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Britain’s National Cycle Network was initiated with a lottery grant of £43.5m from the Millennium Commission, thanks in part to the £1m+ raised by the bicycle trade via the levy of 0.25 percent on all new bikes sold.
The National Cycle Network now covers 7000 miles of the UK with 10 000 miles planned by Sustrans for 2010. Monitoring by Sustrans showed that nearly 100 million trips were made on the National Cycle Network last year, an increase of 20 percent on the previous year.
The new funding will be paid on the condition of suitable designs for the new Sustrans HQ being submitted and match funding being raised.
Rt Hon Tessa Jowell MP, Chair of the Millennium Commission and Secretary of State for Culture, said:
"Sustrans’ National Cycle Network addresses an issue of importance to us all in the third millennium, sustainable transport. I am delighted that the Millennium Commission’s new grant of just over £1m will create a new headquarters for Sustrans in Bristol and provide better signage along the new cycle ways created with National Lottery money."
John Grimshaw, Sustrans’ executive director, said:
"The lottery support we have received over the years from the Millennium Commission is helping the National Cycle Network to be at the forefront of increased cycle use in the UK, bringing the many environmental and health benefits that come with it. That is a legacy the Commission can truly be proud of."
