Major cycling upgrades are on the way in Salford – and campaigners say they could change the way people get around the city.
A total of £9m is set to be spent on different schemes to improve infrastructure for people to travel around Salford.
A £5m scheme is set to start this spring to create a new protected cycleway along Oldfield Road between Chapel Street and Regent Road, known as the Oldfield Road Corridor.
The plan includes a new signalised junction at Liverpool Street, giving pedestrians and cyclists their own dedicated facilities to use.
Funding for the work has come from a mix of pots, with developers contributing around £1.1m along with cash from the Department for Transport via the Active Travel Fund programme.
There are also plans in the pipeline for upgrades at the junction of Chapel Street and New Bailey Street, with continuous cycle tracks and footways giving pedestrians and cyclists priority over side roads, improved crossings, and landscaping improvements.
Campaigners say cycle lanes on Oxford Road are boosting active travel in Greater Manchester.
The council said the work for this part of the plan will cost £3.8m and make the city a safer place for those choosing to cycle or walk.
Active travel campaigners have welcomed the plans, saying they will help reduce congestion on the roads by giving those who would normally drive more options to get around the city.
Harry Gray from the Walk Ride GM group said: “It’s in the city centre of Salford so it’s quite transformative really for a place that’s growing in population, there’s a lot of people moving into flats here who don’t have a car and desperately need this infrastructure.
“We’ve got a housing crisis, we need more places to live, and Salford and Manchester city centre are building more flats.
“It’s quite a good success story and a model for other cities to follow and copy, and part of that is creating an alternative to driving.”
Mr Gray added that building more cycling infrastructure in Greater Manchester has proved successful and helped put more people on bikes – a key aim of the work planned in Salford.
“If you look at the Oxford Road cycle lane [In Manchester] usage figures, that’s been record breaking year on year, over a million journeys in a year,” he added.
“It shows that this infrastructure takes a while because you’re not building for the journey for today, you’re building for the journeys for tomorrow.
“It’s going to take a few years before people make that jump from driving to cycling or walking. But there’s no reason we can’t have an Oxford Road all over the city.”
Other projects taking place in Salford include the landmark Salford Rise scheme – building an 11-metre wide and 220-metre long bridge across Frederick Road, described as a “safe haven” for pedestrians and cyclists navigating the city.
The work started in November and is set to finish in summer 2026.
Salford Rise is partially funded by £13 million from the government’s Levelling Up Fund, and is being created by the English Cities Fund (ECF) on behalf of Salford council.
There is also a plan to create a new walking and cycling route along the River Irwell from Salford Quays to Peel Park, developed in partnership with Salford, Manchester, and Trafford councils.
This aims to make the river a ‘safe and accessible’ place for getting around the city centre zones.
Salford council and Transport for Greater Manchester were contacted for comment.