Exciting news! Killearn Community Futures Company is very pleased to announce that it has been awarded a grant through Places for Everyone, an active travel infrastructure programme funded by the Scottish Government and administered by Sustrans, to create better walking, cycling and wheeling infrastructure in wider Killearn to foster more active travel and liveable neighbourhoods.
For more information about the project, see the infographic below:
Stay tuned for regular updates on the project!
What is Active Travel, you might ask? Well it’s all about getting around by walking, biking (regular or e-bikes) or wheels – easily and safely – from getting to school, to the shops, to visiting friends, going to the health centre or getting to work. And when we say wheels, we mean the likes of mobility vehicles or wheelchairs, not cars.
Having lived in The Netherlands for four years myself, where my children were born, I was used to this way of life, particularly the biking part. There, of course, other than the lie of the land (no hills like here), they also have a wonderful infrastructure of bike lanes and bike parking everywhere. It’s easy to leave the car behind and hop on a bike to do your daily activities. A bike kiddie trailer doubles up very well as a shopping carrier!
You may have heard discussions about the Sustrans project in the Courier or at Killearn Community Council meetings. It came about as we were discussing the path from the new Cala development to the village for a while, and the safety for people getting to the village and school. So, we (Community Council via Killearn Community Futures Company) were delighted when we were awarded Sustrans funding to look at stages 0-2, feasibility and concept design, of putting an active travel path there and how to improve active travel in the village in general.
Over the next few months we’ll be introducing you to the project and its aims to create a better active travel infrastructure in Killearn and more liveable streets. We look forward to speaking with you and finding out your views. In the meantime, please follow our page on Facebook and Instagram and do get in touch if you have any thoughts or would like to get involved via the form on the Contact page.
Written by Caroline Carrick, member of Killearn Community Council
The active travel path that Killearn Active Travel seeks to develop will provide a safe off-road route for the growing community south of Killearn to access Killearn Primary School and nurseries. The current path is sub-standard, and safety is an issue, so without an improvement to infrastructure, many people have to drive to access schools and nurseries.
The local school is very keen to reduce the amount of traffic outside school where congestion is a big problem and parking is limited. The school supports the development of an active travel path as a means to help achieve this. For many years the primary school has encouraged journeys made by bike or foot which this active travel path will allow the growing community South of Killearn to make.
The active path will encourage and support the families and children to make everyday journeys to the primary school and nurseries by walking, wheeling and cycling, by offering a safe, attractive route, away from a busy roads, that joins the village at a much safer 20mph area.
It will also link the area south of Killearn to the village where another Sustrans active travel path to Balfron is planned and where Balfron High School is located, providing an off-road route also to the high school.
The Killearn Active Travel project aims to increase the number of everyday journeys around Killearn made by walking, wheeling, and cycling by linking the growing community and facilities in the south of Killearn with Killearn village and its amenities via a safe, attractive active travel path.
Giving the community the opportunity to travel safely between these two areas away from the busy A & B roads will help improve the health and wellbeing of those living and working locally, while also helping the environment by reducing the number of journeys made by car.
The project aims to provide the community south of Killearn with an off-road path to walk, wheel or cycle to public transport links found in Killearn village. Local people will be able to reach the primary school and village facilities and amenities on foot or on wheels, reducing the need for car journeys to local facilities and community amenities where parking is limited.
There is currently no safe active travel route for walking, biking and wheeling between the growing community to the south of Killearn and Killearn village.
The community to the south of Killearn continues to grow at pace with an additional 89 houses currently being built in the new CALA development, alongside amenities including a hairdresser, bike shop, garden centre, cafe, art centre, and access to the West Highland Way.
Killearn village is the location of many community activities and amenities including Killearn Primary School, shops, the village hall, kirk, park, health centre, chemist, tennis courts, and transport links to Glasgow and Stirling.
Access between Killearn village and the area south of Killearn is either by busy roads or via a sub-standard footpath that is not wide enough to safely accommodate families with children walking to the primary school, or those who wish to cycle or wheel to the village.
Parking in Killearn village, in particular around the primary school where congestion is a big problem, is very limited. There is no public transport to link the two areas, or for those in the area south of Killearn to travel further afield as buses run from Killearn village.
An attractive, safe off-road route between the south of Killearn and Killearn village would link these two areas of Killearn. A fit-for-purpose path will encourage more regular walking, biking and wheeling for everyday journeys for the growing community. The Killearn Active Travel project is working towards the realisation of this change.
Killearn Active Travel