School Travel Plan Success

We are delighted to share that 4 of our Birmingham schools have been nominated for the 2021/22 Modeshift STARS National School Travel Awards. This follows their recent success in achieving Modeshift STARS accreditation for the work that they have done to promote walking, cycling and other forms of sustainable travel for the journey to school. Of the 3,500 schools that are signed up to Modeshift STARS, they are 4 of just 73 schools across the country that have been nominated for the awards.

All nominated schools from our area are invited to attend the Modeshift STARS Regional Awards. This is a fantastic opportunity to thank them for their hard work and to celebrate their amazing Modeshift STARS journey. The event will consist of a 1-hour, online webinar, and will culminate with the presentations of the Modeshift STARS 'School of the Local Authority' and 'School of the Region' awards. The winning 'Schools of the Region' will be invited to London to represent their region at the in-person National STARS School Travel Awards event that will take place in June.

Modeshift Business Conference

Find out what your workplace can do to be more green and reduce transport related pollution. The Modeshift STARS Business Conference: 'Supporting the journey to Net Zero' is back as a live event on 31 March. A fantastic line up of speakers, including representatives from Birmingham, will share best practice in promoting active and sustainable travel. Register your place today on the Modeshift STARS website!

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Current Works

Sprint

Work is taking place on the A45 in Birmingham to prepare for the introduction of Sprint, a bus priority corridor linking the A45 with the A34 creating one continuous route connecting Walsall, Birmingham, Solihull and Birmingham Airport.

From Thursday 17 March 2022 surfacing works will be carried out, requiring the closure of the Small Heath bypass for three weekends as follows:

• from 8pm on Thursday 17 March to 6am on Tuesday 22 March – full closure from Poets Corners to Heybarnes Circus outbound towards Birmingham airport.
• from 8pm on Thursday 24 March to 6am on Tuesday 29 March – full closure from Poets Corner to Bordesley Circus inbound towards Birmingham city centre.
• from 8pm on Thursday 31 March to 6am on Tuesday 5 April – full closure from Bordesley Circus to Poets Corner outbound towards Birmingham airport.

Delays are expected and closures will be in place on sections of the Small Heath Highway from Thursday to Tuesday each weekend. Please plan ahead and allow more time for your journey. You will still be able to get to where you need to go but you will need to consider alternative routes. Try walking or cycling shorter journeys if you can. Visit Transport for West Midlands for more information and the latest travel advice.

Rail Engineering Works

Essential engineering works are being delivered over the Easter (16 - 18 April) and May Day (30 April - 2 May) Bank Holiday weekends this year, severely impacting journeys across the West Midlands Railway and London Northwestern Railway network. You can find a full summary of planned disruption on the West Midlands Railway website.

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Cycling

West Midlands Cycle Hire

West Midlands Cycle Hire celebrated their one-year anniversary last week. People using the hire bikes have cycled for more than 90,000 miles and covered 550,000 kilometres during this first year!

eBikes are also now available across the region. With less effort you can now travel further and quicker; making cycling even more fun! Find out more information on the West Midlands Cycle Hire website.

Free Cycle Racks

Organisations can still apply for FREE cycle racks through Transport for West Midlands and Park That Bike. Be quick as there is a limited amount of cycle parking available.

Love to Ride

Love to Ride are holding a Ride Anywhere Week from 21 to 27 March. They are challenging riders to pick a pledge from the list below and complete it within one week. During the challenge, simply ride your bike and log the rides and you'll automatically be entered into the a draw to win amazing prizes like a £500 voucher!

You can choose one of four pledges, including:

• Ride for health and fitness
• Ride for transportation
• Ride for adventure
• Ride with kids

You will receive helpful tips, tricks and tools to help get you riding towards glory!

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Clean Air Zone 6-month report

An interim report has been published on the impact of the Clean Air Zone providing evidence that the levels of the air pollutant nitrogen dioxide are reducing in the city centre. It covers the first six months of the CAZ in operation and since the launch there has been a steady improvement in compliance rates in all vehicle categories that are subject to charge.

Read the report on the Brum Breathes website.

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Commonwealth Games

Get Set For The Games

Get set for the games is the overarching campaign that will ensure the city and region can continue to function and thrive in the lead up to, and during, the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. It will ensure that Birmingham and the West Midlands are fully prepared to welcome the 4,500 athletes and the 1million visitors from around the world in July 2022.

Get set drop-in sessions are taking place this week and will offer all the information you need to be prepared, including:

• temporary road closures and diversions
• parking controls and access permits
• travel advice
• security and safety information
• Advertising and Trading Regulations under the Commonwealth Games Act 2020

More information can be found on the Get Set for the Games webpage which will grow over time and house useful information, advice and tips for residents and businesses.

Birmingham 2022 Festival

The Commonwealth Games cultural programme is starting this month and will keep going until the end of September. It starts with Wondrous Stories in Centenary Square as well as events in the Midlands Art Centre so explore the festival website and see what interests you.

Be aware that these events are ongoing and will bring more people to the city centre and surrounding areas. Therefore, make sure you plan ahead and check for disruptions on the Transport for West Midlands website before you travel. We continue to advise that you use walking or cycling as your preferred method of transport if you can.

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Electric Vehicles

Pay for Use

ESB Energy are installing more than 200 fast and rapid electric vehicle (EV) chargers (394 charge points) across the city. The chargers supply 100% renewable energy to EV drivers across Birmingham. The introductory FREE EV charging offer for Birmingham is coming to an end on 29 March and drivers will no longer be able to use non ESB Energy charger access cards. Drivers will instead need an ESB Energy charge point access card or an account on the EV Plug In app for all ESB Energy chargers. Find out more on the ESB Energy website.

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Have your say

Snow Hill Public Realm, Colmore Row/Livery Street Traffic Regulation Order consultation - This consultation is about the Traffic Regulation Orders associated with Colmore Row (East) and Livery Street. It forms part of the Snow Hill Public Realm programme to improve public transport interchange and connectivity, enhance the public realm and prioritise pedestrian movement, reallocate the unused on-street parking and encourage on-street activities. Consultation closes 17 March 2022.

Electric Vehicle charging point survey - This survey aims to understand the electric vehicle charging needs of those living in areas who have limited or no off-street parking. Consultation closes 1 November 2022.

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Dates for the diary

21 to 27 March - Love to Ride, Ride Anywhere Week - Find out what pledges you can take on the Love to Ride website.

21 March to 1 April - Sustrans Big Walk and Wheel - The UK's largest inter-school walking, wheeling, scooting and cycling challenge which aims to inspire hundreds of thousands of pupils to get active on the school run. Learn more about the challenge with Sustrans.

22 March - National Walking Summit 2022 - Living Streets' summit will look at how we can create truly inclusive streets for all and how we ensure marginalised voices are brought into transport planning and design. Book your place now!

24 March - An Introduction to WOW - the year-round challenge for Primary School - This is an online introduction to the walk to school challenge with Living Streets. Book your place via Eventbrite.

31 March - Modeshift STARS Business Conference: Supporting the journey to Net Zero - Visit the Modeshift webpage for more info and to book.

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Article posted 16 March 2022