We want to encourage and enable more people to walk for pleasure in Greater Manchester. Walking has many benefits – health, neighbourhood, climate change, well being – and is simply fun!

A couple of years ago Transport for London, TfL, published a strategy for leisure walking. It set out a plan to “enhance, improve and expand opportunities to walk for pleasure in London.”

https://content.tfl.gov.uk/leisure-walking-plan.pdf

Ramblers believe that is something that should be adopted in Greater Manchester to complement and support the Active Travel commitments.

The London strategy builds on what it calls the Walk London Network - the London Loop and Capital Ring and some of the green routes that link in with them. They then spell out a range of principles for maintaining and expanding the network.

For us in GM, we now have the Ringway and there are a range of other locally promoted green routes that could be a starting point to build a GM Walking Network. There would also be a set of key principles that partners would endorse to take the strategy forward.

Follow this link to a note setting out our ideas in a little more detail.