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All existing Birmingham city-centre public realm redevelopment plans will be reviewed to make sure they are pedestrian and cycling friendly.
Cycling and walking will be given priority over cars, although bus lanes will be left clear to increase frequency, and limited public transport will also be part of the strategy for longer-distance journeys.
A new emergency transport plan states that all existing major projects will be reviewed. “We will also review and enhance all existing scheme proposals to maximise walking, cycling and including … City Centre and Snow Hill public realm schemes,” the report said.
The city centre will be transformed, the report said, with dual carriageways repurposed into cycle lanes, a default 20mph speed limit, and on-street parking removed to widen pavements and provide space for cyclists.
The council will reallocate road space for cycle lanes, the first of which will link the city centre to City Hospital via the Jewellery Quarter.
The report promises to provide additional cycle and motorcycle parking facilities and identify locations for e-scooter hire and to “re-imagine James Watt Queensway to improve connectivity to Aston University, Birmingham City University and Matthew Boulton College.”
The plan envisages life spent within walking distance in local neighbourhoods, with bikes for medium-range journeys into the city centre. Regional priority cycle routes will include the city centre A38 to A34 connection; A45 Birmingham to Solihull corridor; A456 Hagley Road corridor; and A38 extension Selly Oak to Longbridge (including Selly Oak local centre).
The Emergency Birmingham Transport Plan does not replace the Birmingham Transport Plan 2031, which will be published later in 2020.
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