Written question asked by Elsie Blundell (Labour) on Monday, 7 July 2025, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 9 July 2025. It was answered by Simon Lightwood (Labour) on Thursday, 10 July 2025 on behalf of the Department for Transport.

Bridleways: Active Travel

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of bridleways on supporting active travel nationally.

Answer: Bridleways have an important role to play in enabling active travel across the country. To support local authorities seeking to deliver active travel schemes outside of towns and cities, Active Travel England is developing specific guidance for good practice application in rural contexts and expects to publish this later this year. The guidance will explore how best bridleways (and other elements of the Public Rights of Way network) can be incorporated and integrated into existing and proposed active travel networks to expand their reach and connectivity. This will potentially have benefits for a range of different path users, including pedestrians, cyclists and horse-riders.

Secondary information