Written question asked by Greg Smith (Conservative) on Tuesday, 23 June 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 25 June 2026. It was answered by Lilian Greenwood (Labour) on Wednesday, 1 July 2026 on behalf of the Department for Transport.

Active Travel: Finance

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of active travel funding approvals since 2020 have relied on projected or estimated cycling usage figures rather than independently audited counts.

Answer: In line with other transport modes, submissions for active travel funding have not traditionally been underpinned by independently audited traffic counts but Active Travel England (ATE) provides guidance to local authorities on conducting effective appraisal, monitoring and evaluation, which supports generation of accurate baselines for walking and cycling. Additionally, since 2024/25, authorities have had more flexibility in how to use active travel funding and applications are no longer formally approved by ATE. Instead, applications are assured against value for money, design quality and deliverability criteria.

Secondary information