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The Bridgwater Active Travel Day returns to the Town Hall on Saturday May 20th.

The family-friendly event will feature a whole host of groups who will be there to help inform the public about the benefits of all things active travel.

The day will include an introduction by the Town Mayor; local walking and cycling information; local public transport and bike maintanance and security marking.

It's free to attend, and all the family are welcome.

The day starts at 10am and finishes at 3pm.

An innovative physical activity game that has engaged more than a million people is set to launch in Shepton Mallet and Wells.

The Beat the Street game will take place in Shepton Mallet and Wells from 26th April to 24th May 2023 thanks to a National Lottery grant from Sport England.

Beat the Street encourages people to get outside and to get active and is open to anyone of any age who would like to take part. The game works by turning the town into a real-life game and residents will soon start to see special sensors called Beat Boxes appearing on lampposts around the area.

Prior to the game, primary school pupils from participating schools will be provided with cards while parents and teachers will also receive a card from the school so they can accompany children. The wider community can pick up a free contactless card from a distribution point listed on the website www.beatthestreet.me/sheptonwells

Players join a school or community team to join or you can set up your own with a minimum of 6 players. Players then walk, cycle or wheel between the 38 Beat Boxes which are spaced half a mile apart - hovering the cards as they go. The further players travel, the more points they score.

Beat the Street was created by GP Dr William Bird MBE, an expert in physical activity and the founder of Intelligent Health. Beat the Street has not only had a significant impact on increasing low levels of physical activity amongst adults and children, but also helps reduce congestion, improves air quality, and helps families spend time in green spaces together. It has been adapted to ensure that it’s safe to play during the COVID-19 pandemic with contactless cards.

Jake Hannis, Somerset Activity and Sports Partnership Deputy CEO said: “We are incredibly excited to be bringing Beat the Street to Shepton Mallet & Wells. We know that one of the best things people can do right now for their physical and mental health is to move more and to get out into green space where possible, and Beat the Street really helps people do just that in a safe way.

“It’s free to take part in Beat the Street and it’s open to everyone regardless of age, ability or background. It’s an inclusive game that encourages you to exercise from your front door and to clock up the miles within the game framework.”

According to research, one in four people in England does less than 30 minutes of physical activity a week, which classes them as inactive. Four out of five primary school children do not get the recommended amount of daily exercise of 60 minutes a day.

The National Lottery funding from Sport England will not only help people in Shepton Mallet and Wells to get active, but also to leave a positive legacy to improve the community’s health and wellbeing.

For more information on updates on the game, please click onto www.beatthestreet.me/sheptonwells or follow @BeatTheStreetSheptonWells on Facebook.

Great news for everyone travelling by bus in Somerset; a new £2 single fare is now available from all participating operators until 31 March.

The major fare cut is part of an initiative funded by the Government aimed at boosting bus use and will apply to the majority of routes in Somerset.

SCC and the Somerset Bus Partnership have launched the ‘Bus It’ campaign to encourage more people to use bus services at a time when many routes are under threat due to lack of use. It’s hoped the new £2 fare will provide a major boost to patronage and support these aims.

The six operators involved are:

Dartline

Faresaver Buses

First South West (Buses of Somerset)

First West of England

Hatch Green Coaches

South West Coaches

Cllr Mike Rigby, SSCC’s Lead Member for Transport and Digital said:

“This new £2 fare is vital to ensure we get more people on buses which will help preserve bus routes in Somerset.

“This is potentially a real gamechanger in terms of getting people to leave the car at home – a £2 single journey for most routes in Somerset is fantastic value for money when you factor in the cost of fuel and the cost of living crisis.

“By catching the bus, you can make a difference to the climate, to our environment and save money and wear and tear on your car – it really does make sense to ‘Bus It’.”

Cycle Somerset, a club with over 100 members, voted at their AGM to make a donation of £500 towards the costs of implementing the proposed Curry Rivel to Langport walking and cycle route which is part of the local active travel plan. The route is supported by local schools, councils, landowners and businesses.

