On the 15th February 2016 the Department for Transport (DfT) invited local authorities to bid for a share of £20 million revenue from the Sustainable Travel Transition Year (STTY) Fund.
On the 29th March 2016 the West of England authorities (Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire) submitted a bid to the DfT for £2.2M from the STTY fund. If granted, the funding will support a range of behaviour change initiatives and services, promoting sustainable travel in the region and building on the achievements of the Local Sustainable Travel Fund project.
The programme put forward by the West of England authorities focuses on two principal areas: ‘Stimulating Growth in Enterprise Areas (by supporting sustainable business growth and access to work and skills) and Transitions to Low Carbon Lifestyles, encouraging more active and healthier communities and schools.
The programme looks to exploit the premise that where there is a change in travel behaviour (i.e. through disruption to the highway, new transport options, people moving home) there is an opportunity to influence habits and embed sustainable travel patterns.
The full bid is provided below.
Sustainable Travel Transition Year Fund 16/17 West of England Bid Download pdf PDF approximately 14 M
Leaders across the West have welcomed greater investment through today’s Spending Review, with a record three-quarters of a billion pounds of transport funding confirmed for the West. That means better buses, more trains, and mass transit – with trams and much more on the table. The Treasury has also today confirmed plans to improve rail links between Bristol and Cardiff.
The second phase of a project - to reduce congestion, improve the reliability of buses, and promote active travel along a major transport route in Bristol - will get underway from Monday 16 June 2025.
That’s summer sorted. Children and young people under the age of 16 are set to be able to travel for free on buses across our region during the school holidays, thanks to new investment proposed by the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority.
Bristol’s first electrified bus depot was opened on 3 June 2025 by a government minister and the West of England’s new mayor.
Leaders across the region have today welcomed more than three-quarters of a billion pounds set to be invested in transport projects in the West. The Chancellor has announced plans to more than double investment in local transport in England’s city regions, committing to “investment in all parts of the country, not just a few.”
