broads, the Peak District, South Downs and Yorkshire Dales have benefited in part from the New Forest’s misfortune, with today’s announcement revealing the latest national park cycling projects the DfT will fund. In a press release, it said:

• Dartmoor has been awarded £675,000 to deliver 5 schemes, including additional routes, on-trail improvements and improved links to nearby areas
• Norfolk Broads will be given £715,000 to construct a shared cycleway footway connecting Wroxham/Hoveton to Horning
• Peak District will receive £430,000 to create a new short cycle link providing access from North West Matlock to the Monsal Trail
• South Downs will receive £450,000 to upgrade existing routes to create ‘easy access’ cycling facilities
• Yorkshire Dales will be given £450,000 to transform a stretch of the Leeds to Liverpool Canal creating a gateway to the Yorkshire Dales.

Mr Goodwill said: “I want to get more people on their bikes and this funding will open up cycle access to some of the country’s most scenic routes.

“It demonstrates the government’s determination to continue the cycling legacy generated by the 2012 Olympics and the launch of the Tour de France in Yorkshire last year,” he added.