Feasibility studies have identified several possibilities within Curry Rivel itself and between Curry Rivel and Langport and Huish Episcopi, including key destinations such as The Academy and Leisure centre. Permissions are now required to implement the preferred options.

The cheque was presented to Cllr Marcus Hembrow by Graham Farrington chair of Cycle Somerset. Bridge Cycle Club, based in Langport, also came to offer their support for the proposed walking and cycling route.

Kingfisher Primary School in Yeovil has become the first Somerset school to receive the nationally recognised bronze Modeshift STARS accreditation for providing safe and sustainable travel environments.

Modeshift STARS celebrates schools which successfully work with businesses and local communities to adopt travel plans which promote sustainable and safe journeys.

Somerset County Council’s lead member for Transport and Digital, Councillor Mike Rigby, said: “Around one in four cars on the road each morning is on the school run and are responsible for half a million tonnes of CO2 emissions annually in the UK. Schemes like Modeshift STARS are crucial initiatives to help reduce these statistics and improve the air quality around school. I’d like to congratulate Kingfisher Primary School for its achievement and hope that more schools will be encouraged to take part in the initiative as we aim to get more pupils to travel by foot or bike, or at least walk the last 10 minutes to school.”

Somerset County Council’s Highways Team is improving and widening an existing cycleway and footway running along the A39 between Carhampton and Minehead to ensure residents can travel safely by bike or foot.

The £1 million scheme, collaboratively funded through internal partners including Somerset County Council Highways , Public Health and Transport Policy, includes connecting to new cycling and walking infrastructure linking the Marsh Lane development at Dunster Marsh with the A39 pathway, which will link in turn with West Somerset College, creating a safe route to school.

Work continues into early 2023 and temporary 40-mph limit and traffic lights are now in place on the A39 for the duration of the project to ensure the safety of the workforce and public. The lights will be operated manually during peak hours to minimise disruption. Access will be maintained for cyclists and pedestrians while work is ongoing.

Somerset County Council’s Lead Member for Transport and Digital Cllr Mike Rigby said: “It’s really pleasing to see this important scheme commence to provide a much-needed active travel corridor between these two towns. Improving our walking and cycling provision across the county is a major priority for this council, to enable people to use more sustainable modes of transport, which benefits their health and wellbeing and the environment.”

Richard Huish College Taunton have recently held a College Bike Day Event for their students, offering an opportunity for them to look at ‘all things cycling’

Free bike maintenance and checks were offered by On Your Bike, with Avon & Somerset Police providing bike free security tagging. The Road Safety Team were also in attendance offering road safety advice.

Officers from both Somerset West & Taunton and Somerset County Council used the event to facilitate more engagement with students and tutors. The recent Taunton Garden Communities project for cycling and walking was discussed, as well as the new Local Transport Plan currently under development for Somerset, which is looking at the barriers which reduce travel choices.

The day was a success for all the students and provided the councils with important feedback around their consultations.

Bus users can now travel anywhere in the Taunton area for just £1

The new fare structure is part of an £11.9 million package of measures being introduced by Somerset County Council as part of Somerset’s Bus Service Improvement Plan and includes proposals for new evening and weekend services on some routes.

The Council and Somerset Bus Partnership recently launched the BUS IT campaign, which aims to encourage more people to use buses and save money, as well as helping to safeguard the county’s bus services and protect the environment.

The new £1 fares are in place now on the Taunton Park and ride service, followed in the Autumn by £1 fares on other Taunton area-based bus services and offers all paying passengers a flat rate single fare or £2 for a return, to any destination in the greater Taunton area.

The initiative is part of a longer-term goal to secure further funding to deliver similar fare initiatives in other areas of the county.

The fare zone will cover at least the area shown in the below map, and the final extent will be agreed by the Bus Advisory Board shortly.

As you may be aware, Hinkley Point C has been considering a proposal for the development of a shared use cycle path running from Combwich to Hinkley Point. It would provide a safe commuting route for all Hinkley Point workers whilst also providing wider local value – offering a safe and enjoyable route for leisure purposes.

The route would further connect the existing cycle route along the C182 from Combwich towards Cannington and Bridgwater.

Before the application is submitted, there are public consultation events to discuss the proposal and provide your views. Two public consultation events are to be held in separate locations to cover the two key local communities on the proposed route.

• Tuesday 27th September 2022, Otterhampton Village Hall (TA5 2QZ), 1.15pm - 8pm.

• Thursday 6th October 2022, Stogursey Victory Hall (TA5 1PR), 3pm - 7pm.

As these are drop in events, please do come along at any point that is convenient to you within the event opening times.

Further project information will be provided at the events with details on the next steps following the consultation exercise.

Our Tour de Somerset challenge has now come to an end for another year.

And with the help of district colleagues this year’s participants have really notched things up a gear, smashing our target with a collective total of 7,903 miles! That’s 30 laps of Somerset. And a collective total of 323,885 feet elevation – the equivalent of cycling up to Dunkery Beacon (Somerset’s highest point above sea level) 191 times.

A big thank you and well done to all who got involved!

Congratulations to Somerset County Council's Clive Franklin who sped to the top of the leader board in the final week and snatched the yellow jersey for this year, with a whopping 906 miles covered in July! Congratulations also to South Somerset District Council's Robert Orrett who claims this year’s ‘King of the Mountains’ jersey having climbed 76,063 feet, and our Queen of the Mountains, Somerset County Council's Sam Fox, who climbed 23,859 feet.

Slinky is a door to door demand responsive transport service funded by Somerset County Council for people not served by or unable to access conventional transport. All the vehicles are accessible.

The service can be used for various purposes including; getting to local health appointments or exercise classes, visiting friends or family, going shopping or attending social events. You can also use the Slinky as a link to other forms of public transport.

Who can use the Slinky?

You will be eligible to use the Slinky bus if you:

Do not have access to a public bus service,

Do not have your own transport; or

Have a disability which means you are unable to access a public bus

The service is available to all eligible passengers which could include parents with young children, teenagers, students, the elderly, the retired and people with disabilities.

To find out more, and to register for the service, click here: https://www.travelsomerset.co.uk/slinky-services-demand-responsive-transport/

Planning a journey in Somerset?

A new one-stop travel information website has been launched by Somerset County Council to support more local people to access public and community transport.

If you do not own a car - or you want to leave it at home and travel more sustainably, Think Travel can help you with your transport options. Whether it is getting to the doctors, shops, travelling to work, college, or school, or just into town to meet friends or family, the new travel planner shows you what is available. It covers public transport, community transport, the Slinky demand responsive transport service and car sharing.

To start your search, all you need to do is enter your journey start point and destination in the planner and Think Travel will find the available options for you.

As well as information on train and bus services, there is also a dedicated car sharing notice board you can sign up to, where offers or requests for car sharing journeys can be posted.

There is also more information on the various transport services, public transport disruption news and a mapping tool to see what transport services are operating in your area.

The aim is to grow this facility and encourage local car sharing networks to evolve.

You can check out Think Travel using the link below:

https://somerset.thinktravel.info

It was great to speak to many of you at the Bridgwater Active Travel Day and a big thank you to those who responded to our questionnaire about your travel habits.

If you weren’t able to attend but are interested in sharing your thoughts in our questionnaire, please find the online version here: https://buff.ly/3sYK6tX

By completing the questionnaire, you’ll have the opportunity to be entered into our prize draw to win a £100 St John Street Cycles voucher!

Do you want to get more active by increasing the amount you walk or cycle?

If you've answered yes, then you will want to be at Bridgwater Town Hall between 10am and 3pm on Saturday May 21st for their Active Travel Day.

The day is being jointly organised by the Bridgwater Area Cycling Campaign (BACC) and Bridgwater Town Council (BTC). The town mayor will be opening the event, which is due to be attended by a variety of different organisations including; local transport groups; cycling groups; guest speakers, and much more. There will also be refreshments and children's activities.

The day promises to be informative and educational, and will inspire you to get more involved with active travel.